Innovation

German Firm Builds Europe’s Largest 3D-Printed House

The project comprises 380sq m of living space in five apartments.

Updated on

December 4, 2020

PERI’s 3D-printed house. PHOTO | COURTESY

German firm PERI is printing a three-storey apartment block in Wallenhausen, Bavaria, Germany, in a project expected to create Europe’s largest 3D-printed residential building.

PERI, one of the world’s leading suppliers of formwork and scaffolding systems, said the five-in-a-block apartment complex with 380 sq.m of living space will be completed in six weeks.

Thomas Imbacher, Managing Director of Marketing & Innovation at PERI Group, stated that the project will strengthen the company’s position as a leader in 3D construction printing.

“By printing the first apartment building in Germany, we are demonstrating that this new construction technology can also be used to print large-scale dwelling units,” he said.

PERI is using the BOD2 gantry printer to undertake the project. The machine has a print head that moves about three axes on a metallic frame.

When 3D-printing a structure, the printer takes into account the piping and connections for electricity, gas, and water that are to be fitted later.

The BOD2 printer allows for manual tasks such as the installation of empty pipes and connections to be carried out during the printing progression.

The “i.tech 3D” material that is used to make the printable concrete was developed by HeidelbergCement specifically for 3D printing.

“The properties of i.tech3D are tailored to the specific requirements of 3D construction printing using concrete. Our material has excellent pumping and extruding characteristics and works perfectly with the BOD2 printer,” Jennifer Scheydt, Head of Engineering & Innovation at HeidelbergCement said.

Only two operators are required to run the 3D printer, with the print head and the print results being monitored in real time by a camera.

The BOD2 gantry printer, which has a speed of 1 m/s, is currently the fastest 3D construction printer in the market capable of completing 1m² of a double-skin wall in five minutes or so.