Home 3D printing has been touted as the next big thing for a while now. But soon you’ll be able to see the future of construction first-hand, by staying at a fully 3D-printed hotel.
Once finished, the El Cosmico hotel’s 60-acre expansion will allow the public to experience what it’s like to stay at one of ICON’s headline-grabbing 3D-printed abodes, in Marfa, Texas.
ICON technology, which sees specialized cement deposited layer-by-layer into habitable structures, is said to be faster, more efficient, and deliver more sustainable housing.
In the past, the company has built multi-storey homes in Texas and worked with NASA to develop a way of 3D printing on the Moon. Now looking to bring its technology back to Earth, ICON is helping build a unique hotel extension, featuring unconventional freeform shapes.
“Most hotels are contained within four walls and a lot of times you are building with the same unit over and over and over again,” explained El Cosmico owner Liz Lambert.
“I’ve never been able to build with such constraint and such fluidity… just the curves, and the domes, and the parabolas. It’s a crazy way to build.”
Slated for completion by 2026, the project will yield 18 homes and 43 new hotel units, which are set to be made available to the public for a cool $200-450 per night.
So they won’t be the cheapest hotel rooms in the neighborhood. But they’re sure to have novelty value for 3D printing enthusiasts everywhere. Sign us up for a stay!
