FIATECH will present the inventor of Contour Crafting, a technology that promises to revolutionize construction the way additive fabrication is starting to revolutionize manufacturing.

FIATECH is sponsoring a free webinar on Contour Crafting, a mega-scale fabrication process that aims to automate construction of whole structures the way 3D printing (additive manufacturing) can automate the manufacturing of parts and products. The webinar will feature the inventor of Contour Crafting (CC), Professor Behrokh Khoshnevis of the University of Southern California.

Unlike in manufacturing, the use of automation has been slow to develop in construction. Most design is still done in 2D, and there are few automated procedures in construction. Contour Crafting is a mega-scale fabrication process aiming at automated construction of whole structures as well as subcomponents.

The potential of CC is starting to be realized from experiments with various materials, geometries and scales. Using the process, a single building or a colony of buildings may be constructed automatically with all plumbing and electrical utilities imbedded in each; yet each building could have a different design which can include complex curved features. The technology also offers potential for breakthrough environmental and energy impacts.

NASA is exploring possible application of CC in building on other planets, and experts in natural disaster response are looking at CC as a way to provide immediate shelter. FIATECH says CC “has received international attention and could soon revolutionize the construction industry.”

Khoshnevis is a Fellow member of the Institute of Industrial Engineers, a Fellow member of the Society for Computer Simulation, and a Senior member of the Society of Manufacturing Engineering. His inventions have received extensive worldwide publicity. Contour Crafting was selected in 2006 as one of top 25 best inventions from more than 4000 candidate inventions by the National Inventors Hall of Fame and the History Channel’s Modern Marvels program.

FIATECH is an industry consortium that provides global leadership in identifying and accelerating the development, demonstration and deployment of fully integrated and automated technologies to deliver the highest business value throughout the life cycle of all types of capital projects.

To register for the free webinar, follow this link to the FIATECH website.