In the Texan desert, a remarkable construction project is taking shape, distinguished by its enormous size—a 3D printer akin to a crane is methodically building a hotel. El Cosmico, a pre-existing hotel and campground on the outskirts of Marfa, is undergoing an expansion that will see the addition of 43 new hotel units and 18 residential homes, all constructed over 40 acres (16 hectares) using cutting-edge 3D printing technology.
El Cosmico owner Liz Lambert, alongside the Austin, Texas-based 3D printing company ICON and the architects from Bjarke Ingels Group, claims this project marks the world’s first 3D-printed hotel. Lambert believes the technology opens doors to unparalleled creativity in architectural design. “Most hotels are contained within four walls and a lot of times you are building the same unit over and over and over again,” she explained. “I’ve never been able to build with such little constraint and such fluidity … just the curves, and the domes, and the parabolas. It’s a crazy way to build.”
The first two units currently under construction feature single-story, 12-foot (3.7-metre) high walls, consisting of a three-bedroom residential space and a single-room hotel unit. The walls, characterised by their curvy, beige-coloured finish, are being formed by ICON’s impressive 46.5-feet (14.2 m) wide 3D printer named Vulcan, which stands at 15.5 feet (4.7 m) and weighs 4.75 tons. A technician oversees the printing process as Vulcan’s robotic arm and nozzle glide across the worksite.
The material used in this innovative printing process is a specially formulated cement-based product known as Lavacrete, designed for strength, scalability, and effective printing. According to ICON CEO and founder Jason Ballard, the blend of ingredients is adjusted according to the prevailing weather conditions. “The magic happens in the admixtures that allow us to continue printing,” Ballard remarked, noting that factors like humidity, temperature, and irradiance can influence the material’s properties and final colour.
In addition to the hotel, ICON is developing a 3D-printed neighbourhood of homes near Austin. However, this advance in construction technology raises concerns about its long-term implications for skilled labour. Milad Bazli, a science and technology lecturer at Charles Darwin University in Australia, highlighted potential economic challenges. “I think from the social point of view and the effect on the economy in terms of the local jobs, especially in remote areas, that will be one of the challenges that we need to consider when we’re going to the 3D printing method,” Bazli noted.
The El Cosmico expansion is expected to be completed by 2026, with hotel unit prices anticipated to range from $200 to $450 per night.
