3-D Printed House Offers Cheap Solution for Poor Worldwide

Imagine building a stronger, cheaper home in as little as 12 hours. That goal now appears feasible
that can be done by practice (doable, possible) with the help of a 3-D printer. A 3-D-printed home
was unveiled If you unveil something new, you show it or make it known for the first time in Austin,
Texas, during the South by Southwest (SXSW) technology conference and music festival.
At 35 square meters, the prototype A sample or model made to test something home was
successfully printed in a neighborhood near downtown Austin during a rainstorm, as strong winds
kicked up dust in the area.
The goal is to print homes in developing countries during extreme weather conditions and amid
surrounded by the unpredictability of having electricity and water.
“We work with really the poorest families in the world that don’t have shelters,” said Brett Hagler,
founder and chief executive officer with the nonprofit organization New Story.
“The magnitude importance of something of the problem that we face is so big, it’s about a billion
people that don’t have one of life’s most basic human needs, and that’s safe shelter,” he said.
The 3-D printer is transportable because homes are printed on site. At full speed it could be as
little as 12 hours to print a house. Building a traditional New Story home would take 15 days.
A 3-D-printed home is also less expensive.
“Traditional style on a New Story home is about $6,500 per home. We believe over time, we can
get the new home below $4,000,” Hagler said.
Jason Ballard, co-founder of ICON, a construction company that uses robotics, software and
advanced materials to build houses, said that a 3-D-printed house, “is a complete paradigm model,
pattern, template shift that has unbelievable advantages in speed, affordabi lity, resiliency
physical property of material that can resume its shape after being stretched or deformed -
elasticity, sustainability, waste reduction, you name it. This isn’t just a slight improvement. This
is a revolutionary great change improvement that I think is going to be quite disruptive gives
confusion or disorder in the industry.”
This new building technology will be brought to the world’s poorest first. New Story is working
with local nonprofits, governments and families to help fund these homes.
Questions
1. Where was the prototype 3-D-printed home built?
2. Who is Brett Hagler?
3. How long does it take to print a 3-D house?

Discussion
1. What are your thoughts on 3-D-printed houses?
2. Do you find it surprising that around a billion people globally lack safe shelter? Please explain
your answer.
3. Are you of the opinion that this technology will have a significant impact on the world's p oorest
regions? Why? Why not?
4. Do you agree that 3-D printing will be disruptive to the building industry? Why? Why not?
5. Do you expect 3-D printed houses to become commonplace in the near future? Why? Why not?
Further Discussion
1. Is housing affordable where you live? Please explain your answer.
2. Would you like to build your own home someday? Why? Why not?
3. What other industries or fields do you think 3-D-printing technology could be used in? Please
explain your answer.
4. Are there many homeless people in your town or city? Why do you think this is the case?
5. Do you believe that every government has a responsibility to provide housing for those who
cannot afford it? Why? Why not?