Thursday, April 24, 2014

How 3D Printing has been Enhancing the Housing Industry

Take away the property bubbles for a moment. 

The use of 3D technology has been spreading. Today, with 3D Printer technology, housing will not only become more affordable, they can be built fast and according to one’s taste or 'custom fitted' housing.

In China a Chinese company has introduced mass housing via 3D printer technology. The said company “3D printed” 10 houses in 24 hours using recycled construction materials for $4,800 (Php 214,000). The houses were printed offsite and assembled at the site location. 

The Chinese company hasn’t been the first to join the race to build 3D printed houses in 24 hours, a researcher from a US based university has been working on such goals too. I believe there are more but have been undisclosed.

In Amsterdam, the world’s first onsite 3D printed house—which is actually intended as a museum and a research facility—is being built. House materials consist of layers of molten plastic which function like LEGO materials.

Three insights. Technology brings about “deflation”—something which authorities and the mainstream—have been deeply averse to. Yet "deflation", for consumers, means more affordability or more goods or services one can buy with a given currency unit—such signifies as an increase in real purchasing power (What money can buy). 

What the mainstream doesn't tell you is that the "deflation" they all so rabidly dread is credit deflation (bubble bust). So they all promote sustained debasement of the real purchasing power of money via bubble blowing or credit inflation policies  

The second lesson is competition. The quest for profits has not just led to the discovery of new technologies, but has also been impelling companies to innovate or to introduce new or improvised uses (applications) for a specific technology in order to satisfy consumers. 

Lastly the potentials of 3D Printing technology remains vast. 3D printing technology is yet in the early phase of expansion in terms of diffusion of applications to commerce and to households. So for me, this an industry worth monitoring.

[Disclosure: As of this writing, I have no equity holdings in 3D technology stocks]

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