In October the first three-dimensional- (3D-) printed demonstration house was constructed by sustainable and affordable housing group 14Trees in Nairobi, Kenya.

The house is also the first 3D-printed house to achieve the International Finance Corporation (IFC) Excellence in Design for Greater Efficiencies (EDGE) design certificate.

“After our initial success in Malawi with using 3D printing for making Africa’s first 3D-printed buildings, we wanted to take the next step and to bring scale to what we are doing,” says 14Trees CEO Francois Perrot.

He adds that the Nairobi house was made as a demonstration for the decision-makers and paved the way for the project in Kilifi.

The 3D-printed home is part of the Kilifi project, also known as Mvule Gardens, which will be constructed in the Indian Ocean coastal town of Kilifi, about 50 km north of Mombasa, the second largest city in Kenya.

The 52-unit project is part of the Green Heart of Kenya regenerative ecosystem, supporting Kenya president Uhuru Kenyatta’s “Big 4” agenda to increase affordable housing in the region.

Notably the project is being scaled as one of the largest 3D-printed construction projects in the world.

14Trees brought the project to life with the help of a modular construction firm Construction Of Buildings On Demand (COBOD) BOD2 3D construction printer, the most sold 3D construction printer in the world.

“We are thrilled to see 14Trees putting scale to their projects,” says COBOD founder and GM Henrik Lund-Nielsen.

He enthuses that the company will see a massive learning taking place in this project, which it hopes will further prove the economic potential of using 3D construction printing, not least owing to the speed of execution.

“Many of our other customers are planning similar projects with scale, but 14Trees is likely to be the first to realise such.”

This will demonstrate the economic potential of the 3D construction printer technology and document the speed advantages of 3D construction printer as a building method.

14Trees is a joint venture between building material manufacturer Holcim and Commonwealth Development Corporation Group.

“We are excited to be building one of the world’s largest 3D-printed affordable housing projects in Kenya,” says Holcim CEO Jan Jenisch.

14Trees addresses the housing crisis with cutting edge printing technology that is expected to disrupt the construction industry globally, with a method that is faster and more efficient – and with a lower CO2 footprint.