People have cracked modular construction. A lot of construction of modern buildings is pretty cookie cutter, especially if the architect is on board to using pre fabricated elements.
Comment on 3D-Printed Houses Are Already Failing
masterspace@lemmy.ca 1 week ago
It really feels like the wrong technology for the job.
What 3D printing is great at is having one machine, that can produce a billion different parts.
i.e. with my one printer, I can print hooks, or replacement parts that no longer exist or custom organizer that fit exactly my stuff and situation.
It’s fantastic for printing a massive variety of low volume parts / one offs.
It’s not great at printing those things cheaply, or in modular parts (it can be done but it’s often not because it’s a lot of extra effort for one offs). Which in housing, people want cheap (because it’s the most expensive thing they’ll buy), and they want it to be adaptable and changeable.
If anything I suspect an actual housing revolution could come from pre-fab housing, made of a highly customizable and modular component system, but no one has cracked all the pieces require dto implement that yet.
HobbitFoot@thelemmy.club 1 week ago
masterspace@lemmy.ca 1 week ago
They can do pre-fabricated architecture, but they haven’t cracked it.
Current prefabricated construction (especially in the context of homes / housing) is still limited in terms of customization and/or requires a huge amount of manual architecture / engineering work, and the consumer facing customization software is still pretty garbage.
People still often use contractors because they want the level of customization they bring, even when off the shelf options are available.
SaveTheTuaHawk@lemmy.ca 6 days ago
They can do pre-fabricated architecture, but they haven’t cracked it.
Most new mid price subdivisions are pre fabs assembled on site.
Before people get excited by 3D printing YouTube videos, they should really learn what the current state of house manufacturing is.
The big costs are not the structure, it’s the land and infrastructure, utilities, sewers, roads, etc.
SpikesOtherDog@ani.social 1 week ago
My though is that they failed to understand concrete itself. Concrete works best as a monolith. Literally here, a single rock. As a laminate, it loses strength. From what I was reading, you can do concrete in multiple pours, but people were suggesting to ensure that the rebar stuck out enough between pours and then some other things like bonding adhesive and wetting the layers between pours.
I like the idea of automating the structure. Bricks can be laid as pick and place, and cement can be extruded. This creates a reverse centaur, IMO, where someone is watching the labor and becomes responsible for the quality.
The house is always going to need several different structures added: plumbing, electrical, insulation, HVAC, internal construction and facade, cabinetry, etc, etc, etc.
Being able to shit out as much of that as possible on the spot would save tons, but you still need electrical items whatever. 3D printing may not be the best solution for a house, but it might be a step to something better.
blackbeans@lemmy.zip 1 week ago
Which country are you talking about? Prefab parts are very common here in West and North European homes. Complete prefab houses too, factory made, very well insulated, using heat pumps and underfloor heating, built in plumbing and electrical systems. They do not use bricks but a combination of wood, steel, insulation materials and cladding and are built for a lifespan of around 75-100 years.
SpikesOtherDog@ani.social 1 week ago
Prefab houses are a thing here, too. I was still kicking around the idea of generating a house on site.
SaveTheTuaHawk@lemmy.ca 6 days ago
Americans have been buying single wide or double wide prefabs since WW2.
SaveTheTuaHawk@lemmy.ca 1 week ago
Most new subdivisions are assembled on site from prefab components like roof trellises.