a 3D printing process developed at ETH zurich has been used to produce nine individually designed concrete columns. the fabrication process — demonstrated in the video above — allows the production of concrete elements without the need for any formwork. in addition, one-of-a-kind designs with complex geometries can be fabricated in a fully automated manner. hollow concrete structures are printed in a way where the material can be strategically used only where needed, allowing a more sustainable approach to concrete architecture.

robots 3D-print nine different concrete columns without any formwork
image courtesy of benjamin hofer, digital building technologies

 

 

in collaboration with the origen festival in riom, switzerland, the installation ‘concrete choreography’ consists of nine 2.7-meter-tall columns (8.9 ft). each column is concrete 3D printed at full height in 2.5 hours with the process developed at ETH zurich, with the support of NCCR DFAB. students of the master of advanced studies in digital fabrication and architecture explored the unique possibilities of layered extrusion printing, demonstrating the potential of computational design and digital fabrication for future concrete construction.

robots 3D-print nine different concrete columns without any formwork
image courtesy of benjamin hofer, digital building technologies

 

 

computationally designed material ornament and surface texture exemplify the versatility and significant aesthetic potential 3D concrete printing holds when used in large-scale structures. framing and informing the dance performances of the 2019 summer season in riom, the project showcases how technological advancements can bring efficient and novel expressions to concrete architecture.

robots 3D-print nine different concrete columns without any formwork
image courtesy of benjamin hofer, digital building technologies

robots 3D-print nine different concrete columns without any formwork
image courtesy of benjamin hofer, digital building technologies

robots 3D-print nine different concrete columns without any formwork
image courtesy of benjamin hofer, digital building technologies

robots 3D-print nine different concrete columns without any formwork
image courtesy of patrick bedarf, digital building technologies

robots 3D-print nine different concrete columns without any formwork
image courtesy of keerthana udaykumar, digital building technologies

robots 3D-print nine different concrete columns without any formwork
image courtesy of axel crettenand, digital building technologies

robots 3D-print nine different concrete columns without any formwork
image courtesy of sofia michopoulou, digital building technologies

robots 3D-print nine different concrete columns without any formwork
image courtesy of angela yoo, digital building technologies

 

 

project info:

 

credits: MAS DFAB in architecture and digital fabrication | ETH zurich
teaching team: ana anton, patrick bedarf, angela yoo (digital building technologies), timothy wangler (physical chemistry of building materials)
students: antonio barney, aya shaker ali, chaoyu du, eleni skevaki, jonas van den bulcke, keerthana udaykumar, nicolas feihl, nik eftekhar olivo, noor khader, rahul girish, sofia michopoulou, ying-shiuan chen, yoana taseva, yuta akizuki, wenqian yang
origen foundation: giovanni netzer, irene gazzillo, guido luzio, flavia kistler
research partners: prof. robert j. flatt, lex reiter, timothy wangler (physical chemistry of building materials, ETH zurich)
technical support: michael lyrenmann, philippe fleischmann, andreas reusser, heinz richner
supported by: debrunner acifer bewehrungen AG, lafargeholcim, elotex, imerys aluminates
research supported by: the NCCR digital fabrication, funded by the swiss national science foundation (NCCR digital fabrication agreement #51NF40-141853)
one column in numbers: column height: 2.70 m; print-path length: 1600 m; print-time: 2.5 h; print-speed: 180 mm/sec; layer width: 25 mm; layer height: 5 mm