Terra – 3D Printed Eco Village

TERRA gets it’s name from the raw earth that is used as the
main building material to 3D print the housing modules. As the brief was about archologies, I set out to bring the self-sufficient, countryside lifestyle into East London. The eco village consists of four 10-storey high communities which each are centred around a digester which reuses the waste to create the power on site as well as bio-gas for fuel. Each housing unit has it’s own greenhouse made from 3d printed bioplastic surrounding their home to grown their own food and there are also external allotments and composting facilities on site.

The ground floor is designed for commercial use favouring sustainable businesses and vegan cafes for example.

The proposal is situated in East London at Marian Place where there are 4 disused gas holders currently. Terra is replacing the outdated, unsustainable forms of supplying London with gas with a new, green alternative energy.

The benefits of the 3D printing construction process is that buildings can be built in days rather than months. Printing on site reduces transportation costs and emissions as well as there being 30% less construction waste produced.

Another benefit of 3D printing is that the furniture can be built-in, and free-from geometries can be achieved. Openings such as windows and doors are designed to suit the 3D printing overhang limits.