3D is the Way to Be: The Future Of Construction Projects
Guest Blogger: Steven Clark is a graphic designer who transitioned to being a work-from-home dad last year, after his triplet boys were born.
Although we can use computer modeling, high-tension bindings, and cranes hundreds of stories high to build super-skyscrapers, construction technology has advanced less far than some might think. After all, the concrete we use today is a result of an invention dating back to the Roman Empire, one that the University of California claims lacked the strength of today's concrete only because our ancestors did not have reinforced steel. As we look forward to the future of construction, much will remain the same -- plans will have to be drawn, foundations laid, and so on -- but many new inventions will change how much time, effort, and resources go into a project.
Beyond 3D
As the movie industry races to develop three-dimensional blockbusters, the construction world has left the third dimension in the dust. The newest trend is one step further: four-dimensional planning, which allows a person to not only see the entire view of a building, but see it from every possible angle. This gives contractors the opportunity to see possibilities they didn't before, plan better for construction, rent any kind of special equipment they might need and plan for supplies and safety. The American Society of Mechanical Engineers reports a new type of paradigm known as BIM, or building information modeling. This paradigm is being used in computer development of construction, and engineer Richard Beattie claims it can boost the approval rate of designs up to 90% percent BIM allows the architect, engineers, and clients to view a building's depth in addition to its height and length.
Building A Better Brick
Bricks as we know them represent one of the oldest human inventions in history, with civilizations dating back over five thousand years having used dried mud and mortar to create buildings. Yet the basic stature of a brick has changed little since then -- until now. Architizer reports that ceramic bricks made by 3D printers may soon replace their traditional red counterparts, since these bricks can be created quickly on the spot with fewer materials, weighing less, and having greater strength. A honeycomb design makes these bricks better able to withstand everything from the weight of its neighbors to a gale-force hurricane. Bricks still need to be attached to everything from window sills to floors, however, and the rubber sealing mechanisms offer a new hope as well. Thermal-bonding rubber seals minimize heat loss when utilized as a bonding agent between composite or traditional bricks. This rubber bonds to ceramic as well as plastic, glass, and wood.
