Construction and works

Ihobe Eusko Jaurlaritza

OFAP

ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING FOR HIGHLY CUSTOMISED CONSTRUCTION SYSTEMS WITH CEMENT-BASED MATERIALS

Digital transformation is one of the main driving challenges for the architecture, engineering and construction industry, creating a unique opportunity for disruptive change in the construction ecosystem and a great opportunity towards a completely new way of delivering new services and manufacturing innovative products. Integrated digitalisation of projects faces new challenges in the construction sector more competitively, such as the customisation of projects, increased sustainability or the use of new technologies, as well as addressing the greater awareness of citizens and society regarding the need to reduce the environmental impact throughout the life cycle of products. Both IHOBE (in its Eco-design Sector Guide on Urban Furniture) and AFAMOUR (Spanish Association of Manufacturers of Urban Furniture and Playgrounds) propose strategic eco-design measures in the urban equipment sector, such as the incorporation of waste materials as additives or aggregates in concrete.

FHIMASA, a leading supplier in the construction sector, is leading OFAP, in which it has partnered with companies, such as the manufacturer of cement products, BIKAIN, the designer, manufacturer and installer of production stations, INALI, and the creative industry expert in 3D printing, ESTUDIOS DURERO, as well as the TECNALIA Technology Centre.

FHIMASA
OBJECTIVES
  • Lay the scientific-technological foundations for the manufacture of personalised construction systems with cement-based materials applied to urban furniture.
  • Develop and validate a new Ecodesign service for unique parts, as a pilot in the laboratory.
  • Customise urban equipment through parametric design.
  • Reduce the use of raw materials by 20-60% through topological optimisation techniques.
  • Develop new robotic systems for additive manufacturing that enable any part morphology to be built without moulds.
  • Develop new printable formulations using at least 20 % secondary mineral resources.
RESULTS
  • New digital parametric models for the design of highly personalised urban furniture.
  • Eco-design criteria for complex non-structural building systems that reduce the amount of material used for their manufacture, maintain mechanical feasibility and durability, and reduce the cost of parts compared to conventional processes.
  • New formulations of cement-based materials for additive manufacturing that incorporate fine secondary raw material with mineral additions from the 0 to 4 mm fraction of Construction and Demolition Waste (C&DW), thus recovering a fraction that presents greater barriers to cycle closure in conventional processes.
  • New robotic cell for 3D printing of customised products with complex geometry.
  • 47% reduction in the carbon footprint of the printed solution compared to the conventional solution, representing emissions savings of 23 kilos of CO2 equivalent per bank (example taken as a case study).
  • 6.7 cubic metres water savings per bench, representing a 69% reduction in terms of water consumption.
  • 237 kg reduction in raw material extracted and 3.33 kg of waste sent to landfill per bank.
CONCLUSIONS
  • OFAP has been conceived to offer a new eco-design service for unique urban equipment projects with exclusive and customised design and low environmental impact, which will provide a competitive advantage to FHIMASA as there is no competition, and will enable the development of unique projects more efficiently in terms of time and costs thanks to the integrated digitalisation of the project.
  • The development of OFAP will enable the rest of the Consortium to offer its customers new innovative products with a lower environmental impact that will generate new business opportunities, diversify their offer, and strategically position themselves in a highly competitive market in which the possibilities of differentiating themselves from the competitors are scarce.

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