{"id":15824,"date":"2024-10-15T15:25:56","date_gmt":"2024-10-15T15:25:56","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/TheNextWeb=1411065"},"modified":"2024-10-15T15:25:56","modified_gmt":"2024-10-15T15:25:56","slug":"the-tech-startups-shaking-up-construction-in-europe","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.londonchiropracter.com\/?p=15824","title":{"rendered":"The tech startups shaking up construction in Europe"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<div><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/img-cdn.tnwcdn.com\/image\/tnw-blurple?filter_last=1&amp;fit=1280%2C640&amp;url=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn0.tnwcdn.com%2Fwp-content%2Fblogs.dir%2F1%2Ffiles%2F2024%2F10%2FAUAR_Robotic_Assembly_1_no_logo-1.jpg&amp;signature=dc10c8ef97ded4300d68301ee0b1a7d0\" class=\"ff-og-image-inserted\"><\/div>\n<p><span>From the outside, it looks like a clean, modern social housing block. You can tell it\u2019s new \u2014 there are 84 shiny solar panels on the roof and the fresh paint has barely dried on the walls. But it\u2019s how this 56-dwelling building in Barcelona, complete with ground floor nursery, was designed and built that really matters.&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>\u201cOur software is our superpower,\u201d says Lucas Carn\u00e9, co-founder of 011h, a construction <a href=\"https:\/\/thenextweb.com\/topic\/tech\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">tech<\/a> firm, as he describes how his company has designed digital tools to help architects plan buildings like this one. \u201cWe use a lot of prefab,\u201d he adds. \u201cThat reduces the need for on-site labour.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Prefabricated construction relies on factory-made parts or components of buildings that are joined together on-site. It is far from a new concept but 011h has tried to make it much easier for architects to use this approach. The firm offers architectural <a href=\"https:\/\/thenextweb.com\/topic\/software\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">software<\/a> plugins containing libraries full of these prefab components. It makes the process of designing a building a bit like playing with digital Lego.&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<h2>Improving productivity to solve housing shortage<\/h2>\n<p><span>So far, 011h has collaborated with architectural and construction firms on several Spanish apartment blocks of differing designs \u2014 roughly completing one such block per year. The company is now planning to scale up to multiple projects annually, encompassing a total of around 200 dwellings per year. The firm has raised more than 35 million euros to date and has 90 employees.&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"inarticle-wrapper channel-cta\">\n<div class=\"ica-text\" readability=\"0\"><a href=\"https:\/\/ai.live.ft.com\/?utm_source=partner-emp&amp;utm_medium=referral&amp;utm_campaign=global_partner_event-registration_prospecting_bau_2024-future-of-ai-london_core&amp;utm_term=tnw\" data-event-category=\"Article\" data-event-action=\"In Article Block\" data-event-label=\"Join the Financial Times Future of AI Summit on November 6-7\" target=\"_blank\" readability=\"6\" rel=\"noopener\"><\/p>\n<p class=\"ica-text__title\">Join the Financial Times Future of AI Summit on November 6-7<\/p>\n<p>In partnership with TNW, the Future of AI Summit explores the cutting edge of AI innovation and how it is being scaled for success and growth.<\/p>\n<p><\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<figure>\n<p> <iframe srcdoc=\"\n\n<style>*{padding:0;margin:0;overflow:hidden}html,body{background:#000;height:100%}img{position:absolute;top:0;left:0;width:100%;height:100%;object-fit:cover;transition:opacity .1s cubic-bezier(0.4,0,1,1)}a:hover img+img{opacity:1!important}<\/style>\n<p><a href='https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/q7NOi6UXAPU?feature=oembed&amp;autoplay=1&amp;mute=1&amp;modestbranding=1&amp;iv_load_policy=3&amp;theme=light&amp;playsinline=1'><img src='https:\/\/img.youtube.com\/vi\/q7NOi6UXAPU\/hqdefault.jpg'><img src='https:\/\/cdn0.tnwcdn.com\/wp-content\/themes\/cyberdelia\/assets\/img\/ytplaybtn.png' style='top: 50%;left:50%;width:68px;height:48px;transform:translate3d(-50%,-50%,0)'><img src='https:\/\/cdn0.tnwcdn.com\/wp-content\/themes\/cyberdelia\/assets\/img\/ytplaybtn-hover.png' style='top: 50%;left:50%;width:68px;height:48px;opacity:0;transform:translate3d(-50%,-50%,0)'><\/a>&#8221; height=&#8221;240&#8243; width=&#8221;320&#8243; allow=&#8221;accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture&#8221; allowfullscreen frameborder=&#8221;0&#8243;>[embedded content]<\/iframe> <\/p>\n<\/figure>\n<p> <!--resp-video-container--><!-- notionvc: aa1f0e2e-2f2d-45eb-87c0-ba23cad4639f --><\/p>\n<p><span>This push to streamline design and construction is sorely needed, suggests Carn\u00e9. As in many European countries, <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.caixabankresearch.com\/en\/sector-analysis\/real-estate\/what-big-data-reveal-about-spains-supply-new-housing-and-demographic\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\"><span>demand for housing in Spain is currently outpacing supply<\/span><\/a><span>. Across the continent, the picture varies but <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/think.ing.com\/articles\/how-europes-housing-scarcity-varies-across-countries\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\"><span>a lack of housing<\/span><\/a><span>, and <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/eures.europa.eu\/theres-no-better-time-pursue-career-construction-sector-2024-06-21_en\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\"><span>a shortage of construction workers<\/span><\/a><span>, are common themes. <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/think.ing.com\/articles\/why-some-building-material-prices-remain-high-despite-lower-energy-costs\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\"><span>Materials costs also rocketed<\/span><\/a><span> during the worst years of the pandemic. Now, various European <a href=\"https:\/\/thenextweb.com\/topic\/startups\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">startups<\/a> are coming up with a raft of ideas to try and mitigate these problems.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>\u201cOur goal is to improve productivity,\u201d says Carn\u00e9. \u201cProbably the biggest problem this industry is facing is that productivity is stagnant.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><b>Build with digital Lego<\/b><\/h2>\n<p><span>Traditionally, construction is a woefully disjointed business. Roughly speaking, an architect will come up with a design and then hand it to a builder who, separately, will work out how to put that design together, for real. 011h takes a different stance. \u201cWe run a design and build process together with the suppliers and solutions we are going to use,\u201d says Carn\u00e9.&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>All the information about who will supply each building part, the costs involved, and the carbon footprint is collated from the very start in the company\u2019s software. His team focuses on using sustainable materials \u2014 responsibly sourced timber rather than concrete, for instance, since the latter is high in embodied carbon. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>011h\u2019s buildings have achieved embodied carbon emissions lower than 400 kg of CO<\/span><span>2<\/span><span> equivalent per square metre \u2014 <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.gresb.com\/nl-en\/embodied-carbon-what-it-is-and-how-to-tackle-it\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\"><span>significantly better than current averages<\/span><\/a><span>. Plus, construction time is also shortened, by around 30% versus the average, claims Carn\u00e9.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2>Construction conservatism can hinder new technology adoption<\/h2>\n<p><span>Revolutionising construction with digital technology has promise but it is difficult to do, says Sam O\u2019Gorman at McKinsey\u2019s Real Estate practice. There is often resistance to new ways of doing things in the construction sector, he notes. Plus, given the large amount of capital involved, there is significant risk if a project goes awry: \u201cOne mess-up could cost the business.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>However, if firms entering this space can establish a good track record \u2014 perhaps through significant self-funding, at least initially \u2014 then they might be able to convince potential partners that they are worthy of collaboration or investment, adds O\u2019Gorman.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Another company that says technology can help us build homes smarter and faster is AUAR (Automated Architecture), in the UK. Gilles Retsin, co-founder and CTO, says his firm\u2019s approach is to supply building firms with \u201cmicro-factories\u201d \u2014 boxes with big robot arms inside. These arms work tirelessly to produce modular building units. Imagine a roughly 4\u00d73 metre timber floor or wall panel, thick enough to be filled with insulation, which can be joined together with other panels to make a building.&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><b>A bot job<\/b><\/h2>\n<p><span>\u201cThe <a href=\"https:\/\/thenextweb.com\/topic\/robot\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">robot<\/a> will essentially grip raw materials, cut them, and put them on an assembly table where it nails them together,\u201d explains Retsin. \u201cThen they\u2019re craned onto site by humans.\u201d AUAR has 17 employees and has raised \u00a32.6 million.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>The company is currently targeting the European and US markets, both of which are suffering from labour shortages in the construction sector. \u201cWe just built a two-storey building in Belgium,\u201d says Retsin. In that case, the microfactory robot took about three days to make the building block units and human workers took a further three days to connect those units together and complete the building\u2019s main structure.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Initially, AUAR provided its microfactory robots at a cost of \u00a3250,000 each but Retsin says the firm is shifting to a hardware-as-a-service model in which builders can pay a smaller fee to have the microfactory delivered to site. They will then pay a further small charge per square metre of building produced.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Although the firm is yet to scale, Retsin emphasises the huge potential of running the robot arms continuously \u2014 and perhaps using many of them in parallel. \u201cThe capacity of one robot is 200 homes per year, if you run it eight hours per day,\u201d he says, adding that the next step for the firm is to tackle a 30-home project in the US next year.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><b>Robo brickie<\/b><\/h2>\n<p><span>Finally, even in 2024, bricklaying remains a crucial skill required for housebuilding in Europe, as brick-based construction remains prized by European homebuyers. However, bricklayers are among the workers <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cedefop.europa.eu\/en\/data-insights\/construction-workers-skills-opportunities-and-challenges-2023-update\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\"><span>currently in very short supply<\/span><\/a><span>. Monumental, based in Amsterdam, has an alternative.&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>\u201cYou tell me, \u2018I want to build a fa\u00e7ade for a house, it\u2019s X square metres\u2019,\u201d says Salar al Khafaji, founder and CEO. \u201cI will quote you a price and do it for you \u2014 but I will do it with robots.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>The firm, which has raised $25 million to date and has 32 employees, offers bots capable of laying mortar and bricks in a careful sequence in order to build a wall automatically. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>The process involves three individual robots, which each take on a separate task: either supplying a brick, laying a blob of mortar, or putting a brick in place. Pointing, however \u2014 neatly finishing the exposed mortar joints visible between bricks \u2014 still has to be done manually.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span> <\/p>\n<figure>\n<p> <iframe srcdoc=\"\n\n<style>*{padding:0;margin:0;overflow:hidden}html,body{background:#000;height:100%}img{position:absolute;top:0;left:0;width:100%;height:100%;object-fit:cover;transition:opacity .1s cubic-bezier(0.4,0,1,1)}a:hover img+img{opacity:1!important}<\/style>\n<p><a href='https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/r5SFXr4OIzA?feature=oembed&amp;autoplay=1&amp;mute=1&amp;modestbranding=1&amp;iv_load_policy=3&amp;theme=light&amp;playsinline=1'><img src='https:\/\/img.youtube.com\/vi\/r5SFXr4OIzA\/hqdefault.jpg'><img src='https:\/\/cdn0.tnwcdn.com\/wp-content\/themes\/cyberdelia\/assets\/img\/ytplaybtn.png' style='top: 50%;left:50%;width:68px;height:48px;transform:translate3d(-50%,-50%,0)'><img src='https:\/\/cdn0.tnwcdn.com\/wp-content\/themes\/cyberdelia\/assets\/img\/ytplaybtn-hover.png' style='top: 50%;left:50%;width:68px;height:48px;opacity:0;transform:translate3d(-50%,-50%,0)'><\/a>&#8221; height=&#8221;240&#8243; width=&#8221;320&#8243; allow=&#8221;accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture&#8221; allowfullscreen frameborder=&#8221;0&#8243;>[embedded content]<\/iframe> <\/p>\n<\/figure>\n<p> <!--resp-video-container--><!-- notionvc: 7b74ee64-a568-4914-85be-762f9cfd80ef --> <\/span><span><br \/><\/span><span><br \/><\/span><span>In videos like the one above, the bricklaying carried out by the robots seems rather slow but al Khafaji stresses that because the machine is able to keep working continuously without breaks, it is able to roughly match the average human bricklayer\u2019s <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.checkatrade.com\/blog\/cost-guides\/cost-of-bricks-per-1000\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\"><span>rate of 500 bricks laid per day<\/span><\/a><span>.&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<h2>Human in the loop still very much required<\/h2>\n<p><span>Automating specific activities such as this that can slot into traditional construction processes could help these technologies get adopted sooner, suggests O\u2019Gorman. Though he notes that human oversight and finishing of tasks is still required. It may be a long time before we see robot builders working through the night with little or no supervision.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Still, Monumental\u2019s robots have already helped to build among other things a canal retaining wall in Amsterdam and a one-storey villa. Demand is encouraging, says al Khafaji, indicating that he has orders for several new terraced houses on the books for the coming months. The firm is also exploring the potential of using <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.vandersanden.com\/en-uk\/pirrouet\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\"><span>more environmentally friendly bricks<\/span><\/a><span>, since standard clay bricks contain <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.ribaj.com\/intelligence\/structures-sustainability-we-can-put-a-block-on-brick-steve-webb\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\"><span>a high amount of embodied carbon<\/span><\/a><span>.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>While Monumental\u2019s bricklaying machines can\u2019t yet place bricks standing vertically, or build arches, they can do curved corners and also lay bricks in <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/aofbc.co.uk\/the-royal-college-of-art-swift-brickwork-project-of-the-year-finalist\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\"><span>artistic indented patterns<\/span><\/a><span>.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>\u201cThat\u2019s really exciting to me,\u201d says al Khafaji, \u201cThat gets beauty back into our built environment.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p> <a href=\"https:\/\/thenextweb.com\/news\/the-tech-startups-shaking-up-construction-in-europe\">Source<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>From the outside, it looks like a clean, modern social housing block. You can tell it\u2019s new \u2014 there are 84 shiny solar panels on the roof and the fresh paint has&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":15825,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.londonchiropracter.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15824"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.londonchiropracter.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.londonchiropracter.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.londonchiropracter.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.londonchiropracter.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=15824"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.londonchiropracter.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15824\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.londonchiropracter.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/15825"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.londonchiropracter.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=15824"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.londonchiropracter.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=15824"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.londonchiropracter.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=15824"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}