Ohio State debuts state’s largest 3D printer
More than 200 people were present at a former Ohio State University horse arena on Thursday to see what some consider the future of construction.
They were able to witness workers demonstrating the state’s very first large-scale 3D “printer” for construction, which builds homes and other structures by applying one layer of concrete at once.
According to the participants, the process can be used faster than conventional construction and requires fewer workers. It can also help with the country’s housing shortage.
Stephen Davis, chief developer at Pantheon Innovative Builders Youngstown said, “You’ve got people earning $50,000, $60,000 a years who can barely afford to live in a place to call home.” “We must find a way that we can build faster.”
Pantheon has the printer called BOD2, manufactured by COBOD (Construction Of Buildings On Demand), which is the largest manufacturer of 3D printing machines in the world.
More:The 3-D printing industry is more advanced and agile? Copy this
Pantheon donated the machine to OSU last January as part of a partnership between the university’s Center for Design and Manufacturing Excellence. The goal was to find out how 3D technology can be best used in the real world. OSU officials plan to make the machine available to the public and to bring together experts from other departments in order to build a national authority on 3D printing.
Ben DiMarco is an additive manufacturing technologist at CDME and is part of the project. “Why not print concrete?”
DiMarco stated that he hopes the printer will be able to produce a small building on campus within the next few years.
How 3D construction printers function
The COBOD printer functions in the same way as other 3D printers. Material is extruded layer by layer from a movingnozzle.
The COBOD “prints with concrete” instead of metal and plastic. Each swipe of the arm deposits a layer of concrete, which allows a wall to slowly rise. Thursday’s walls were constructed of two concrete bands, each approximately 3 inches thick and spaced several inches apart. This allowed insulation to be pumped into their cavities.
After the walls are built, you can manually add windows, doors and flooring to your walls. Although the BOD2 is capable of “printing” buildings up 30 by 30, it can also be expanded to create buildings up to 75 by 75 feet.
More:New Albany graduate’s Form5 Prosthetics 3D printed face shields against coronavirus
OSU’s machine uses Quikrete mixed with other materials. However, DiMarco said that 3D printed buildings offer the possibility to use local material.
“The long-term future is to use locally sourced materials to make your own mix — sand, aggregate, things like that — and there’s research going on around world to use other materials such as fly ash, hempcrete or local clay,” he said.
Ryan Kelly, Pantheon CEO and founder, was asked by reporters Thursday about the cost of a 3D-printed home. He said that while no one knows for sure, he believed it would be around 40% cheaper than traditional construction.
Real world challenges
There are limitations to building buildings with 3D printers. It is not possible to build higher than one-story buildings. Roofs must still be manually installed and printers must remain on concrete footers.
These challenges have made 3D printing buildings in America largely a novelty. However, some companies such as Texas-based Icon have built many homes using the technology in partnership with Lennar Homebuilding Company.
Dale Nehls from Quikrete stated that Quikrete has used its material to “print” six homes across Texas, Virginia, and California. One of these homes is a two-story, 4,000-square foot home in Houston. Vincent Albanese, COBOD’s North American manager of Strategic Partnerships, agreed that the technology would become much more widespread.
Nehls stated, “I believe you’ll see it, not in one year but in many years to come.” “There is a purpose for this. … It’s the future.”
@JimWeiker