The world’s first 3D printed school has completed construction in Malawi, Africa. The project used a BOD2 printer from COBOD.
The 600-sf school’s walls were 3D printed in just 18 hours. The school will help attract more students and provide facilities for a country with a shortage of 36,000 classrooms. This shortage would take an estimated 70 years to build using conventional methods and speed.
COBOD’s BOD2 printer has also been used to create the first 3D printed buildings in Europe and the first 3D printed concrete wind turbine tower made for GE.
14Trees, a joint venture between LafargeHolcim and CDC Group that aims to accelerate the production and commercialization of affordable housing technologies, developed and built the project. Students first moved into the school on June 21.
Related Stories
| May 30, 2018
Accelerate Live! talk: Seven technologies that restore glory to the master builder
In this 15-minute talk at BD+C’s Accelerate Live! conference (May 10, 2018, Chicago), AEC technophile Rohit Arora outlines emerging innovations that are poised to transform how we design and build structures in the near future.
3D Printing | Nov 21, 2017
Europe’s first 3D-printed building has been completed
Construction ran a few weeks behind schedule, but the 3D printing wasn’t to blame.
Codes and Standards | Aug 8, 2017
3D printing industry working to implement standards for products, processes
Additive Manufacturing Standardization Collective (AMSC) will develop industry-wide additive manufacturing standards and specifications.
Accelerate Live! | Jul 6, 2017
Watch all 20 Accelerate Live! talks on demand
BD+C’s inaugural AEC innovation conference, Accelerate Live! (May 11, Chicago), featured talks on machine learning, AI, gaming in construction, maker culture, and health-generating buildings.
Building Team Awards | Jun 14, 2017
3D-printed office: Office of the Future
Dubai kicks off 3D-printing tech initiative with a novel office project.
3D Printing | Jun 14, 2017
This is the world’s first building completely 3D printed onsite
The building is a lab for research on drones and 3D printing technology.
| Jun 13, 2017
Accelerate Live! talk: Incubating innovation through R&D and product development, Jonatan Schumacher, Thornton Tomasetti
Thornton Tomasetti’s Jonatan Schumacher presents the firm’s business model for developing, incubating, and delivering cutting-edge tools and solutions for the firm, and the greater AEC market.
3D Printing | Apr 17, 2017
The Tokyo Pod Vending Machine resembles a giant game of Tetris in the sky
The building is designed to print and dispense its own dwellings in vending machine-obsessed Tokyo.
University Buildings | Oct 19, 2016
UC Merced to nearly double its size by 2020
Its growth strategy includes adding 1.2 million sf of space for teaching, housing, and research.
3D Printing | Jun 14, 2016
By 2021, 3D concrete printing is projected to be a $56.4 million industry
The 3D concrete printing industry is expected to more than double in size within the next five years.