Advantages & Disadvantages of 3D Concrete Printing

Advantages:
1. Cost-Effective

The biggest advantage of 3D printing in construction is its relatively affordable rate.

When compared to traditional construction methods, 3D printing requires less time,
manpower, and other resources. While traditional construction techniques always
involve several men on the job site to complete the project — this is not the case
with 3D printing. As a result, it eliminates the need for unskilled labor or skilled
workers and thus, expenses like labor costs are considerably reduced over using
conventional build methods. House building costs usually become a huge burden on
the individual’s pocket. Plumbers, painters, carpenters, electricians, and other
professionals have their own rates per hour which can cost you more than you
expected. These professionals don’t completely make up for their professional fees
but are just parts of your total construction expenses. 3D printing’s revolutionary
technology is here to help lower your expenditures in these areas when constructing
your home.

2. Saves A Lot of Construction Time

The use of 3D technologies in construction has a huge advantage over traditional

construction. The use of this technology can drastically cut down the amount of
time that is required to construct a building from months to just a few weeks
sometimes. This can be especially useful in emergency situations where many
structures need to be built quickly such as after earthquakes or some other type of
disaster. 3D printing can build objects layer-by-layer out of plastic or other materials.
It’s much faster than traditional construction methods and offers more customization
in a more sustainable manner.

3. A Variety of Design Choices

Since the late 1980’s, architects have discussed the possibility of building with
concrete and especially printing concrete buildings possibly even from one printer.
Today, these ideas are becoming low-cost realities. 3D printing is a big emerging
technology that will radically transform the construction industry so it is no surprise to
see a number of prominent construction companies beginning to explore this new
capability. Recently, innovations in 3D printing have allowed concrete to be printed
into complex shapes. This means designers can make new and exciting shapes.
Structures made using 3D printing are sometimes referred to as “additive” because
they are built up in layers.
Disadvantages:
1. Limited Materials

A lot of people don’t realize that there are already machines to print fully functional
houses, but they are only limited to printing out a house’s concrete and plastic parts.
Buildings which need wood beams and steel would not be able to use the 3D printer
to complete those portions of the construction process.

2. Leaves A Negative Impact on Manpower

It’s been predicted that 3D printing technology will help make the building process
faster, cheaper, and easier. But it won’t be the same for everyone; the simple
construction workforce working around the world will have nowhere to go when they
lose their jobs to automated machinery. It’ll mostly affect skilled manpower, as they’d
have to learn how to use new technology to find employment if they choose to stay
within that sphere of industry. Thousands of jobs will become redundant and millions
of people will lose their source of income. Millions more may suffer from
unemployment due to the lack of resources provided by conventional jobs, such as
construction work. The problem can be averted to only a certain extent by workers
shifting towards other work that is not automated or technology-based. But
ultimately, automation is inevitable, and it’s starting with the construction industry.

The technology is still in its infancy and it will take some time before property
developers can create 3D printed houses that are comparable to those produced on
traditional building sites. When the time comes, we might see the construction
industry going through some changes to adapt to this new technology.