Yavapai College this August will launch a program that teaches students about construction using 3D printer technology. The college says it is the first such program in the U-S, and that it could be key in improving the area’s affordable housing stock.
KNAU’s Zac Ziegler spoke with Richard Hernandez, Director of Yavapai College’s Regional Economic Development Center about 3D printed homes and how the school will teach students the emerging technology.
Zac Ziegler: “What is 3D construction, and how does it work?”
Richard Hernandez: “It works very similar to the common 3D printer, desktop printers, that you see in the wild so to speak. The only difference is size and the product that it’s squirting out of the nozzle. So a typical 3D printer that you’re probably familiar with spits out a plastic polymer. These machines print a concrete polymer.”