The Robots are here

The 3D Printing industry is changing everyday. The printer is leaving the box and are coming to us. Similar to my post about the bees and the spiders, the 3D Printer at MX3D is the robot, the robot is the printer. MX3D is using robots to print a bridge over water in the center of Amsterdam. Joris Laarman’s design is being created, not in the constraints of a typical 3D Printer but it is going onsite and outside the box.

Tim Geurtjens, CTO MX3D:
“What distinguishes our technology from traditional 3D printing methods is that we work according to the ‘Printing Outside the box’ principle. By printing with 6-axis industrial robots, we are no longer limited to a square box in which everything happens. Printing a functional, life-size bridge is of course the ideal way to showcase the endless possibilities of this technique.”

The bridge will be designed by Joris Laarman. That process using new Autodesk software will be a research project in itself. It will sync with the technical development and take into account the location. The project is a collaboration between MX3D, design software company Autodesk, construction company Heijmans and many others.

Many of our clients are looking forward to the time when buildings will be 3D Printed, not just concrete boxes, but real buildings with designs that are not limited to the current construction techniques, cheaper and faster. I think that MX3D has brought us one step closer to that dream. Visit MX3D Bridge for the whole story and videos illustrating the actual process.

I look forward to hear your thoughts. – Roger