Amsterdam is Building 3D Printed House from Bioplastics

This news dates back from 2014

A huge printer heats the bioplastics to create streams of molten polymers. The streams are layered on top of each other to create the desired shape. The machine can construct building elements up to 5m tall. All components including the staircases, columns and walls are 3D printed. The large segments are slotted together to create the final structure.

This building will be the office of the company in the future but today it’s a big sandbox to test.

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3D printing is part of the fourth industrial revolution and will transform the construction sector. Most 3D printed construction projects use concrete, but we’ll move towards bioplastics in the future. Here ‘are the advantages of using bioplastics instead of concrete:

It uses less energy;
It has a lower carbon footprint;
it’s easier and cheaper to import and move around;
bioplastic can be shredded and reused if you make a mistake;
Bioplastic produces little waste when used for 3D printing in construction.

Hedwig Heinsman, co-founder of DUS Architecture said:

“On an average building projects you have about 25% material waste. With printing we really only use the material that we actually need.”

The architects believe in customisable prefab architecture to combine large scale industrial production with the advantages of tailor made production.

3D printing can also be used for large construction and infrastructure projects, such as bridges, etc. Steel joints will be replaced by bioplastics joints.