This Home Was 3D Printed in Only 24 Hours and for Just $10,000

In Brief

•   A 38-square-meter (406-square-foot) house was 3D printed in 24 hours for a total cost of $10,000.

•   Apis Cor., the Russian company that constructed the house, says that a simpler house could cost only $223 per square meter ($68 per square foot).

3D printing is incorporating itself into our clothes, our medicine, and, now, even our homes. Apis Cor., a company dedicated to building the world with printing has built its first ever 3D-printed home in Stupino town, a region near Moscow, Russia.

Construction took only 24 freezing hours during December, 2016, through temperatures of -35°C (-31°F). The home, equipped with a living room, kitchen, bathroom, and a hallway, was made on-site, a world’s first for 3D-printed building constructed in that amount of time.

The total cost of construction for the 38-square-meter (409-square-foot) home was $10,000, including the expenses of work, materials for the construction, and furnishing. That’s $266 per square meter ($81 per square foot), but the company is confident that a square house with a simpler design and averagely priced material would cost only $223 per square meter ($68 per square foot).

The construction of the home was made possible by a mobile 3D printer. Once the mobile printer had completed the walls, it was removed with a crane manipulator to allow manual workers to come in and finish the job.

Apis Cor asserts that its method of 3D printing homes cuts 70% of costs compared to traditional methods. The company is prepared to help the construction industry pivot to 3D printing for future homes around the world.