“We are convinced of the interest of the 3D printing technique for developing small concrete elements, the traditional production of which is generally time consuming. These techniques will improve the working conditions of our employees on the site, our productivity and ultimately our performance. "
Frédéric Gaurat, technical director at Spie batignolles
3D printing in buildings: a vast field of possibilities
Although 3D printing, or three-dimensional, was the subject of a very first patent filing in the early 1s, its development dates back above all to 80 with the printing of the first objects made from different materials such as plaster, plastic ...
If this technology begins to be used in the building sector, it mainly concerns at this stage the construction of small detached houses, or the printing of non-structural decorative elements. Nothing that has not yet allowed real organizational changes in the construction industry, a sector heavily faced with a labor shortage.
Spie batignolles takes up the subject to develop the use of this technique on its sites, with the desire to go further.
Spie batignolles initiates its first concrete 3D printing use cases
Spie batignolles has set itself the goal of using 3D concrete printing on replicable elements incorporated into the structure when this technique presents an interesting alternative to traditional methods.
Two examples of direct application of this new construction method: the formwork of complex beam nodes and the production of reservation boxes.
1-The nodes of beams on posts concentrate significant loads on small surfaces. In the design of certain complex floors, the final geometry of these nodes is very often unique: 3 or 4 beams, of different width, height and angle, must be keyed together on the same column. In the traditional method, the realization of the formwork of these works consumes single-use materials, time spent, it is done in several phases, and it is potentially a source of non-quality.
Based on this observation, the technical management of Spie batignolles was determined to find a solution that best resolved all of these problems.
In partnership with XtreeE, Spie batignolles designed, printed and then implemented the formwork for a beam node, incorporated into the structure, with a complex geometric shape, allowing the beams to be keyed on the column in a single phase.
“The first prototype produced at scale 1 on a node of three consequent beams enabled us to validate the process. This test met a majority of our requirements with very conclusive results. It encourages us to continue our developments in order to make this process even more efficient and to extend it to several projects from 2021. ”
Frédéric Gaurat, technical director at Spie batignolles
In this first case, the teams industrialize the formwork of the beam node “off site”. The use of the digital model linked to 1D printing allows the technical management to very quickly produce a unique complex part which will simplify the realization of the work on site.
2 - The reservation boxes are among the most basic forms generalized on a site. Traditionally made of wood, they are used to provide for the passage of the various electrical networks, HVAC and plumbing after casting the concrete walls. Although essential, their implementation does not require any particular technical expertise but causes significant time spent.
Spie batignolles and XtreeE have succeeded in printing reservation boxes ready in just 24 hours by using Ductal® concrete which has the advantage of drying very quickly and solidifying strongly. The boxes thus implemented are incorporated into the finished work and do not need to be removed.
The tests carried out on site made it possible to validate this application of 3D printing.
In this second case, Spie batignolles is industrializing “off-site” the production of series reservation boxes. Thanks to BIM, reservations are optimized (number, standardization of dimensions), and 2D printed boxes make it possible to do away with many tasks such as making the wooden box, removing formwork at height after pouring, or even evacuation. wood - made non-reusable - in the dumpsters.
Concrete 3D printing, a driving force behind the industrialization of the construction industry
In these 2 examples of applications of 3D printing, the final objective is to industrialize the act of building from design to implementation on the site, in the service of better performance. This new construction method leads to adapting the “tailor-made” or “large series” from the digital model. Each time, this process makes it possible to gain in safety (less work at height), in quality of realization (finished element incorporated in the structure), in time and in economic performance.
With the design of these first constructive elements resulting from 3D printing, Spie batignolles is fully committed to the era of construction 4.0 and continues to work on new developments bringing together the characteristics of recurrence, resistance, durability and safety.
"This new construction method opens up important perspectives and will participate in a profound transformation of our construction trades towards increasing industrialization, as its strengths are undeniable in terms of profitability, quality of construction, execution time and safety. . "
Frédéric Gaurat, technical director at Spie batignolles