Construction industry association open to 3D printing in house building

The economic pressure on the struggling construction industry is growing. According to the Construction Industry Association East, the negative trend in incoming orders continued. In addition, the number of insolvencies rose in the first quarter of this year. The industry is pinning its hopes on easier and cheaper residential construction.

The Federal Building Ministry is enabling planners and builders to agree on lower building standards. This is an important signal for the industry, said Robert Momberg, Managing Director of the Construction Industry Association East, to the German Press Agency in Potsdam. "It is positive that building type E offers much-needed flexibility in the construction process."

E stands for simple or experimental. Housing associations had complained that buildings were often built to the gold standard for fear of legal problems. The association is also calling for an offensive to reduce bureaucracy.

Association sees no widespread use of 3D printers for house construction

Will 3D printing, such as that used in the USA to produce entire buildings, also play a role in Germany in the future? The Construction Industry Association East is open to the idea of digitally built houses.

"The development of 3D printing as a construction method is fundamentally welcome, but will not replace traditional construction," said Momberg. Different building regulations in the federal states are likely to make widespread use difficult.

During a trip to the USA in July, Federal Minister of Labor Hubertus Heil (SPD) said that houses could also be built on a large scale in Germany using 3D printers. "That's exactly what we need in Germany."

Incoming orders down

There is hardly any relief in sight for the crisis-ridden housing construction sector. Construction costs are now so high that many housing cooperatives and municipal companies, for example, have put new projects on hold.

According to the association, the total volume of new orders received in eastern Germany from January to May 2024 fell by a nominal 0.9 percent to 7.53 billion euros. "This was again slightly below the already low level of incoming orders in 2023 (EUR 7.6 billion)," said Momberg. Massive declines continued in building construction. However, half-year figures were not yet available.

Construction industry: insolvencies a cause for concern

In the new federal states, the number of insolvencies in the construction industry has risen continuously since 2020, according to the association. In 2023, it reached its highest level in five years with 255 cases. It is particularly worrying that insolvencies in the new federal states rose further to 74 cases in the first quarter of 2024 - an increase of more than 27% compared to the same quarter of the previous year. "The continuous increase in insolvencies since 2021 shows that the industry is increasingly under considerable economic pressure."

The Construction Industry Association East represents the interests of around 260 construction companies with around 20,000 employees in Berlin, Brandenburg, Saxony and Saxony-Anhalt.

In Germany, significantly fewer homes could be built in the coming years than recently. The Munich-based Ifo Institute expects the downturn in the sector to continue. The experts predict that only 175,000 new homes will be built in 2026. That would be over 40 percent less than the almost 300,000 apartments in 2022.