The beginning of the construction industry’s adoption of 3D printing technology can be traced back to the 1980s. It wasn’t until the 21st century that the technology started to be used to create full-scale buildings; prior to that, early experiments in 3D printing construction focused on creating small-scale structures and prototypes.
Behrokh Khoshnevis’s life-sized 3D printed house, which he created in 2002, is widely regarded as one of the earliest and most significant examples of 3D printing in the construction industry. This project, which utilized a custom 3D printer in order to print the walls and other structural elements of a house, demonstrated the potential for 3D printing to revolutionize the way in which we construct things.
Since that time, 3D printing technology has continued to advance, and a growing number of businesses and organizations have begun employing it to construct larger-scale buildings, such as homes and other types of structures. Even though 3D printing is still a fairly new technology in the construction industry, it has the potential to significantly alter the way that we construct things in the not too distant future.
About the Author: Reynaldo Santana
Author, Ph.D. Candidate in 3D Printing Construction, Ted Talk Speaker, 3D Printing Consultant & Mastermind Group Creator.
References:
“3D Printing in Construction: A Review” (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5878185/)
“The Role of 3D Printing in Sustainable Construction” (https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0959652619309456)
“Contour Crafting” (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Contour_Crafting)