Here are our industrialized construction updates from February 2023.
Automatic Construction, an NYC startup, was one of eight 2022 Construction Startup Competition winners. Alex Bell, the co-founder, presented the company’s concrete building solution at the competition’s Pitchday in October 2022.
Bell’s and Tyler Robins’s company produces inflatable concrete formwork in a factory and transports it to the building site. The formwork consists of an outer house form and an inner shoring form.
On the site, ready-mix concrete is pumped between the molds that contain the necessary pre-installed reinforcement and spaces for openings. At the same time, the air is pumped out.
A design software plugin generates the digital design of the formwork.
From months to hours
The startup claims its solution builds structures “in minutes, not months.” In addition, the prototypes have shown a 30% decrease in construction costs.
Bell firmly believes in concrete construction: “The future of construction is concrete. It doesn’t burn in wildfires; it doesn’t rot after hurricanes. It’s the second most used material on earth. It’s everywhere.“
However, he does not see 3D printing as a feasible solution: “3D printing has been around for 25 years for buildings. It continuously underperforms. It’s more expensive than traditional. It’s not the solution our industry needs.”
Sustainable and industrialized
Bell points out that their solution is sustainable. There’s zero jobsite waste, the buildings are airtight as the PVC house form is left in place, and they can use zero-carbon concrete.
The inflatable formwork is a “semi-industrialized” solution. Every design can be unique, which would probably not be cost-effective in panelized concrete prefab production. Automatic Construction’s technique applies to infrastructure construction as well.
A gold medalist
The jury of the Construction Startup Competition liked the pitch and the solution. They awarded one of the four gold medals to Automatic Construction.
You can read my interview with them and other gold medalists on AEC Business.
FROM AEC BUSINESS
Introducing the Gold Medalists of the Construction Startup Competition
The 2022 Construction Startup Competition winners presented their solutions at the Pitchday during Procore´s Groundbreak conference in New Orleans. Of the eight winners, Automatic Construction, Carbon Limit, Exodigo, and Soil Connect took home the gold medals in their category. I had a chance to chat with their teams after the results were announced.
INDUSTRIALIZED CONSTRUCTION NEWS
Could this inflatable factory reinvent construction?
Cuby’s inflatable factory can fit in about 20 shipping containers, enabling them to be moved to a new site and set up as a functioning plant within days.
Modular electric rooms are the new normal
As the market demand for these systems across the U.S. grows, MERs continue to offer many positive impacts for projects and data center owners.
Chinese modular construction gaining recognition around the world
A new hotel in Silicon Valley will be built with modules constructed by Chinese CIMC Modular Building System. More than 100 prefabricated module-themed building projects have been launched across the world by the company,
Rebar robotics firm Toggle adds another $3M to its fundraising tally
Toggle makes robots that bend rebar, the steel skeletal reinforcement you find in all heavy construction. It now has added another $3 million to its coffers as part of a Series A Extension.
Why is 3D printing still flat in commercial construction
According to a Buro Happold executive, building codes — not capabilities or design — are holding the technology back.
Robotics firm Kewazo gets a $10M lift
Kewazo’s Liftbot, which two workers can install in 20 minutes, saves 70% of man hours in scaffold assembly, the company says.
Swarms of robots: the future of underground construction?
The University of Birmingham has teamed up with HyperTunnel, a startup that successfully trialed building a 6-meter-long structure for Network Rail using automated construction.
Robotics: Automating the Job Site
Robotics: “Our goal isn’t to reduce labor,” saysTrent Mostaert of Mortenson. “The real goal is to accelerate how quickly we build solar projects. We want to get more out of the labor we have.”
View the original article and our Inspiration here
Leave a Reply