By Katlego Sekhu
The 3D printing technique is a new technology that has taken the construction industry by storm. It can build a house in less than 24 hours.
This machine mixes the concrete, designs the house, and then builds it. South Africa recently completed its first 3D-printed house in just over 8 hours at the University of Johannesburg.
959 Breakfast with Dineo Ranaka and Sol Phenduka spoke to SA Housing and Infrastructure Fund CEO and founding member, Rali Mampeule, about this new phenomenon.
South Africa is one of the African countries at the forefront of this. Mampuele believes before the end of the year, “we will get the necessary approvals and we will be able to print the house.”
Affordability
The SA Housing and Infrastructure Fund has “sponsored about 10 postgraduate students who are doing PHDs in 3D printing, concrete, cement, and other elements that have to do with the printing of a 3D house,” adds the CEO.
“Research shows it’ll be “20% less compared to the traditional brick-and-water house.”
The future of jobs in construction
Mampuele notes that in as much as people are worried about their jobs – “there are opportunities to create jobs in other sectors within the same 3D print.”
This new technology will “need people to manufacture the same 3D print and create opportunities for women to be interested in the actual construction work.”
In closing, the SA Housing and Infrastructure Fund (SAHIF) hopes this will “be one of the channels to resolve the crisis on housing.”
Read Next: Kaya Biz: The pros and cons of buying a development property vs an existing one
