Photo: PERIWhile the USA and Canada have seen several 3-D printed buildings in recent years, in the USA all of these have been single-storey. In market terms 50% of all constructed single-family homes are in fact two storeys or more, underlining the importance of 3-D construction printing to go higher.
nidus3D recently accomplished this with the first two-storey 3-D printed building being completed in Canada.
Now,
PERI and
CIVE is following up with a two-storey building in the USA which also doubles as the largest 3-D printed residential building so far in the country. In both projects a BOD2 3-D construction printer supplied by Denmark-based
COBOD was used.
CIVE president Hachem Domloj said: “Having the opportunity to be the engineers and general contractor for the first multi-storey 3-D printed structure in the USA has been an honour. We can see how this technology and our team’s approach is providing the scalability for larger commercial developments. Collectively, we are changing the way our country builds, and paving the way for more affordable housing, higher structural integrity and faster building capabilities. The possibilities of 3-D printing are endless.”
The 4,000ft
2 project showcases the possibilities of 3-D printing technology, mass customisation, and design solutions that integrate conventional construction methods. With a hybridised construction method that combines concrete 3-D printing with wood framing; this approach allows the two material systems to be used strategically and aims to increase the usability of 3-D printing in the USA, where framing is one of the most common construction techniques.
Hybrid construction approachLeslie Lok and Sasa Zivkovic of HANNAH, said: “For the design of the project, we developed a hybrid construction approach that couples innovations in concrete 3-D printing with traditional wood framing techniques to create a building system that is structurally efficient, easily replicable, and materially responsive.
“The project also highlights the exciting design potential of mass-customised architectural components to meet homeowners’ needs and to simplify building system integration. These design efforts aim to increase the impact, usability, sustainability, and cost-effective use of 3-D printing for future residential and multi-family buildings in the USA.”
The building design is conceptualised as a series of printed cores that contain functional spaces and stairs. The spatial cores are connected by wood framing to produce an architectural variation of concrete and framed interiors. The project’s scalable design and construction process is applicable for multi-family housing and mixed-use construction. Using the COBOD BOD2 gantry printer, the project takes advantage of the 3-D printer’s modularity for its design layout.
Fabian Meyer-Broetz, CEO of PERI 3D Construction, said: “We are incredibly proud to not only showcase the possibilities of the BOD2 3D construction printer but also our extensive know-how in planning, engineering and 3-D printing on this project, which is the seventh and largest one we have 3-D printed so far. We are convinced that it will set new standards from a design as well as 3-D printing execution perspective and underlines our role as the forerunner for this new construction technique.”
PERI 3D Construction has an extensive record of advancing the implementation of 3-D printing in building construction. Using COBOD BOD2 printers, PERI has completed six projects in Europe and in the USA including the first 3-D printed home in Germany and Europe’s largest 3-D printed apartment building.
Philip Lund-Nielsen, co-founder and head of COBOD North America, concluded: “We are proud to see more and more buildings being 3-D printed with our BOD2 printer in North America as a consequence of our leading position in the market and the many 3-D construction printers that we have sold here. Our superior technology and leading position is illustrated by COBOD being the only supplier that has delivered 3-D printers for construction of multi-storey projects.”