Tenants of the First Ever Dutch 3D Printed Home Are Moving In
On Friday, April 30th, the owners of the first ever Dutch 3D printed home have just received its key. Situated in the Eindhoven neighborhood of Bosrijk, the house is the first of five within ‘Project Milestone’. The home is the result of a joint construction and innovation project of Eindhoven University of Technology, Van Wijnen, Saint-Gobain Weber Beamix, Vesteda, the Municipality of Eindhoven and Witteveen+Bos. The Dutch 3D printed home complies to the strict building requirements of the Netherlands, while still keeping an entirely original design thanks to the freedom of form enabled by concrete 3D printing.
The house consists of 24 printed concrete elements, each printed layer by layer, in around 120 hours. These elements were then transported by truck to the building site and placed on a foundation. Finally the house was provided with a roof and frames, and the finishing touches applied. The home is a detached single-story house, that boasts a net floor area of 94 square meters, a spacious living room and two bedrooms. The building itself is shaped like a large boulder in keeping with the location’s aesthetic. It also possesses extra thick insulation and a connection to the heat grid, means that home is highly comfortable and energy efficient, boasting an energy performance coefficient of 0.25.
Thanks to 3D printing technology, the construction of the house successfully conquered several other feats. For example, in overcoming the challenge of 3D printing inclining walls, the door has been opened to a completely different kind of construction. Bas Huysmans, CEO of Weber Benelux, notes, “With the printing insulated and self-supporting wall elements curved in three planes, we’ve taken important steps in this project in the further development of 3D concrete printing in construction. Together with all partners, we’ve completed a challenging process and realized a very special home. I think that we’ll soon be able to proudly add the Milestone houses to the list of iconic projects in Eindhoven.”
While the first Dutch 3D printed home possesses only one story, the next homes in the series will have multiple floors. As such, the technique will require further development. Erwin Kersten, Regional Director South, Van Wijnen, comments, “With the realization of this first Milestone home, Van Wijnen has once again demonstrated its leadership in the field of industrialized construction. Together with our partners in the chain, we’re constantly looking for new techniques and material applications that contribute to sustainability and affordability. Innovations like Project Milestone are enormously important to this.”
It was also thanks to concrete 3D printing technology that the home was built far faster and with a lot more flexibility and personalized designs, than it would have been with traditional construction methods. Moreover, the technology offers a far more sustainable construction solution, and has real potential to solve the housing crisis. According to Pieter Knauff, Chief Investment Officer, Vesteda, “3D concrete printing’s freedom of form creates an enormous new scope of possibilities in the design and experience of a home. At the same time, this new technique contributes to the required sustainability in the construction industry, the acceleration of building production and the control of construction costs, which is much needed in order to continue building affordable homes.”
If you want to find out more information you can read the full press release HERE. What do you think about the first ever Dutch 3D printed concrete home? Let us know in a comment below or on our Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn pages! Sign up for our free weekly Newsletter here, the latest 3D printing news straight to your inbox!
*All photos courtesy of 3D Printed House
