Robotic arms can put builders out of a job
Alongside the 3D printing technology, robotic arms become more widespread in construction. They can leave people way behind in terms of quality and speed of laying bricks.
Fastbrick Robotics presented a robotic arm prototype Hadrian 105 last summer. It laid 225 bricks per hour. The commercial model, which is under construction now, will increase this number fourfold.
Robot SAM 100, developed by Construction Robotics, shows even more impressive results. The abbreviation stands for Semi-Automatic Mason. It demonstrated the possibility to lay 2000 bricks per hour during the test trial. Of course, experienced builders can outperform this result, but a robot does not get tired and does not need a lunch break.
Two operators are required to maintain SAM 100. They have to supply it with bricks and clean the excesses of cement, and the robot performs all other operations. Following the preset program, it builds walls with openings for doors and windows. Developers have also foreseen a safety system: in case a human arm gets in the operational zone, the robot will stop the work.
SAM has been already used in the construction of 8 projects such as residential houses and a school. The average price of such a machine is $500 thousand.
