TEUGE – With the completion of the Preliminary Design and new artist impressions, the realisation of Europe’s first 3D printed building, De Vergaderfabriek in Teuge (G), has moved into an important phase. ‘In recent months, we succeeded in converting the draft design into a printable structure. The printed concrete is constructional, but at the same time, aesthetically pleasing. This is a crucial step for the testing phase and forms the basis for the development of the Final Design and the ultimate building permit application which will be submitted in August’, says Revelating’s Project Leader, Hugo Jager.

Jager goes on to call it an excellent result of co-creation and multidisciplinary consultation within the consortium. ‘We, and by that, I certainly also refer to the initiators Marjo and Arvid Prigge from De Slaapfabriek in Teuge, are ecstatic with the result and proud of what we have achieved together to date.’ The consortium working on the project consists of the top players in the Dutch 3D printing and construction industry, namely: The Form Foundation, Witteveen+Bos, CyBe, Van Wijnen, Engie, Revelating, Elma Media, Lexence Advocaten, De Slaapfabriek and Centre4Moods are supported in this respect by the Eindhoven University of Technology (TU/e) and Clean Tech Regio.

Vortex
3D concrete printing is an innovative development in construction with very few real-life examples around the world. The building form that will take shape in Teuge can certainly be called unique on all fronts. Never before have such round shapes been printed in concrete. Architect Pim van Wylick from The Form Foundation: ‘De Vergaderfabriek consists of a multifunctional, circular space that goes against the customary orthogonal arrays, or, the normal rectangular structure for meeting places. The building is omnidirectional and 3-dimensional and is characterised by a seamless and complex structure that could not or could hardly be built using traditional construction methods.’

Holistic design
Last week, the Preliminary Design was completed after an intensive period. The consortium held scrum sessions for this, with the involved disciplines, to identify all new processes, production methods and accompanying risks and to integrate them into one holistic design. Van Wylick: ‘The building’s main shape will be in printed 3D concrete for the most part. The advantage is that we can build the complex structure in a very short time span, with extreme precision. We also cut down significantly on the use of materials, because we only apply 3D concrete printing where the material is truly needed. Sections of the roof will be manufactured by robots, resulting in the building being largely fabricated directly from the digital (computer) model. The complex hybrid structure consists of unique elements that are built and assembled in an automated and/or robotised manner. In so doing, the building is not ‘just’ a showcase for 3D printing, but a holistic approach to an automated construction process in which disciplines, project phases and responsibilities are seamlessly interconnected.’

De Vergaderfabriek
De Vergaderfabriek is an initiative of De Slaapfabriek from Teuge (SME) and Centre4moods (startup). Printing in 3D means we emit 40 percent less CO₂ and generate 75 percent less waste. Due to this, in part, the building will soon sport a zero-footprint. Moreover, in so doing De Slaapfabriek introduces a new way for meetings and training sessions to take place, an experience concept with wall-to-wall videos, sound, scent and sensors in an iconic and sustainable building. In this case, a building and experience that matter.

For more information, visit: www.3dprintedbuilding.eu