Automating Construction: Enrico Dini's 3D-Printed Housing Solution

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A sustainable method of construction that happens to fall under the category of ‘green’ construction is the concept of 3D printing of houses and buildings. This is a decisive step towards the transformation of the construction industry from a labour-intensive to a technology driven one, the latter more popularly known as ‘automating’ construction. Traditional labour-intensive construction work requires a high labour intensity of course, but it also comes with associated safety risks, material waste, and lengthy construction durations. The idea of 3D printing is to effectively construct houses without the added costs and wastes. Enrico Dini, an Italian engineer, invented the concept of 3D printing concrete houses by binder jetting. He has become the pioneer of a revolutionary concept that can potentially transform the construction industry as we know it.

The process of 3D printing involves construction of the shapes through a digital file that describes the details of the object and recognizes its different facets. The actual construction is done using waste plastics, concrete, sand, resins, or other waste material. This method allows greater geometric flexibility and creativity which is difficult to follow in conventional construction practice. It is also more efficient in terms of the time taken for the construction cycle to complete. In terms of labour, this method uses only computer controls and mechanized operations so the need for manual labour is reduced drastically. Along with that, so are the safety hazards. Perhaps the most important benefit of such an invention, is that it is more environmentally friendly as it uses less consumption and energy than a typical construction process. Natural materials are used in an organic manner that is both cost-effective, non-polluting.