3D Printing for Construction in the Transformation of the Building Industry

As concrete revolutionised construction in the 20th century, digitalisation is transforming the building industry (BI). Process automation and 3D printing (3DP) are commonplace in the industry and our homes. However, due to BI’s scale and complexity, Additive Manufacturing (AM) is in its native stage. Ongoing scientific research has been providing knowledge that will simplify the integration of 3DCP in the market, exploring its materiality, technologies, and design methodologies. This book provides an overview of the latest research achievements of the design possibilities that 3DP for construction (3DC) can offer in the various fields of construction, particularly architecture and engineering.

Bárbara Rangel, assistant professor at the Faculty of Engineering of the University of Porto, is an architect with an MSc in Construction and a PhD in Civil Engineering. She started her career with Rafael Moneo and Álvaro Siza and began her own work in 1996. Her research covers architecture and engineering in integrated project design, 3D printing for construction and modular construction, around which she has published and edited more than 120 works.

Ana Sofia Guimarães, is an associate professor at the Department of Civil Engineering, Faculty of Engineering in the University of Porto. She specialises in building physics and technologies, pathology and rehabilitation. She has been the Coordinator of the ID Unit CONSTRUCT–LFC, and has also been involved in several projects, international books, chapters and papers. She has been the recipient of more than 20 pedagogical and scientific awards.

João Teixeira, an industrial and product designer and PhD student in Civil Engineering at the Faculty of Engineering of the University of Porto, has been working on the exploration of 3DCP textures in the construction sector. He explores the built environment from an interdisciplinary lens regarding the materiality and sustainability of 3DCP technology. Within this concept, he has published research focusing on the innovative development of industrial waste materials for 3DP.