Every job site is different, presenting unique challenges during a project’s construction.
First could be the issue of where the job is located and then getting products and equipment to the site. Depending on the geography, it could mean high transportation costs and tricky delivery constraints, in addition to the typical scheduling challenges.
Second could be other geographical issues, such as drought conditions. Dry climates can present issues for manufacturing masonry.
Then, there are other issues such as what to do with the waste that is created during the construction process. A recent BUILDER article cites that 548 million tons of construction and demolition waste were generated in the U.S. in 2015, according to the latest data from the EPA. Buildings make up 169 million tons of that waste, or about 30% of the total, while roads and bridges make up the rest.
The same article also shares that the costs of recycling waste is usually more than just dumping it, a limiting factor for construction practices to become more sustainable.
But what if there was a way to remove several of these named challenges? Plus, do it in a way that brings additional customization to the construction process?
In this HIVE Re:Think Podcast, host Philip Beere chats with Keegan Kirkpatrick, aerospace engineer and the founder and CEO of RedWorks, an innovative company that moves manufacturing masonry completely on-site and that has its roots in a challenge from NASA for a way to build habitats on Mars. Listen now.
As Kirkpatrick explained, his innovation is unique and solves for issues like remote or tough geographies because the RedWorks 3D printers can take the local dirt or sand and print it into solid rock using the company’s unique heating process.
The benefits of this type of innovation are numerous. By making masonry entirely on-site, transportation costs and logistics are eliminated, saving time and costs.
“We expect this to eliminate up to 30% of the cost of construction by simply getting rid of costs from masonry waste,” Kirkpatrick stated. “Concrete production alone, not including its transportation, contributes to 7% of the world’s production of greenhouse gasses. In solar-heavy states like those of the Southwest, this would be completely eliminated. Meanwhile, our process requires no water, reducing the burden of producing masonry on drought impacted regions.”
Margeaux Sullivan, venture partner at Syndicate 708, an investor and accelerator for deep tech entrepreneurs, and member of Redworks’s advisory board agrees on the opportunity and the benefits of the Redworks technology.
“This is an opportunity to make construction more sustainable while reducing costs,” Sullivan said. “Cement manufacturing is estimated to be responsible for four to eight percent of the world’s CO2 emissions. Today's cement manufacturing techniques are slow, wasteful, and involve large quantities of water. This technology could significantly improve affordable housing, and it could provide access to environments that were previously inaccessible for construction.”
As another very strong advantage, the RedWorks technology takes advantage of local materials, that can be replaced quickly and at little to no cost. Plus, there is no waste to remove from the job site, making it more sustainable and removing another cost.
While there is not a clear picture on when or how we will need housing on Mars, this innovation could certainly revolutionize how we are building here on Earth.
Sullivan cites some popular companies that have successfully pivoted between industries, such as Slack that started as a video game venture called Glitch; Nintendo began as a playing card company in the late nineteenth century; and Nokia began as a paper mill in the mid nineteenth century.
The RedWorks team is moving beyond prototype and hopes to be on a jobsite near you very soon.
