Building new flats - more important than ever

A rethink is required if the huge demand for housing in Germany is to be met as quickly as possible. Many adjustments can be made. We need new methods and materials, digitalised processes, deregulation, practical floor plans and government measures.

"The current situation offers the opportunity for a real turnaround in construction," says BFW President Dirk Salewski optimistically. "With deregulation, we can prevent the worst: The loss of skilled labour in the construction industry, the growing housing deficit and the rising number of company insolvencies. The real estate transfer tax should be greatly reduced or temporarily suspended, as it artificially increases the cost of building," continued Salewski.

The joint Collaborative Research Centre "Additive Manufacturing in Construction" at TU Braunschweig and TU Munich aims to usher in a new era of sustainable construction. Conventional construction processes are characterised by inefficient use of materials, high environmental impact and stagnating productivity. Against the backdrop of a growing world population and increasing demand for living space, the construction industry is reaching its limits. The question is: How can we create more living space and infrastructure with less material and fewer emissions?

Building must be rethought: 3D printing, also known as additive manufacturing, is the key digital technology for the construction industry. The technology not only enables the three-dimensional construction of components, but also the seamless integration of material and manufacturing process. The research results have the potential to fundamentally change the construction industry. The aim is to use 3D printing technologies to combine the requirements of economy and ecology and make construction more productive, environmentally friendly and affordable.

The new ideas are not utopian; some of them are already a reality. For example, ETH researchers have developed a process that enables an autonomous excavator to build a dry stone wall six metres high and 65 metres long. The walking excavator grips and scans each boulder to place it in the right position.

The future begins now and offers new opportunities in what is perceived as a time of crisis and upheaval.

(Photo: © Hardy S., Pixabay)