BigRep
3D printed formwork
BigRep and BASF’s Forward AM 3D printing brand have announced the launch of a new material targeted towards the architecture and construction industry.
Concrete Formwork has been developed to address more complex construction elements and can be processed on BigRep’s large-format 3D printing systems.
The companies, who first partnered in 2017, decided to focus their efforts on developing a 3D printable formwork material because of 3D printing’s capacity to enable organic geometries, double-curved surfaces and cavities. Using traditional moulds for these complex shapes requires highly-skilled labourers to build customised formwork, which can result in a lot of material waste, long lead times, and high costs - often 40-60% of the total budget for the project.
Teaming this material with BigRep’s ONE and PRO 3D printing systems, which are equipped with build volumes measuring around one cubic meter, the companies believe that complex formwork can be produced up to three times as quick and at a ‘fraction of the cost.’
“We are excited to work with Forward AM to bring more solutions to the architecture and construction industry,” commented Dr Sven Thate, Managing Director of BigRep. “Our customers are seeing huge gains in terms of cost and speed thanks to our large-format machines and the new Concrete Formwork filament. Our solutions are opening the doors to many new possibilities.”
“At Forward AM, we developed a highly dimensionally stable, rigid formwork material, especially tailored to work seamlessly on BigRep’s large-format 3D printers,” added François Minec, Managing Director of BASF 3D Printing Solutions. “We are excited to be able to deliver this ready-to-use, end-to-end fabrication solution for bespoke formwork.”
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