1. Application in Construction
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Application in Construction
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2. Why automate construction?
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Why automate construction?
Labor efficiency is alarmingly low
Skilled workforce is vanishing
Work quality is low
Control of the construction site is insufficient and difficult
Accident rate at construction sites is high (> 400,000 / year in US)
Waste and trims are high (3 To 7 tons per average home; 40% of all materials used worldwide are for construction)
Low income housing and emergency shelters are critical
Construction is the largest sector of almost all economies
All other products are fabricated automatically – construction is still largely a manual task
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3. Construction productivity decline
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Construction productivity decline
Labor productivity comparison for non-farm industries and construction industry developed by Paul Teicholz
Construction Productivity index
Non-farm productivity index
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4. Edison’s concrete houses
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Edison’s concrete houses
$175,000 for molds
More than 2000 pieces
500,000 pounds
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5. Automated construction in Japan
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Automated construction in Japan
89 single task construction robots
11 different automated construction systems
Concrete Surface Treatment Robot
This robot absorbs the water which remains after concrete has been set.
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6. Big-Canopy high-rise pre-cast concrete construction system.
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Big-Canopy high-rise pre-cast concrete construction system.
Used to construct the 26 storey pre-cast concrete 30,726m2
Yachiyodai Condominium building in Japan.
The system realized a 60% reduction in labor requirements for the frame erection.
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7. Form work cost structure
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Form work cost structure
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8. USC
ICF Homes
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9. USC
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10. USC
Concrete filling
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11. USC
Insulation
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12. USC
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13. Construction by Contour Crafting
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Construction by Contour Crafting
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14. What constitutes construction cost?
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What constitutes construction cost?
Portion
Due to
If Automated by CC
20%-25%
Financing
Short project length and control of time to market will dramatically reduce this cost
25%-30%
Materials
Will be a wasteless process
45%-55%
Labor
Will be significantly reduced
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15. Cavities made with CC and filled with concrete
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Cavities made with CC and filled with concrete
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16. Creating hollow depositions
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Creating hollow depositions
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17. Embedding Reinforcement
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Embedding Reinforcement
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18. A straight wall builder
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A straight wall builder
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19. Full scale wall sections
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Full scale wall sections
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20. USC
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21. USC
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22. USC
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23. Conventional and CC forms
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Conventional and CC forms
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24. Conventional Structure Construction
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Conventional Structure Construction
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25. Adobe structures – Ageless comfort and beauty
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Adobe structures – Ageless comfort and beauty
House of Brojerdi Kashan
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26. Interior of an Adobe house CalEarth Design
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Interior of an Adobe house CalEarth Design
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27. House made with vaults and domes
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House made with vaults and domes
Interior of an Adobe house CalEarth Design
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28. A vault structure made of clay bricks (Source: Khalili, 2000)
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Ingenious methods
Manual construction of adobe form structures using clay bricks (Source: Khalili, 2000)
A vault structure made of clay bricks (Source: Khalili, 2000)
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29. Free-standing Objects / Industrial parts
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Free-standing Objects / Industrial parts
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30. Supportless structures created by CC
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Supportless structures created by CC
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31. Adobe house Construction
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Adobe house Construction
Viterbi School of Engineering

32. Extraterrestrial Construction
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Extraterrestrial Construction
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33. USC
Deployable CC
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34. USC
Lunar Construction
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35. USC
Road construction
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