Additive Manufacturing in the Construction Industry:
Getting Beyond the Hype
Mitch Pryor 2William O’Brien 1 Raissa Ferron 1
Salvatore Salamone 1Maria Juenger 1 Carolyn Seepersad 2
1 Dept. of Civil, Architectural, and Environmental Engineering (CAEE)2 Dept. of Mechanical Engineering (ME)
Patricia Clayton 1
The University of Texas at Austin
EXPECTATIONS
TIME
The Hype Cycle
Peak of Inflated Expectations
Plateau of Productivity
Slope of Enlightenment
Trough of DisillusionmentTechnology Trigger
• First-generation products• Lots of customization needed• Mass media hype begins
• Negative press• Company failures
• 2nd-generation products• Best practices developing
• High growth• 20-30% adoption
Gartner’s Hype Cycle for 3D Printing, 2016
Macro printing
3D Printing in ConstructionThe Hype The Reality
EXPECTATIONS
TIME
Peak of Inflated Expectations
Plateau of Productivity
Slope of Enlightenment
Trough of DisillusionmentTechnology Trigger
• Embrace “low-hanging fruit”
• Fill gaps in current construction technologies
• Learn from AM advancements in other sectors
Realistic Expectations
Novel Forms
Dead Cholla cactus
Evilldesign.com
ARUP
Forms in construction:
Forms in nature:
Nonstructural Components
www.constructionmanagermagazine.com
Aesthetic 3D printed cladding
Skanska
3D Printed Molds
http://additivemanufacturing.com/2014/10/30/stratasys-and-worrell-accelerate-medical-device-development-with-3d-printed-injection-molds/ www.freefab.com
Process-Structure-Property (PSP)
Safety & Reliability
Standardized testing, reporting, & databases of large-scale AM parts are critical!
(Example from Sandia National Labs)
Property Uncertainty
Boyce et al. (2017)Load EffectResistance
Structural Design
Thank you!
