3D Printed Hemp Homes

The 3D printing of buildings as well as hemp-panelled homes are among the green building trends sweeping the world.

Thanks to pioneering technology, an Australian company, Mirreco is planning to roll out 3D-printed hemp homes that could transform residential and commercial buildings.

A Perth-based biotechnology company envisions a world where “the dire consequences of global warming will not be realized since we have taken action”.

Mirreco has developed innovative, carbon-neutral hemp panels for residential and commercial building. These can be 3D-printed into floors, walls and roofs.

The fast-growing plant hemp absorbs large amounts of CO2, making it an environmentally friendly and efficient building material. It’s the merger of hemp and 3D printing that gives them the edge. 

In addition to its potential use, hemp’s associations, and confusion with marijuana have attracted considerable attention. Since the first fibre of hemp was spun over 10,000 years ago, hemp has been used to various degrees.

Since then, its uses have continued to multiply as it continues to prove to be an incredibly versatile material, including for 3D printing.

The panels are “structurally sound, easy to produce, and provide superior thermal performance” in comparison with traditional building materials.

“Just imagine living and working in buildings that are 3D-printed and available to move into in only a matter of weeks.”

Applications of 3D Printed Constructions

This sort of low cost sustainable approach to construction is perfectly suited for the following and more.

• The social housing sector,
• Indigenous and regional communities,
• Mining Camps,
• Accommodations in case of emergency
• Homes for residential use,
• Acoustic panels for roadside use, office partitions, and industrial pallets are all commercial applications.
  

In a project described as “Aussie ingenuity at its best,” the company recently unveiled a hemp home concept designed by Perth-based Arcforms.

“The floors, walls and roof will all be made using hemp biomass, and the windows will incorporate cutting-edge technology that allows light to pass through glass where it is converted into electricity.”

Mirreco

It was recently announced that Bosrijk, A town in the south of the Netherlands, will host the world’s first inhabitable 3D-printed houses.

Five concrete houses will be built as part of the project’s milestone, and the first residents should move in as soon as next year.

In its final stage, the project will be carried out by a consortium of partners and spearheaded by Eindhoven University of Technology. Developers have described the project as a “game changer” that could “stimulate 3D building” all over the world.

“With this technology we can do things we couldn’t do before. In design, for instance, we can create shapes that normally can hardly be made, and that if they can be made, are only produced in large quantities. But here we can do unique industrial custom-made work.”

Professor Theo Salet

These distinctive Stonehenge-like houses are built with minimal waste by a robot that prints layer after layer of concrete.

“It’s important to think like the end-user. An end-user wants a nice house in a nice location. Now we’re able to use that technology to create a beautiful house, a place you want to live in and come home to.”

Rudy van Gurp – Consortium Spokesperson

The sheer scope of possibilities for 3D Printed sustainable designs are endless, as are the applications for such a positive step in the future of architecture and sustainability.

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