3D concrete printing (3DCP) has caught the attention of Honeywell

“This is a small step for Honeywell, but a giant leap for the 3DCP sector”

3D concrete printing – particularly 3D printing of buildings, is not a new concept. Industry media have been describing this technology for a good 10 years. Nevertheless, during all this time, it remained more of a media curiosity. Implementations were sporadic, and practically each one was widely covered by the media, including mainstream outlets. However, it seems that we are currently witnessing a kind of turning point, and 3DCP (3D Construction Printing) technology is slowly entering a broader phase of adoption.

A year ago, the Danish company COBOD presented a report on the actual state of the 3D printing sector in construction. The numbers presented were quite modest... According to COBOD, as of March 2023, only 129 buildings printed on 3D printers existed worldwide. These were created at 105 different construction sites, with 51 of them (40%) being produced by COBOD machines. The second-largest company in terms of printed structures is the American company ICON, which helped create 15 buildings. Next on the list were China's Winsun, the Netherlands' CyBe, and France's XtreeE – each of which built five “3D buildings.”

But numerous press reports that have appeared since the publication of this report indicate that the above data is already outdated. 3DCP technology has begun to be heavily developed in the Middle East by companies from Saudi Arabia. Companies from Asia and the USA are also very active in this field. In Europe, too, there are more and more projects where 3DCP is being used.

And now it turns out that a truly major international player – Honeywell – is entering this sector. Honeywell is a multinational conglomerate headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina, USA, operating in four business areas: aerospace, building automation, performance materials and technologies, and safety and productivity solutions.

The company has now announced that its Solstice technology will help transform the 3D-printed residential construction industry through its collaboration with Mighty Buildings. Mighty Buildings will use Honeywell’s foam insulation to create panels used for building homes printed with 3D technology.

Honeywell's technology will replace traditional foam insulation, helping Mighty Buildings reduce CO2 emissions and produce durable, energy-efficient building panels. These panels will be manufactured at Mighty Buildings' production facility in Monterrey, Mexico. Currently, the facility has the capacity to print enough panels for two houses per day, and the total construction time for a 3D-printed home by Mighty Buildings often takes less than a week. Once completed, these homes require less energy for heating and cooling than those built using other commonly used foaming agents, as Solstice LBA provides better thermal insulation.

“This is a small step for Honeywell, but a giant leap for the 3DCP sector.”

The fact that a global construction chemical giant is taking the time to inform the public about entering into such a niche collaboration from the perspective of its operational activities shows that, despite everything, it sees some long-term potential in it. This is reminiscent of the times when global chemical companies supplying raw materials for the production of filaments, powders, or resins began to show interest in traditional 3D printing.

We may be witnessing something similar in the context of 3D concrete printing.

Source: www.honeywell.com