﻿3D printing has been one of the most revolutionary technologies of the past
few decades, and it’s starting to make its mark on the construction industry as well.
With the ability to print complex shapes and structures in a matter of hours, 3D printing
has the potential to transform the way we build our homes, offices, and even entire cities.
Holcim, a Swiss cement manufacturer, recently printed 10 houses in 10 weeks in Kenya. They
used a COBOD printer and a proprietary material called TectorPrint. They are working to lower
construction costs so that 3D printed houses are 20% cheaper than traditional buildings.
ICON, one of the most popular 3d printing companies, has begun construction on a set of 100
homes in Austin, Texas. The 3 to 4 bedroom houses range from 1,500 sqft to 2,100 sqft and will
cost over $400,000. They are built with ICON’s Vulcan printer and their proprietary material
called Lavacrete. When completed, this will be the largest 3D printed community in the world.
Now, I have some reservations about the use of 3D concrete printing in construction which we
discussed in a previous video. Certain companies in this space have made questionable claims
and misled the public on their true cost and advantages. The use of proprietary materials,
expensive set up and dismantling and dubious building science claims are a few of the things
I'm concerned about. But I still believe in the value and potential of automation
in the construction industry. What if we are looking at the wrong type of 3d printers?
Is there a technology or machine that is superior to these liquid concrete printers,
but doesn’t get as much media attention? Hadrian X is a blocklaying machine invented
by Fast Brick Robotics in Australia. It builds structural walls, brick by brick, in outdoor,
uncontrolled environments. It produces far less waste than traditional construction methods,
while improving site safety. The robot can lay 200 bricks an hour, approximately 10
times faster than humans. FBR’s technology turns digital Revit models into CMU block
models to calculate the exact number and shape of bricks needed. They use precise, optimized and
rectified blocks made of lightweight aggregate concrete. Their blocks are 12 times larger
than standard house bricks which drastically increases the speed of construction.
These bricks are transported to the job site on the back of a truck. They are fed
through a huge telescopic robotic arm that can extend 25 meters or 82 feet.
A special construction adhesive that is twice as strong as mortar,
is applied to the ends of the brick. With the aid of a laser tracking head, the concrete blocks are
placed at a precise spot on the wall. The robot head is dynamically stabilized so it
corrects for any interference or vibration in the boom. The Hadrian X system can build the
structural concrete walls of a 4 bedroom, 2 bath house in just 29 laying hours.
You might be asking the same question I did when I came across this technology. Where’s the mortar?
Well, there’s no mortar used between the blocks and there’s no concrete in the voids. Traditional
CMU blocks have slight variations in dimensions. They are never identical. Mortar acts as a bonding
agent, but it is also used to level bricks and account for differences in height and length.
Fast Brick Robotics uses rectified bricks that are cut down to exact dimensions. They don’t need to
be leveled out. You can build 10 storeys by just stacking these bricks with construction adhesive.
Another advantage of using adhesive is that it dries in 45 minutes as opposed to conventional
mortar that takes days to dry. Buildings in areas that have high wind loads, like Florida,
need extra reinforcement. In those instances, the voids can be filled with rebar and concrete.
To build a 2 story home, FBR pours a concrete slab next to the structure and lifts it into place. The
Hadrian robot then continues to build the walls on top of this slab. Building homes with this robot
generates little to no waste. There’s no cutting on site, no silica dust and no messy job sites.
The robot can accept any type of brick, as long as it is within certain dimensional constraints.
It can “print” homes with blocks made of concrete, geopolymers, hardened clay, and other materials.
It’s important to note that the robot only builds the interior, structural walls of buildings.
Humans still need to install the windows, roofs, plaster the interior and exterior walls
or even build exterior brick facades. There are a couple of reasons why I think
the Hadrian system could be superior to the 3D printed liquid concrete system we see so
often. The first is the advantage of a robot arm over a gantry system. A gantry is the frame that
supports a printer head as it moves along the x, y and z axes. This frame takes time to set up,
it requires solid concrete footings, it needs to be perfectly level and it uses up space on
the job site. The Hadrian robot arm arrives at the job site on the back of a truck. It doesn’t
require additional concrete footings or time consuming calibration and it takes up less space
on the site. The long reach of the telescopic arm guarantees more flexibility and freedom of
movement. At the end of the project, it can simply be driven off the job site. There’s no dismantling
needed. I also realized that every time a gantry system is bolted together, disassembled and then
bolted together again at a different site, it goes through a fair amount of wear and tear. The
Hadrian robot arm doesn’t have those issues. Another concern with 3D printed liquid concrete
are building science risks like thermal protection and water management. I think we’re expecting too
much from a single layer. These printed walls are meant to provide structural support, insulation,
and act as air, water and vapor protection. Christine Williamson, founder of the building
science fight club, explains this really well. “This technology gives a cold joint every couple
of inches. So, what’s their strategy there? Has anyone done any testing on this? And how
are they addressing things like the window to wall interface?.. These walls have what appears to be,
like a 6 inch cavity that can be filled with insulation. Great. But a standard 2 by 6 wood
framed wall also has a 6 inch cavity for insulation. So, I’m having trouble
understanding how this approach could possibly provide improved performance, particularly
with respect to windows and doors.” The Hadrian robotic arm system only prints the hidden, inner
structural core. Insulation is a separate layer as are the air and water protection layers.
On a lighter note, the difference in appearance is another concern. I stayed at ICON’s 3D
printed house in Austin a while back. While it was impressive, there were certain quirks that can be
difficult to get used to. Tiny microfractures in the concrete wall, wobbly and uneven print lines,
rough joints at windows and doors and even dust collection on the layers. On the flip side, houses
built with the Hadrian X look like traditional houses, for better or for worse. It’s impossible
to tell the difference both outside the house and inside. This makes the technology adaptable to
different cultures and geographic locations. Before we move on to the final and most important
difference, cost, I’d like to introduce the sponsor of this portion of the video, Skillshare.
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Let’s end this discussion on the 2 types of 3d printing with cost comparisons. Both technologies
are more expensive than traditional construction because they are new, still working out the kinks
and trying to scale up. Both printers require precise floor slabs with only 3mm to 5mm of
variation which are a little more expensive. The custom bricks that the Hadrian robot uses are also
10% more expensive than traditional CMU blocks. In my opinion, the most important difference
between the 2 technologies is the mindset of the people behind them. I invited Mike Pivac,
CEO of FBR, on my podcast and I was so impressed with his realistic and grounded
approach. He didn’t make any outlandish claims about the Hadrian X robot and he understands
that cost is the ultimate deciding factor.
Fast Brick Robotics is automating the mundane,
repetitive and sometimes dangerous task of building structural walls.
The simplicity of their idea and well thought-out execution makes their technology so powerful.
I believe 3d printed liquid concrete has a role to play in the future of construction,
but I’m not sure if printing houses is the answer. Like I said in my previous videos,
it seems to be a solution looking for a problem. Ultimately,
both technologies are trying to address the growing problem of labor scarcity,
they are trying to reduce risk of injury, make job sites safer, and help us build faster,
cheaper and better.. I admire the passion behind both. Let me know what you think about these two
3D printers in the comments below. Also check out my entire conversation with Mike Pivac on
my podcast channel. It’s very enlightening. I’ll link it up here. I’ll also link my Patreon page
in the description. If you can support me, I’d really appreciate it. A big thank you to
everyone already supporting me and being patient with me. Don’t forget to hit that like button,
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