Ciao Enrico Dini! Massive Passion for Massive 3D Printed Structures

I’m willing to bet a pile of spalling brick that most of you don’t live in a house or work in a building that’s been printed by a 3D printer. No? It seems ludicrous that a large structure could be printed layer-by-layer with a rock-like resin – floor, walls, ceiling, tubes, stairs and roof. But then again, were thinking about conventional structures built by hand with wood, sweat and mortar.

Enrico Dini, founder of D_shape and creator of the largest 3D printer in the known universe, doesn’t think the idea of printing a house is ludicrous at all.

In fact, there’s very little he sees as impossible. Printing massive structures, skyscrapers, cathedrals and stadiums are not even out of the range of possibility. He’s set to redefine the style of architecture and strip the limits of what constrains architectural design. Here’s what drives his passion, what challenges his vision and what you will see, and possibly live within, in the future.

Interview with Enrico Dini

There is so much to do on the front of chemical, process, post process and assembling in D_Shape technology… I could talk for hours and hours. Since I put my foot upon the desert of a new technology five years ago, I never stopped trying to define or explore the boundaries of an invention that has endless possibilities. Today, I defined 12 different product categories, each with architectural applications – artistic, archaeology, civil, industrial, interiors, machines, marine, recreation, religious, playgrounds, urban, and compact living. Each of those in themselves may require the work of many people.

You have a passion for Gaudi’s architecture, what inspires you the most?
Surely the Sagrada Familia and Casa Batlló, but my aim is to complete Colònia Güell and am currently working on completing it.

Colònia Güell outside of Barcelona, Spain. The Crypt of the Church of Colònia Güell was 'modeled' by Gaudi using small bags of sand suspended from string in 3-dimensional space.

Gianluca Miele and Enrico Dini (right) inside the La Sagrada Familia in Barcelona, Spain — Gianluca Miele and Enrico Dini (right) inside La Sagrada Familia in Barcelona, Spain

Gianluca Miele and Enrico Dini (far right), guests of Mark Burry, between the spires of Antonio Gaudi's La Sagrada Familia

What are the challenges you face with printing massive structures?
Challenges in order time:

Print Table of Trabecular series, Salone Internazionale del Mobile in Milan (April 2010)
Deliver Radiolaria full scale to Pontedera Municipality (September 2010)
Print the Sardinia Villa
Print free-form facades full of undercuts
Approach the 12 product categories by 2015 ( naval, facades, civil, social housing)
Print structures on the Moon by 2020 – project award by European Space Agency
Print Colònia Güell Cathedral by 2037
2037, maybe die in Barcelona ( I had this dream 25 years ago.)

The Radiolaria. The first large scale 3D print using Dini's 'structural ink' - image credit: Blueprint Magazine — The Radiolaria. The first large scale 3D print using Dini's 'structural ink'. The pavilion here is scaled 1:4 and built with only 200 euros of sand and binder. The final height will be nearly 24 feet tall (7 meters) - image credit: Blueprint Magazine

What 3D CAD software is used to develop the 3D concepts you’re currently exploring?
Any CAD modeling software available on the market can be used: Rhino, SolidWorks, Solid Edge, 3D studio… Its just a matter of exporting the file in an .STL (Stereolithography) format and taking care of all engineering/assembling aspects.

The 3D CAD model of the Radiolaria structure. Saved as an .STL file for the 3D printer

Are there ways in which 3D printing makes you view architectural design differently?
Absolutely. Think of this. I’m manufacturing my printer using massive Water Jet Technology. Executive Design is always ‘son’ of the available technology. Executive Design is also ‘father’ of development on new technologies sorted by people like me. I knew that architects and designers had marvelous 3D CAD software. I consider myself an architect as well, so I’m simply developing an instrument for them to use to create their designs. Now, using the printer and knowing its limits, i.e. printing resolution, strength of the material, etc. are different. My favorite designer Architect Andrea Morgante of Shiro Studio (London) is driving the design of the Radiolaria and other structures according to State of the Art technology developed by D-SHAPE.

Driven by CAD software installed on a dust-covered computer terminal, the armature moves just millimetres above a pile of sand, expressing a magnesium-based solution from hundreds of nozzles on its lower side. It makes four passes. The layer dries and Enrico Dini recalibrates the armature frame. The system deposits the sand and then inorganic binding ink. The exercise is repeated. The millennia-long process of laying down sedimentary rock is accelerated into a day. A building emerges. – _{Blueprint Magazine}

The Radiolaria structure being printed with Enrico's 3D Printer.

The Radiolaria emerging from the sand after being printed. The structure will be completely solid after only 24 hours.

The start of the 3D print for a section of a free-form house design by James Gardiner of Faan Studio

The finished 3D print for a section of a free-form house design by James Gardiner of Faan Studio

Enrico Dini overseeing the construction of a joint project between D_shape and Faan Studio — Enrico Dini overseaing the construction of a joint project between D_shape and Faan Studio

The process

The process takes place in a non-stop work session, starting from the foundation level and ending on the top of the roof, including stairs, external and internal partition walls, concave and convex surfaces, bas-reliefs, columns, statues, wiring, cabling and piping cavities. During the printing of each section a ‘structural ink’ is deposited by the printer’s nozzles on the sand. The solidification process takes 24 hours to complete. The printing starts from the bottom of the construction and rises up in sections of 5-10mm. – _{D_Shape}

The following video, from Vite Reali, gives you a better idea of how fast the printer is and the scale of the objects being printed. Enrico also works with a 3D model in Rhino prior to sending it to the printer. (It will help to have a good understanding of Italian… and Italian fashion.)

Other Facts:
Printer Capacity: 20 ft x 20 ft x 3 ft (6m x 6m x 1m)
Printer tolerance: .20 in – .40 in (5 -10 mm)
Annual capacity: 26910 ft² (2500 m²)
Cost: 30%-50% lower than conventional construction

Radiolaria – (from the word Radiolarian for amoeboid protozoa)
Antonio Gaudi – Spanish architect during late 1800 – early 1900’s

The MASSIVE 3D printer created by Enrico Dini. (Via Blueprint Magazine)

Thanks to Chris Story for the heads up on this! Image credits to Blueprint Magazine. For more information on Enrico’s project see the interview from Joris Peels at Shapeways.