Dubai, the largest and most populous city in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) has unveiled the world’s largest 3D-printed building barely three years after building the first 3D-printed building on the planet.
Standing at a height of 9.5 meters on an area of 640 square meters, the facility is already the Guinness World Record according to Dawoud Al Hajiri, the Director-General of Dubai Municipality.
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The building process
The building was constructed by use of an onsite 3D printing equipment which was locally manufactured, and materials such as adhesives, cement, gypsum, sand etc.
The materials were mixed and turned into a fluid then arranged in layers along a predetermined route mapped out by computer, similar to an inkjet printer. Those mineral-infused fluids solidify almost immediately into concrete, forming the digital model into a three-dimensional object.
The foundation for the structure employed both conventional and 3D printing methods, while the roof slabs were made of conventional materials.
Municipality officials said that they implemented MEP engineering principles in the building and that it has passed all the safety checks. They also mentioned that the building has all the amenities that are available in conventional buildings and that it shall meet the same durability.
Time and Cost-effectiveness
3D printed buildings are time and cost-effective compared to conventional buildings and they are also environmentally sustainable.
For instance, according to Al Hajiri a building of that size would take only three months of construction to complete at a cost of somewhere between US $21,782 to US $272,270 using 3D printing technology while using the conventional construction method it would take almost a year at cost of up to US $680,674.
The Dubai emirate aims to construct 25% of its future buildings using the 3D printing method and become a leading global center of 3D printing by 2030.
