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Robert F. Bukaty/AP Images (3-D printer); Kevin Bennett/AP Images (home)
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Printing Up New Homes
Engineers at the University of Maine recently unveiled an impressive new machine: the world’s largest 3-D printer. The device—called “Factory of the Future 1.0”—can print designs as big as 96 feet long by 32 feet wide by 18 feet tall, larger than an average house. It’s already been used to create boats, buildings, and drones. And officials hope it’ll be able to help address the state’s housing crisis: To meet growing demand, Maine will need another 80,000 homes over the next six years, according to state agency MaineHousing. But there’s a shortage of both affordable housing and workers to build those homes, says Habib Dagher, director of UMaine’s Advanced Structures and Composites Center. Some smaller 3-D printers have used concrete to make homes, but the new printer uses wood fibers, giving the houses a cozier vibe. “Many people feel concrete is a cold thing to look at and it’s not necessarily where you want to live,” Dagher told CNN. These homes, however, are “very warm and inviting.”