Is it possible to build 10 houses in one day? A Chinese company has recently shown the capabilities of its gigantic 3D printer by constructing 10 houses in less than 24 hours. Built mainly from recycled materials, these homes cost less than $5,000 each and could be rolled out to ease housing crises in developing countries.

WinSun Decoration Design Engineering Co. built the houses in Shanghai using four specialized 3D printers, each measuring 10 meters wide and 6.6 meters high. They produced the layered walls with a mix of cement and construction waste. In addition to shortening the time spent constructing houses, the process also has the added benefit of construction workers being less exposed to hazardous materials or dangerous working environments. Furthermore, it's eco-friendly.

The new technique means cheaper housing could be created quicker than before and there is talk that skyscrapers could be created using the same technology. Presently, the building regulations in China are halting the creation of 3D-printed multi-story buildings.

Cost effective

"We can print buildings from any digital design our customers bring us. It's fast and cheap," WinSun Chief Executive Ma Yihe told the Xinhua News Agency recently.

Ma has been planning and preparing 3D-printed houses for over a decade and stated that it is "environmentally friendly and cost effective," compared to building techniques used every day.

Quality spot checks are conducted by examining each piece of the structure as it is printed out. However, there has to be more rigorous checks if people are to live and work in these structures in the future.

Ma hopes the technology will one day be used to build skyscrapers and will start on a whole villa for the company's next project.

Expanding horizons

In October, 3D-printed models were used to coordinate spectacular flower displays on Tiananmen Square for National Day celebrations for the first time. The Beijing Municipal Bureau of Landscape and Forestry designed the display, which was made up of 750,000 flowerpots with 120 different types of flowers, digitally. The computer aided design models were then 3D printed and arranged according to their blueprints. The actual flowers were matched to the printed model in the center of the square, spreading 50 meters across and reaching 15 meters high.

Recently, Chinese doctors successfully rebuilt a section of a man's skull using 3D-printing technology. Also in August, surgeons at Peking University Third Hospital successfully completed China's first spinal surgery with the aid of a 3D-printed vertebra.

Xu Jianhui, Vice President of China 3D Printing Technology Industry Alliance, was one of the first people to become involved in the technology.

According to Xu, the 3D-printing market made approximately $3 billion worth of revenue globally in 2013. China accounted for about 10 percent of the market share. "Anyone underestimating the potential of 3D-printing technology will be proved wrong," he said. However, the technology is still a novelty for many people.

Bigger the better

Qingdao Unique Products Develop Co. Ltd., a prominent maker of 3D printers, revealed the world's largest 3D printer at the 2014 World 3D Printing Technology Industry Conference and Exhibition held in Shandong Province in June. This massive 3D printer has a build volume of 12 meters by 12 meters by 12 meters. According to Wang Hong, the company's founder and CEO, the company spent six months developing this giant printer. It weighs over 120 tons and was assembled using cranes and other heavy machinery.

Many analysts believe that although innovation in 3D technology and materials is becoming more and more important for the nation, efforts should also be made to nurture the market, including carrying out related educational and training programs.