Canadian 3D construction printing company nidus3D has constructed the first multi-storey 3D-printed building in North America.
Nidus3D used the BOD2 printer from COBOD, the world’s leading company in 3D construction printing solutions, to construct the two-storey building in Ontario. The technology has already been used to 3D print the first two- and three-storey buildings in Europe.
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The BOD2 can print with real concrete with a particle size of up to ten millimetres and 99 per cent based on locally found raw materials. COBOD developed the low-cost solution, which is called D.Fab, in cooperation with the cement giant Cemex.
The two-storey house will have a studio on the ground floor and a residence above, with a total floor space of 214 square metres. One of the new, innovative methods that nidus3D developed during the project was a horizontal beam 3D-printed on site and lifted into place by a crane.
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Nidus3D hopes to continue to work with COBOD to address the current housing gap in Canada. The two companies believe that this new way of building will be a game-changer for the country’s housing crisis.
‘We have a critical shortfall of skilled labourers and a massive and growing demand for housing all across Canada,’ said Ian Arthur, a co-founder of nidus3D. ‘So, if we do not begin to look at new ways of building, we’re never going to catch up. It is part of our core values to seek solutions to address the housing crisis and to help build affordable housing with the help of 3D printing.’
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One of the many advantages of 3D concrete printed houses is that they can be built quickly. The complete building took only 80 hours to print, down from 200 hours for the first building that nidus3D constructed using the BOD2. The company is convinced that future buildings will be erected even more quickly.
‘Our technology and 3D construction printers enable faster execution of construction projects, as well as more efficient construction at lower cost due to the lower labour requirements and usage of low-cost concrete,’ said Philip Lund-Nielsen, co-founder and head of Americas at COBOD International. ‘COBOD’s 3D construction printers have been used all over the world, and while this two-storey building in real concrete is a first and a great success for us in North America, the worldwide success of our technology proves the wide-scale applicability of our technology.’