World’s 1st 3D Printed Office Building To Glam Up Dubai

Still from YouTube video by Museum Of The Future

An ambitious UAE plan to build the first fully functional 3D printed office building in the world has been announced in Dubai. It is being promoted as both cost effective and time saving.

Mohamed Al Gergawi, the United Arab Emirates Minister of Cabinet Affairs and Chairman of the National Innovation Committee, said on Tuesday that Dubai plans to 3D-print a one-story “office building” of about 2,000 square feet (185 square meters) in size, Reuters reported.

 “We are keen to use the latest technologies to simplify people’s lives and to serve them better. This project is part of our overall innovation strategy to create new designs and new solutions in education, healthcare and cities,” Al Gergawi said in a statement. “Our goal is to increase the happiness and wellbeing of our residents and to pioneer new solutions for the world.”

World’s first 3D Printed office is being built in Dubai as part of the #MuseumOfTheFuture

The building, which is to be situated in the centre of the coastal business hub city, will be printed layer-by-layer with a 20-foot tall printer over the course of a few weeks. Its entire interior will also be 3D printed. The technology will cut labour costs by 50-80 percent, and construction time by 50-70 percent, according to expert estimates.

 “The idea of 3D printing buildings was once a dream, but today it has become a reality,” Al Gergawi added. “This building will be a testimony to the efficiency and creativity of 3D printing technology, which we believe will play a major role in reshaping construction and design sectors. We aim to take advantage of this growth by becoming a global hub for innovation and 3D printing. This is the first step of many more to come.”

The project is a result of cooperation between Dubai and WinSun, a pioneering Chinese company that specializes in building houses with 3D printers, as well as other major firms such as Gensler, Thornton Thomasetti, and Syska Hennessy.

The cutting-edge “office” will be the temporary headquarters of the “Museum of the Future” that was announced this March and is scheduled to open in 2017.