3D printing has been around for a couple of centuries. However, it has just now started to take off in popularity from 2012 to 2014 with the rise of more accessible tools. This technology is finally making it into the traditional construction industry, and there is very strong evidence that it is here to stay.
Article Breakdown
3D Printing Houses Are Cheaper
The cost of the house can be half as much as an average house in the same area that is a similar design. The affordability stems from the production cost being only $10,000 from the total material. To top it off, the main expenses are from the doors, windows, cabinets, and floors, not the walls. There is essentially no labor cost as well since the business owners are the ones performing the work. There is an initial investment, however.
The main bottleneck is that the 3D printer owners have to make an initial investment and build their business from the ground up, making them hard to come by and the waiting list long. Without these bottlenecks and more capital, these projects would be highly scalable, lowering the price much more.
3D Printing Houses Won’t Displace Jobs
There are around one million employed construction workers in the United States out of the 155.76 million people total employed in the United States. That means that construction workers make up around 0.6% of the total jobs in the United States, not due to lack of demand. The contractors generally need more workers to capitalize on the high demand in the 2021 housing market. This labor shortage will leave room for there to still be jobs in the construction industry, especially the residential market.
Introducing this technology will also generate more revenue for the businesses, allowing growth for small up-and-coming businesses that want to invest in 3D printing. These businesses will be able to employ more skilled labor and invest in training with that additional revenue. These businesses will increase the demand for different employees with more strategy, software, and engineering traits. The employees with these traits will gain jobs and gain better jobs with increased pay because of their skills and the demand market potential for these 3D printing businesses.
Increases Affordable Housing And Disaster Relief
There will still be customers who prefer traditionally built homes with wood and brick. Even if those markets are taken, these 3D printing businesses can enter other markets where they have a competitive advantage. They will be able to enter disaster relief and affordable housing markets. Entering these markets will lower the disaster relief cost.
The ability to print houses in 3 days with proprietary concrete mixes, these businesses can build extremely durable homes quickly and affordably. It will not only help families that need an affordable home soon from their previous home being destroyed, but it will also help protect those homes in the dangerous areas from being destroyed again.
By being quick and affordable, these businesses can also provide affordable housing to those in need. This access to affordable housing will lower mortgage payments, increasing the buying power of the United States.
It Takes 3 Days to 3D Print A House
The businesses can print the 3D printed houses in two to three days with a three to four-person crew. This production speed allows a lot of flexibility for production. It also allows them to make more houses quicker to fulfill orders on competitive dates or react quicker to natural disasters or philanthropic projects.
The speed is due to the standardization of the entire project. The building process is as simple as laying one layer on top of the other, lowering the amount of planning and moving parts that slow down the process. The lack of human labor required is another reason the construction can be completed quickly, lowering the number of errors, managing, and clerical work.
The only reason the process may be held up is because the state legislature needs to say it is livable. General contractors would need to obtain or renew their contracting license and so would their crew. Without the right people and the right regulation setting, the process can be slowed down dramatically.
These factors that slow down the building process may soon become irrelevant, though. Entrepreneurs and workers are realizing it only takes a contracting license to make good money in this business and for the regulation to be changed in favor of affordable housing and disaster relief benefits.
Conclusion
Traditional home building will never go away because of how prevalent it is in today’s economy. Still, there is a massive opportunity for 3D printing technology to add value to a lot of people, and it is only getting started. You can expect more innovation to be made and more 3D printing services to gain traction.