Creators Forest Lake in Hamilton, New Zealand, makes history as the Southern Hemisphere’s first 3D printed commercial building. The building serves as an early childhood center, offering a safe, high-quality environment for children to run around in.
The challenge
CyBe Construction previously collaborated with their New Zealand-based partner QOROX, and now they were tasked with building the southern hemisphere’s first 3D concrete printed building for commercial use. The goal was to create a daycare center in Hamilton, using concrete panels for the walls. These panels were printed off-site, with 42 square meters of walls being printed in just 5 hours. What was particularly challenging about this project was that the general contractor, Iconic Construction, had originally planned on using timber panels for the walls. The switch to concrete printed panels meant that the construction crew had to adapt to a construction method they were unfamiliar with.
The takeaways
The collaboration between QOROX and Iconic Construction demonstrated how easily accessible 3D concrete printing is and how quickly one can become proficient with this technique. Iconic’s construction crew received three hours of training from experts at QOROX, after which they were able to assemble the project themselves. The crew could install 21 panels a day, with an average time of 22 minutes per panel. Iconic Construction’s director, Nick Lane, even mentioned that the construction crew found this new technique easier to use than the traditional methods they were accustomed to. Additionally, the project confirmed once again that additive manufacturing can save time and money. Even after changing from timber to concrete at the last moment, they managed to print and install the panels within days.
