BUILDING IN 3D
transport of bulky items are just a few of the challenges facing the military. Te capability to 3D print could eliminate many of these obstacles.
When deploying to austere environments, Soldiers may need to set up temporary structures, either for housing or storage of military equipment, or create a location to conduct operations protected from the weather elements. Te U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ Engineer Research and Development Center, Construction Engi- neering Research Laboratory (ERDC-CERL) realized this need for Soldiers in these types of environments with limited resources. So, ERDC-CERL launched the Additive Construction program, which provides training exercises to military members on how to operate 3D printers to print concrete buildings and other force protection structures on location using locally available materials. “Our real goal as a program is to produce expedition- ary structures on demand in the field by Soldiers using locally available materials,” said Megan Kreiger, research mechanical engineer with ERDC-CERL and additive construction expert for the Department of Defense. “As a program … we initially developed our own printing systems, our own material formu- las, our own printing methodologies and really went through and developed this technology with the idea of eventually using it in expeditionary environments.”
BEGINNING WITH THE B-HUT One of the initial projects in the Additive Construction program was the Automated Construction of Expeditionary Structures (ACES), with the main objective to custom-build an expedi- tionary building on-site with a minimum number of service personnel. “Te ACES project was the first project … Te entire goal of that project was to see if we could do custom-designed expeditionary structures on demand in the field using locally available materials,” Kreiger said.
In 2017 under the ACES project, a 512-square-foot building called a barracks hut, or B-Hut, was constructed with a printer and printing methodology developed by ERDC personnel. “Tat very first project was to produce what’s called a B-Hut,” Kreiger said. “Tis initial project was really where Additive Construc- tion initiated within the Department of Defense.” B-Huts are temporary housing structures built for military personnel that are typically constructed of a wood frame and plywood walls and are expected to have a short life expectancy (about five years). So, what makes the 3D printed B-Hut different aside from the way it is manufactured? It is constructed of layered concrete beads, in unique geometries, and a previously untrained team on the technology was able to print all four walls of the building in
10 Army AL&T Magazine Spring 2025
less than 48 hours. Te structure was the first full-scale printed concrete building in the Americas combining traditional tech- niques with modern ones. After completing this first concept, the focus shifted to producing structures in short timeframes with military personnel.
In August 2018 at ERDC-CERL in Champaign, Illinois, members of the ACES team trained a group of Marine Corps members to 3D print a second 512-square-foot B-Hut, known as the “Chevron” B-hut, using a printer called ACES Lite. Te ACES Lite—produced in partnership with Caterpillar under a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement and using printing methodologies developed by ERDC for the first struc- ture—fits in a 20-foot shipping container and can be set up in less than one hour. Te “Chevron” B-Hut exhibits two and a half times the strength of a straight-walled printed B-Hut due to its geometry.
After successfully printing two B-Huts at ERDC-CERL, the team took the capabilities to the field. Subsequent training exer- cises took place in Guam in June 2022—training a group of Marines and Navy Seabees (construction forces)—and again at Camp Atterbury, Indiana, in July through August 2023, train- ing a group of Soldiers, Marines and Airmen. Both groups were trained on how to operate the ACES Lite printing system. Several force protection structures were printed in Guam, while at Camp Atterbury the service members printed a 512-square-foot B-Hut structure. Te training that took place in Guam used only locally sourced materials. “Te major advantage of the ACES printing system is that it reduces the logistical burden of transporting materials into that theater of operation; you’re not having to ship conventional building materials such as wood or CMU [concrete masonry unit] blocks or any other required building materials. You’re able to get the materials from local quarries, local provid- ers or suppliers and be able to create printable mixtures in order to produce whatever type of infrastructure you need on site,” Kreiger said. Most importantly, those structures printed in Guam and Camp Atterbury underwent blast and ballistic testing to help inform force protection capabilities, showing potential for future applications of the technology.
BUILDING BLOCKS Te Additive Construction program isn’t stopping at the B-Hut. During another demonstration, also held at ERDC-CERL, mili- tary personnel were trained to 3D print a gap crossing. Printing the gap crossing consisted of 3D printing seven box beams—each a rectangular structure that is reinforced as you print upwards— that are then reinforced together to create a bridge over a gap.
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