Technology which positively impact construction industry - 3D printing

The manufacturing industry has always had an appetite for technology. From big data analytics to advanced robotics, the game-changing benefits of modern technologies are helping manufacturers reduce human intervention, increase plant productivity and gain a competitive edge.

Sophisticated technologies, such as artificial intelligence, the internet of things and 3-d printing among others, are shaping the future of manufacturing by lowering the cost of production, improving the speed of operations and minimizing errors. Since productivity is critical to the success of a manufacturing plant, every manufacturer is expected to make significant investments in these technologies.

Here is the technologies that are positively impacting the manufacturing industry.

3d printing

The manufacturing technology employing computer numerical control (cnc) is also known as subtractive manufacturing, which is a way to remove excess parts of raw materials for a final product through cutting, grinding, corrosion and melting. . In contrast, 3d printing, called additive manufacturing as well, is an advanced technology that combines layers of printed material into three-dimensional entities using a computerized numerical control model. In short, 3d printing is the process of layering and superimposing to produce three-dimensional objects without the need for moulds.

Advantages :

Strengths of 3d printing technology in construction industry

Resource-saving:

In terms of labour, most of the 3d printing of buildings uses computer control and mechanized operations, which saves human resources to a large extent;In light of materials, 3d printed buildings form at one time, without the need for mould support and mould removal, which reduces the consumption and waste of material resources; given the construction period, 3d printing technology greatly retrofits production efficiency compared with traditional construction techniques, and can achieve a reduction of more than 50% of the construction period ,shortening the investment recovery period; in point of cost, the cost of 3d printers to print complex components is generally no more than the cost of making simple components, i.e., there is almost no cost increase.

Safety

In the process of 3d printing construction, operators only need to manipulate the computer to complete most of the work, without having to enter the construction building to work at any time, significantly reducing the probability of accidents.

Environmental protection

There is almost no environmental pollution such as noise, dust and intense vibration during the printing process.

Flexible design and customization

The shape of the product constrains traditional construction techniques and the tools used, but 3d printing technology can dispense these limitations to meet the needs of the builder and also allow designers to give full play to their creativity. It can easily print out building curves that are difficult to achieve in other ways, making the building function and shape more innovative.

Accuracy

By following the preset computer program and constructing layer by layer, artificial errors can be largely avoided, and the quality of the finished product can be guaranteed.

Immediacy

3d printing can be carried out according to the actual demand, thereby reducing inventory, and at the same time, it can be formed at one time without assembly, which can realize the immediacy of printing to delivery.

Applicability of extreme conditions

Extreme conditions refer to severe cold, high temperature, and weightlessness, which lead to severe difficulties in human activities, and where traditional manufacturing processes cannot be implemented any more. At this time, 3d printing technology can fully replace the manual operation and execute the construction of building entities under extreme conditions.

References:

APPLICATION AND RESEARCH ON BUILDING 3D PRINTING - WENJIE LUO1*, XINCHEN MA1 ,JIAN YIN2

Trends in Advanced Manufacturing Technology Innovation, Olivier de Weck1