Here is Semilla, the first Latin American house printed in 3D in Chile

An innovative proposal made in Concepción, in the Biobío region, promises to redefine the way buildings are constructed.

It is about Seed house the first accommodation printed on 3D which occurred in Latin America.

The construction, inaugurated in October this year, is located on land owned by Aconcagua Real Estate, located in the Torreones neighborhood.

Casa Semilla is a 3D printed housing prototype that was funded by the National Research and Development Agency (ANID) through various projects.

It was developed by the hearing making group Bio-Bio University (UBB) as well as undergraduate and graduate students, who participated in their thesis work. Companies such as Cementos Bío Bío, SIKA-Chile, Tienda MK, Ventanas Tehmco and Revestimientos Isolcork have also collaborated.

The industrial robot played a key role in its development KUKA KR120 and Atenea-UBB, a large-scale industrial printer capable of printing layers of concrete with high precision based on a computer-controlled plan. This latest team, also created by UBB, is the first of its kind to exist in Latin America.

This house stood out for its innovative technology, but also for the speed with which it was built.

As explained in a statement by Dr. Rodrigo García, co-director of this project, In just 29 hours, printer Atenea-UBB managed to pour layers of concrete to create the walls of the house. This same process, with conventional construction methods, could have taken several days or even weeks.

It then took just two mornings to install the walls, once again demonstrating the agility of this technology. The house ultimately consisted of seven printed concrete walls and has a area of ​​30 square meters .

3D printing at home has many advantages. Among them is the one significantly reduces turnaround times, requires less labor for processes, provides flexibility in designs, optimizes resources and contributes to environmental sustainability by avoiding wasted materials .

According to García, it is also a effective solution to meet the demand for houses and helps strengthen national production through new designs and technologies to build both quickly and sustainably.

Claudia Muñoz Sanguinetti, director of research and artistic creation at UBB, assured that Casa Semilla was born after “six years of institutional experience in additive construction”.

“This pioneering project not only combines multidisciplinary capabilities, but also transforms traditional construction methods, effectively addressing quality, productivity and sustainability challenges in Chile and Latin America,” said Muñoz.

Experts say 3D printing in construction could change the industry by using other, more efficient and faster techniques.

“This is a very revolutionary technology because it changes the traditional way of building, where plans are made, products are offered, a large number of elements have to be purchased and the land prepared, which takes a lot of time. time. » Garcia told the agency Reuters .

The co-director of this pioneering initiative, however, recognized that it is a difficult change to achieve in its entirety and that in the Chilean case it must be adapted to characteristics such as earthquakes and climatic variety.

Casa Semilla will be open to the public for a year, so more people can experience the benefits associated with 3D printing in homes.