Amazing industrial 3D printer fits in a truck, can print an entire building in 24 hours

By Kelly Hodgkins Published October 14, 2015

Created by Russian engineer Nikita Chen-yun-tai, the new Apis Cor 3D printer is powerful enough to print a building in one day, yet small enough to be moved with minimal preparation and transportation costs. This portability allows users to print a building in one location and easily move the Apis Cor the next day to another spot. It promises to revolutionize the use of 3D printers in construction, especially in developing nations where low-cost, efficient printing is critical.

The 3D printing of houses is not a new idea — companies have been using the tenets of additive manufacturing for years. What makes the compact Apis Cor printer unique is the unit’s small size — it measures 16.4 ft by 5 ft, weighs 2.5 tons and can be assembled within 30 minutes. As a result, the Apis Cor can be moved easily without the need for an expensive method of transportation and setup. It requires no site preparation and no testing before use, which means it can be dropped on site and deployed right away after assembly.

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The Apis Cor prints from a single point and does not require any cumbersome railings that other printers use to move around the building site. Despite its single-point design, the Apis Cor has a printing zone of up to 630 square feet with no limitation on the height of the structure. It uses a swiveling extruder head that provides two plane printing at a single time. This design is incredibly efficient, offering a high speed of operation that can build a house in just one day.

It’s also ecologically friendly, using only 8 kilowatts of energy and producing no construction waste during building. The lack of waste is a huge benefit for both the builder who no longer has to worry about waste disposal and for the future homeowner who can build a house with no wasted material cost.

According to the team behind the printer, several investors are already interested in the Apis Cor, especially in areas such as China, South Korea and the Arab Emirates. Government and businesses in these areas are already exploring new technology for house construction, so it’s only fitting they would be interested in this cutting edge 3D printer.

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Kelly's been writing online for ten years, working at Gizmodo, TUAW, and BGR among others. Living near the White Mountains of…

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