Dar Al Arkan, the leading real estate company in Saudi Arabia,has marked a regional first with the introduction of the first 3D Construction Printing (3DCP)technology that will accelerate the speed of construction while enhancing safety and reducing wastage and errors.

Launched in collaboration withthe Construction of Buildings on Demand (COBOD), Dar Al Arkan is leading the transition of the industry towardadvancedandsustainable buildingpractices, and complementing the goals of Saudi Vision 2030 to support economic diversification and digitisation.

Unlike traditional home-building methods, 3DCP cuts the construction time by more thanhalf, is more flexible and requires less manpowersinceit takes only three workers to build one house. This, in turn, also contributes to decreased Lost Time Injury, creating a safer workplace. Additionally, less concrete is needed to complete a buildingmaking the technology more sustainable and a viable solution for a low-carbon construction industry of the future. For consumers, the combination of theseadvantages ensureslower costs and more affordability compared to traditional construction.

As 3DCP increases the accuracy of construction, there will be less repairs and rework too, helping save long-term costs and adding to the value of the property.The technology is also very important in insulation and reduces the cost of electricity bills. A combination of reduced waste of construction materials, less need for repair or rework and low on-site LTI incidents will enable highly cost-efficient project management than traditional construction.

The first 3D construction printed house will be ready by Q4 2021 and will be located in the Shams Ar Riyadh project.

Ziad El Chaar, Vice Chairman, Dar Al Arkan Properties, said: “Our goal is to develop the Kingdom’s realestate sector by integrating the latest trends and technologies, drawn from global bestpracticesto enhance our industry locally and deliver on the objectives of Vision 2030at many levels.The introduction of 3D construction printing will revolutioniseour approach to construction and enable us to focus on greater flexibility of design, strengthen productivity and achieve higher cost efficiency. This will raise the industry standards, achieveexcellence and position the Kingdom as aleader in this sector, while making us highly competitive in 3DCP technology.”

Henrik Lund-Nielsen, Founder & General Manager, COBOD, said:“The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia represents the largest potential market in the Middle East for our disruptive 3D construction technology and many large end customers in the Kingdom have been eagerly awaiting, that the technology became available via an established local company. Therefore, it has been very important for us to team up with the right Saudi partner for the deployment of our technology. We are very pleased with the fact, that such an important and influential company as Dar Al Arkan have chosen to partner with us. We look forward to working with them and to assist them with assuring the success of the 3DCP technology in the Kingdom.”

Capable of printing three-story large scale residential units, 3DCP is based on the Gantry System, which consists of anagile large scale frame structure that supports the printhead, along an X/Y axis. The printhead can move in various directions to lay a special strong and sustainable concrete formula in a specific pattern based on a predetermined digital design of a home or a buildingdirectly on site.

The 3DCP extrudes concrete layer by layer across three dimensions until the whole frame structure is complete without the use of formwork or any subsequent vibration. Due to its computerised features, the 3DCP produces the highest quality EU certified structures with almost zero error and waste.

The printing structure takes two days to set up, only one day to dismantle, and is capable of printing up to one metre of concrete in just one second making it ideal to build residential communities in record time.Additionally, the printing structure can be optimisedto print units of different sizes, furthermaking it extremely effective and efficient building method for the construction sector.

The technology will revolutionise how customers buy their homes in the near futuregiven thatvery soon they will be able to select from various digital building designsand simply authorise the printing of their home with a click of a button.