2022 Shotcrete 3D Printing - Next Level AM

Project summary

The construction robotics company COBOD (DK), the automated reinforcement manufacturer MESH (CH), the general contractor Michael Rupp Bauunternehmung (DE) and the Institute of Structural Design (ITE) are jointly developing a novel robot-assisted building printing system called SprayBOD. This system enables additive construction of multi-storey buildings. ITE focuses on integrating its Shotcrete 3D Printing technology, particularly with new manufacturing strategies for embedding automatically produced reinforcement. Full-scale prototypes are used for validation.

The project brings together the necessary expertise to advance concrete 3D printing to the next level. MESH AG contributes with a robotic manufacturing process for geometrically customized reinforcement cages. However, the concreting process itself has not yet been automated. Therein lies the role of ITE with its extensive experience with Shotcrete 3D Printing, offering significant potential to enhance and integrate this process. COBOD’s large-scale 3D concrete printers enable high scalability but have so far been limited to unreinforced extrusion printing. Each of these components is innovative on its own, but their integration opens up new possibilities and shifts the current boundaries of additive construction. With practical expertise in building 3D printing, the construction company Rupp ensures that real-world demands are considered in the research, fostering the development of applicable and scalable construction technologies.

Key objectives include developing a fabrication-informed planning process, optimizing mesh geometries, automating filling and surface finishing strategies, and integrating these into a next-generation gantry printer system. The final outcome will be a full-scale demonstrator showcasing the system’s potential for scalable, automated, and application-oriented construction.