Peri and Strabag 3D print an office building in Austria

The leading position of Danish robot 3D construction printer company Cobod International A/S is further cemented day by day as more buildings are made with the 3D construction printers from Cobod. Last week, Cobod announced 3 new 3D printed houses in the US made with Cobod printers and now Cobod is again announcing a new building made with a Cobod printer, the first 3D printed building in Austria.

Cobod is known for developing and manufacturing the 3D printers that made Europe’s first 3D printed 1-, 2- and 3-story buildings and for doing affordable housing in, among others, Africa, and the US. Cobod has consistently insisted, that residential houses might not be the only application of its technology, and that other applications could potentially benefit even further from the new technology. Non-residential use cases include extra tall wind turbine towers, which Cobod is doing in cooperation with GE Renewable Energy. Now, with the announcement of the office extension building in Austria, it is clear that Cobod had offices, among others, in mind with the previous statements.

Henrik Lund-Nielsen, Founder & General Manager of Cobod International added: “We are thrilled to see the office project from Peri and Strabag come to life in Austria. Since our own 3D printing of the first 3D printed building in Copenhagen back in 2017, The BOD which is an office hotel, nobody else has picked up the gloves when it comes to 3D printing of offices. We hope that the office segment of the market with the Austrian project from Peri and Strabag will begin to adopt the technology on a larger scale. But why stop there? What about warehouses, retail outlets, and other similar applications?”

Wider acceptance of 3D construction printing and its potential

The Austrian project is also noticeable from another perspective. Most of the 3D printed buildings so far have been made by smaller disruptors, real estate developers, and start-ups. Large conventional construction companies, have for the most part been missing as customers of the new technology. One noticeable exception to this is L&T Construction, India’s largest construction company, that has been making buildings with Cobod’s printers. Strabag, one of the largest construction companies in Austria and Germany, now becoming involved in a 3D construction printing project, even for the erection of their own offices, may signal an important shift in the beliefs by the large established construction companies.

Klemens Haselsteiner, Strabag Member of the Management Board responsible for digitalization and innovation stated: “3D concrete printing gives the construction industry an important boost of innovation and represents an exciting addition to the range of available construction methods”.

On top of the new possibilities that 3D construction printing provides, Strabag also had other reasons for becoming involved with the new technology. Thomas Britel, CEO of Strabag SE added: “The severe shortage of skilled labor that currently prevails will remain with us in the future as a challenge that we have to cushion with two strategies: by investing in training, for example with our new Strabag Campus Ybbs, and by increasing productivity with new technologies.”

The 125 m2 (1345 sq ft.) office building is being 3D printed at Strabag’s asphalt mixing plant in Hausleiten using a special dry mortar supplied by Lafarge Austria. The office is the fourth 3D printed project executed by Peri in Europe. Peri’s other projects include a 2-floor private villa and Europe’s first 3D printed 3-floor apartment building with 5 apartment units. Thomas Imbacher, Director of Innovation & Marketing at Peri AG said: “Just under a year ago, we printed Germany’s first residential building using a BOD2 printer from our Danish partner Cobod. Since then, the Peri team has successfully realized several additional printing projects. Together with our partners Strabag and Lafarge, we are now bringing this new form of construction to Austria and are pleased to be realizing the first 3D printed office building in Hausleiten”.