Lanxess adds a color option for its 3D concrete printers.

By OEM Update Editorial February 5, 2021 3:48 pm IST

LANXESS has released new color box which contains various color options for its 3D printers. The chemical company has created a sample box showing which colors can be realized in additive manufacturing.

LANXESS supports its customers by  adding color to their 3D-printed concrete products. The specialty chemicals company has created a sample box showing which colors can be realized in additive manufacturing. The box contains concrete samples in 26 different colors, colored with weather-resistant, colorfast, inorganic pigments from the well-known Bayferrox brand. These can be used for reliably adding color to 3D-printed concrete structures, lending users of this highly promising and cost-efficient technology even greater design freedom in projects large and small.

3D concrete printing is a manufacturing method that has only recently made inroads into the construction industry. Numerous universities worldwide have established special research areas for additive manufacturing in the construction industry. The technology is already being used in practice, with the first 3D-printed house in Germany built at the end of 2020, while some countries such as the Netherlands, the USA and the UAE have already built entire housing complexes with 3D printing technology.

Additive manufacturing uses state-of-the-art IT for automated production, permits an extremely wide variety of shapes and, in terms of material consumption, is extremely economical even in small-volume projects. The principle underlying the component construction process is that concrete is applied only where it is needed, which ensures that construction materials are used sparingly, and which opens up whole new design possibilities.