14 DAY TRIAL // Most 3D printers you're likely to have read about are small things, cubes and trays that can fit pretty comfortably on a desk. There are machines that are much, much larger though. Some of them can even build homes.
A 3D printer capable of building houses is what we're going to look at today, here and now. Created by the WASP Group, it stands at 6 meters in height, or 19.68 feet.
That means that it can create a home pretty comfortably, at least a single-story one. And even one with a second floor should be doable, especially if you start to involve a crane and a raised platform. It all boils down to how creative the architects and builders can be.
“WASP” stands for “World Advanced Saving Project,” not the little brothers of hornets by the way. Their goal is to solve the population and housing problem of third-world countries.
They feel, rather justifiably too, that it's about time someone came up with a way to get them some sort of lodgings.
The new WASP home-building printer
The newest model, part of a steadily increasing line of Delta printers, is big enough to make homes spacious enough for whole families to take shelter in.
More importantly, it can use local soils to mix clay and print out large structures. Users and eventual owners literally have to pay nothing for the materials. Or if they do, only very little.
The best mixture is one that combines clay with sand and water in order to yield a compound which, once hardened, can withstand rain just fine, even for many years.
Sure, the water might start to wear at your walls and ceilings after five years or so, but you only need to add a 2-cm coating of clay (less than an inch) to restore the thickness and maintain integrity.
Obviously, the 3D printer won't be able to do that repair job, but it's not like it's supposed to. Just being able to produce a home is enough.
Speaking of which, a structure can take between a few days and a few weeks to complete, depending on how large and complex it's supposed to be. WASP even visited a city in Morocco recently, where they collected types of soil for their printer to use. After that, they spent a few days printing structures like the ones we saw back in July.
Near-term plans
The WASP Group has already impressed the locals, but they don't have the funds necessary to start printing homes in third-world countries. That's why, for now, they hope to sell 3D printed structures to individuals and businesses and raise the needed money. The MakerFaire, which takes place in Rome this weekend, will mark the start of those activities.
