WATCH: Work begins on Ireland’s first 3D printed houses

Work on Ireland’s first 3D concrete printed homes in Dundalk is well underway, marking the start of 3D Construction Printed (3DCP) social housing in the country. 

The Grange Close pilot project involves a unique collaboration between Louth County Council, Louth and Meath Education and Training Board (LMETB), Irish-owned company Harcourt Technologies Ltd (HTL.tech), and Roadstone Ltd, a CRH company using 3DCP technology. 

According an RTÉ News report, the innovative new method involves a printer on a ring moving in laps to create the walls of the building layer by layer. 

Each layer takes 18 minutes to lap the three-house block being built in Louth. 

In the report, a bystander said, “This is really exciting building a 3D concrete house, it’s like something out of the space age.” 

A builder told RTÉ: “It’s still a standard cavity wall construction, it’s just an automated process rather than a labour-intensive process or an off-site manufacturing process.” 

He said the overall finished product is “far superior” strength wise to the typical construction method. 

“Definitely, it’s gonna take off,” he said. 

HTL.tech formerly completed two 2-bedroom units at their R&D facility in Drogheda in a pilot programme ahead of the Grange Close project. 

Video: RTÉ News