US-based provider Alquist aims to move 3D construction printing from the pilot phase into regular commercial building projects. Together with Walmart and other retail chains, more than a dozen projects are to be implemented in the United States over the coming years. According to the company, this represents the most extensive use to date of 3D concrete printing in commercial building construction in the US.
To build the necessary capacity, Alquist is establishing a new partnership model with equipment rental company Hugg & Hall and construction firm FMGI. FMGI acquires and operates the large-format A1X printing systems, while Hugg & Hall takes on financing, maintenance and rental. This allows Alquist to offer its hardware and training concepts as a combined product-and-service package to additional construction stakeholders.
“Hugg & Hall Equipment is excited to partner with Alquist and FMGI to bring a new generation of construction equipment to market,” says John Hugg, President of Hugg & Hall. “Equipment that will reduce cost while improving build time and move the entire industry toward more sustainable and scalable building practices.”
The first project under the new model is scheduled to start in December in the US state of Missouri and is already Alquist’s third project for Walmart. The printing work will focus primarily on load-bearing and non-load-bearing wall structures as well as infrastructure elements that have so far been formed and cast in concrete using conventional methods. Robot-guided print heads apply a cement-based construction material layer by layer, while process parameters such as layer thickness and feed rate are digitally monitored.
“For the first time ever in our industry, we have the right partners in place to scale 3DCP at a massive level,” says Patrick Callahan, CEO of Alquist. “For years, 3DCP has been an emerging idea. Now, it’s a proven solution being deployed by some of the nation’s largest companies. This partnership shows what’s possible when innovation and collaboration align, and it’s only the beginning of what 3D printing will do for commercial construction.”
“At FMGI, we’re builders first,” said Darin Ross, President & CEO of FMGI. “What drew us to Alquist was how practical this technology really is, it’s faster to mobilize, cleaner on-site and delivers consistent quality in every print. For us, this partnership is about transforming how large-scale projects actually get done.”
Alquist is thus increasingly shifting its focus from residential construction to commercial projects, while in parallel building a training network, including with Aims Community College.
“This is the moment 3DCP becomes commercialized at scale,” said Zachary Mannheimer, Founder of Alquist. “We’ve spent years proving that this technology works, now we’re putting it to work. Through this partnership, Alquist is helping redefine how America builds. Together, we’re accelerating construction, cutting waste and building a stronger, more sustainable foundation for the future.”
For construction 3D printing, the partnership means that the process must prove itself in larger volumes and under real-world time and cost constraints – a prerequisite for 3D concrete printing to be perceived in the long term as a standard construction option.
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