Gulf Construction Online - JV to revive concrete casting techniques in 3D

Contractors

Concrete casting ...using 3D printed formwork.

JV to revive concrete casting techniques in 3D

01 August 2018

Consolidated Contractors Company (CCC) has partnered with the UAE-based Immensa Technology Labs, a top 3D printing company, to redevelop a series of concrete casting techniques with the aid of large-format 3D printing.

The ‘Sensorial Adaptive Concrete Screen’ showcases techniques that were once practised by skilled craftsmen but have not been revived through expert digital fabrication. It sheds light on 3D printing as the tool that will allow architects to become the master builders of the 21st century and enable direct control of the 1:1 production of their designs.

The ‘Sensorial Adaptive Concrete Screen’ was developed with NOWlab, the innovation department of Berlin-based BigRep.

Fahmi Al-Shawwa, CEO of Immensa, says: “This breakthrough signals the immense potential that 3D-printed formwork offers companies to significantly shorten and simplify their studio-to-site process. It brings proven concrete casting methods back to today’s building sites, renewed for the modern era and offering significant added value.

“This fulfils Immensa’s mission to drive innovation in the 3D printing industry and highlight the unique benefits of this manufacturing method to show how it can benefit companies in the construction sector. We are proud to have achieved a world first in our industry, which strengthens Dubai’s growing reputation as a global hub for 3D printing in line with the ‘Dubai 3D Printing Strategy’.”

The ‘Sensorial Adaptive Concrete Screen’ is made from 3D printed formwork produced on Immensa Labs’ BigRep One 3D printer. The sensor-embedded screen is activated by the simple touch of a hand on the outer surface of the concrete wall, and then turns on and off the functional 3D-printed hexagonal light fixtures in the grid.

Ready to be used without additional certification, 3D-printed formwork enables resolutions that cannot be achieved by 3D printing concrete. With large-scale 3D printing technology such as that of BigRep, companies now have the tools to produce required parts at grand scale.