How Much Money Could 3D Home Printing Save?
So, I have a few buddies in the construction industry in Florida, where the majority of new homes now are constructed with concrete block. As you may have read in the last few months there are several companies working on the 3D printing of the exterior walls of homes in concrete. One of these company's calls their method, Contour Crafting. I decided to obtain some data from my friends, to see just how much the possible savings would be for such construction.
The Facts:
- A typical home is 2500 square feet, with exterior walls around 14 feet high on average. This means we could just figure the average home in a square orientation would have 4 exterior walls of 50 feet a piece with an average height of 14 feet. this equates to 2800 square feet of concrete block exterior wall frame.
- The cost of labor for putting up such a wall would be approximately 295 man hours, equaling a payout of $13,500 - $15,500 depending on your exact location. Using a 3D printing apparatus would likely save at least 220 hours or 75% of the price = $9000-$11,000. - 9-11k for this
- The Cost of materials would be slightly more expensive, as bock is typically cheaper than a concrete pour which would be somewhat more solid. For a 2500 square foot home the typical cost of material is $4800. With the pour that would be printed you would assume the material would only cost $3,000 more, so +$3000 for this.
- Machinery. The 3D printer would have to be brought in, rented and set up which would likely cost $4k or so if it can be completed within 2 days. + $4,000
If my calculations are at all close, the 3D printing of exterior walls of an average home would save approximately $2,000 to $4000, while also saving up to 10 days in time.
Opinions or feedback is welcomed.
http://3dprint.com/wp-content/upload...03/contour.jpg
