Technologies do not stand still: what just recently seemed the height of perfection will already become hopelessly outdated tomorrow.

This statement is also true for many finishing materials: oil enamels, paper-based wallpaper and the so-called “rolls” are now perceived as something archaic, left in the irrevocable past. In return, manufacturers offer new options, the aesthetic qualities and performance properties of which significantly exceed the characteristics of the finishing materials used in the past.

“Capital Master” has prepared a brief overview of modern finishing materials successfully used by our company in the renovation of apartments and offices. We hope this article will inspire you to new ideas and bold interior achievements.

Walls

"Flexible Stone"

Roll material, one of the types of wallpaper, the front surface of which imitates the color and texture of stone (for example, light sandstone). Strips of flexible stone are applied to walls treated with adhesives, after which the joints are rubbed until smooth. Even after many decades, flexible stone will not change its original properties: this material is resistant to fading and abrasion.

Flexible stone

Flexible stone is the most successful attempt to recreate a natural material. It is a thin section of sandstone held together with a textile-based binder polymer. This stone is made in the form of flexible sheets and tiles. Its warm color palette, unique texture and play of shades will make the surfaces incredibly beautiful. The scope of application is limitless: from walls and floors to complex art objects. Flexible stone can be used to decorate bathrooms, saunas, fountains and even to decorate fireplaces.

Liquid wood is a real revolution in the field of modern terrace coverings. Such boards are made from premium hardwood and polyvinyl chloride. Liquid wood is ideal for outdoor decoration in any climatic conditions. Finds a wide range of applications in the design of verandas and garden areas. Also used for hedges, fences, benches, gazebos, playgrounds.

Fiberglass reinforcement has become a real breakthrough in the production of concrete-based products. Non-metallic reinforcement is made from basalt fiber and fiberglass, and has a number of advantages over its steel counterparts. The main areas of application of fiberglass composite reinforcement are foundations. Can also be used in the home for the foundation of small buildings, greenhouses and greenhouses

What was the site of the main loss of heat in the room can become the source of its production. “Heating glass” is made by sputtering a conductive film, which does not impair its transparency at all. Such glass can serve as a source of main or additional heating of rooms, and can be used for the manufacture of heating, non-fogging windows, doors, mirrors and display cases. Heating windows are a truly unique opportunity to enjoy warmth and comfort at any time of the year.

Ecowool is a modern cellulose insulation made from waste paper with the addition of special fillers. The structure of this material is a homogeneous mass. Its installation is carried out in bulk in the cells of the frame, which allows you to create an even, seamless layer that completely fills the area, without voids and cold bridges. Widely used both in the construction of private residential buildings and on an industrial scale. Housing insulated with ecowool has increased comfort and high performance qualities.

Marker paint is a paint based on epoxy resins or acrylic polymers that, once cured, gives the effect of a marker board. After applying such paint on the surface, you can write, draw, draw with any markers (intended for use on marker boards) and easily erase what you have written with an ordinary napkin.

Foam glass (foamed glass, cellular glass) is a heat-insulating material that is a foamed glass mass. Foam glass is used mainly as a universal heat insulator. The exceptional properties of foam glass allow it to be used in cases where no other thermal insulation material can ensure compliance with technical requirements and safety measures.

Gypsum panels

Decorative 3D gypsum panels are used for wall decoration. This approach opens up a third dimension in the field of interior design, previously limited to the use of flat, cold surfaces. The wealth of color and texture solutions allows you to use environmentally friendly 3D gypsum panels to implement any architectural tasks and creative ideas in the design of various rooms.

Vinyl floor

Vinyl floors are a multi-layer polymer-based coating. Under the transparent layer there is a layer on which a pattern is applied that imitates natural wood, tile, cork or stone. The floor is installed by gluing it to the base using special glue. A floor made of vinyl coating is not afraid of moisture, sand, and is difficult to damage. The material is intended for use in various rooms - in the hallway, living room, kitchen, bedroom and children's room. The coating is also suitable for heated floors and has excellent performance properties.

Liquid thermal insulation

Liquid thermal insulation is a modern method of insulation. A special composition with a consistency similar to regular paint. The main advantage is that 1 millimeter of material gives the same effect as a 5-7 cm layer of mineral wool. At the same time, this insulation is absolutely safe for health, does not spread through the fibers and is not a source of harmful dust that is dangerous to the lungs. Liquid thermal insulation is used in many places. Most often, pipes are treated with it, which is very convenient. It is also good to use this material when insulating houses: roofs, floors and walls.

The development of modern building materials technology makes it possible to build cheaper and faster. Frame-panel and monolithic houses, buildings made of foam concrete and wood concrete, which until recently were perceived as exotic, are now becoming classics of the genre.

Oddly enough, the closest attention of potential developers is focused not on construction technologies, but on new materials for finishing the house. And this is understandable, for the vast majority it is not enough to build the box of a building; you also need to be able to present the goods face-to-face or make a very precise and expressive decoration of the house.

The most popular new finishing methods

Traditionally, a wide range of materials for finishing a newly built building is divided into several large groups:

• Decorative materials for interior finishing work. This also includes floor and ceiling coverings, wall finishing materials for auxiliary rooms;
• Facing and protective coatings used in finishing the facade of a building;
• Coverings for bedrooms and children's rooms;
• Universal materials based on ceramics, composites and plastics.

For your information! Most new materials and coatings represent further technological developments of traditional finishing methods.

Most manufacturers follow this approach to developing new materials for two reasons. Firstly, it is easier and faster to overcome a person’s psychological barrier to the perception of new materials. Secondly, a modified product is much easier to sell than a completely new product.

Traditionally, the development of new materials proceeds in three directions:

• Getting a new look. For example, most of today's new wallpapers have such a range of paints, patterns and colors that were previously simply technically unavailable for production;
• Improvement of old finishing characteristics. With the introduction of new technologies for the production of ceramics and porcelain stoneware, the design, quality and durability of floor and wall tiles have increased by an order of magnitude;
• Increasing the safety and environmental friendliness of coatings, especially for children, people suffering from allergies and intolerance to certain groups of chemical compounds. Demand for new, safer finishing options is growing much faster than for coatings with unusual appearance.

The bulk of new finishing materials have emerged through the widespread use of gypsum mixtures, acrylic and polyurethane resins, and the production of updated types of ceramics and compounds. Technologies producing materials for exterior decoration of houses have received the greatest development.

New technologies and materials for finishing facades.

Truly innovative in the cladding of facades and external walls was the emergence of new building mixtures for producing decorative plaster and the introduction of a new principle of surface-mounted finishing.

New plaster and paint coatings

Decorative plaster based on acrylic resins and many different marble or calcite fillers made it possible not only to change the color and texture of the walls, but also to give them a new look by simulating natural stone or forming a certain surface relief. This coating practically does not fade in the sun, is not afraid of rain and frost, and if the application technology is followed, it can stay on the walls for more than ten years.

The disadvantages of plaster materials include the high dependence of the quality of new coatings on the qualifications of the plasterer; in addition, most of the work has to be done manually, especially at the stage of forming the texture of the walls.

Important! A real discovery in the field of finishing facade walls was the emergence of new water-soluble acrylic, water-based and water-dispersed paints, which have a colossal number of new shades and colors.

With their appearance, the outer walls and facade of the house can be painted in the most exquisite tones and colors. In the vast majority of cases, new paint and varnish materials for the exterior of the house made it possible to give old and gray concrete buildings a fresh, updated look with minimal effort.

Decorating external walls with hanging decor

With the introduction of frame finishing technologies, it became possible to radically change the appearance of buildings, giving the walls a completely new look. For example, using thermal panels with glued porcelain stoneware tiles or imitation natural stone for finishing makes it possible to give an old cinder block building the appearance of ancient masonry made of natural stone, facing brick, or even very accurately imitate wooden walls made of timber or rounded logs.

Similar results in finishing can be achieved by cladding building facades with more durable panels of plastic and metal-plastic siding, a wooden block house and even new modified lining. Unlike thermal panels, new plastic and wooden cladding panels are easier and cheaper to install, therefore they are most often used in combination with new thermal insulation coatings.

In addition to hanging decor, new ceramic facing materials are increasingly being used to decorate walls - bricks and tiles made of porcelain stoneware and hyper-pressed mixtures. The new type of finishing is cheaper than traditional facing bricks, and is not inferior to it in durability and appearance.

Most of the new technologies are, in fact, universal and are used in the development of new materials for interior decoration.

What's new in home interior decoration

Most of the innovations in interior decoration concerned the development and use of new finishing mixtures, the use of plasterboard and MDF panels for wall repairs, the use of porcelain tiles for floor finishing and the installation of self-leveling floors. In fact, most of the new products are already known materials for exterior finishing, adapted for interior use.

A real discovery in the matter of interior decoration was the emergence of hand painting and new environmentally friendly natural materials.

Relief and graphics

Applying graphic images to the walls of an apartment or house cannot be considered a truly new type of decor. Wall painting has been known for several thousand years. But with the advent of high-quality gypsum and decorative plasters, it became possible to create an ideal background or base for applying a picture.

Hand painting instantly turned into an exclusive type of decoration, along with photo wallpaper and 3D decor.

Graphic images have become fashionable, especially in thematically oriented design of rooms using natural materials, specially made interior items and design.

The new 3D photo wallpapers and tiles with a printed photo are considered very interesting. After the room, the perception of space and perspective completely changes. A simple technique allows you to visually increase the spatial perception of small rooms, for example, a bathroom and a bedroom.

Natural materials

Traditionally, finishing from natural materials was limited to laying wooden parquet and gluing standard paper wallpaper using adhesive solutions based on modified cellulose. The modern interpretation of environmentally friendly premises is increasingly forcing homeowners to abandon vinyl or non-woven wallpaper in favor of more exotic trellises made of cork, reed or woven bamboo fiber.

It is no secret that even new gypsum plaster mixtures contain surfactants, polymer plasticizers and dyes, so composite plaster materials based on finely ground silicon and lime are increasingly used to decorate the most important rooms in the house. The use of natural types of plaster is considered an absolute novelty, for example, Moroccan tadelakt - a waterproof coating without dyes and synthetic binders.

The most expensive type of finishing is the use of genuine leather and fabrics made of cotton, linen and jute.

New panel materials for finishing walls and ceilings

The advent of frame finishing of interior spaces has made it possible to solve the issue of repairing old rooms with crooked walls at a completely new level. Instead of throwing tens of kilograms of cement-sand mass, to level the surface, a relatively simple technology is used for laying flat, glass-like gypsum plasterboards on a pre-mounted steel profile frame. With the help of new technology, it turned out to be possible to level and cover walls even with extremely curvature of the surface.

Along with plasterboard for finishing work, MDF boards made from pressed cellulose fibers began to be used. The outer surface of this material is covered with a laminated layer that imitates wood, stone, or tile. The new, lightweight and flexible material can be used to decorate ceilings and walls, simulating cladding made from expensive types of wood or natural stone.

A relatively new technology for finishing ceilings is the use of heat-shrinkable polyvinyl chloride membranes. To decorate the ceiling surface, it is enough to stretch a thin polymer sheet onto a pre-assembled frame and heat the surface with a heat gun. As a result of shrinkage, the membrane is leveled to a mirror state, hiding defects and problem areas of the ceiling.

New floor materials

Among the new materials used for floor finishing, we can mention the appearance of self-leveling floors, the use of heavy-duty multi-layer linoleum and the creation of parquet flooring from tongue-and-groove boards.

The self-leveling floor is a mixture of mineral filler and water-soluble polymer resin. Using a low-viscosity but fast-hardening mixture, you can make a perfectly flat floor, which is subsequently covered with laminate or parquet boards. It is almost impossible to achieve such a surface quality by grinding or pouring concrete screed.

Commercial brands of linoleum of classes 33 and 34 can rightfully be considered a new finishing material. Unlike domestic grades 21 and 23, the new material has an additional polyurethane coating, which ensures a service life of one and a half decades. Home linoleum will have to be replaced at least once every 5 years.

One of the most successful new materials for floor finishing is considered to be a coating made from parquet boards, like laminate. Simplicity of assembly and installation is combined with high strength and durability of the material.

Conclusion

New materials for finishing premises and the facade of a house not only simplify the work, but in some cases also make it possible to do it yourself, which means the cost of finishing operations is reduced by 20-30%. In addition to their attractive appearance, decorative coatings become safer and at the same time more durable.

In our age of rapid growth and improvement of technology, it is not easy to keep up with various new products appearing in various fields, be it the food industry, nuclear technology or bioengineering. Progress has not bypassed construction technologies, and every day more and more new materials, more and more convenient and advanced construction methods appear. This material will highlight some of the latest know-how in the field of construction and interior decoration, present photographs of new products and give their main characteristics and advantages over their predecessors.

Clinker

To begin with, let’s introduce a material such as clinker to get acquainted with new products. Clinker is a brick, but a brick with a number of advantages that ordinary bricks lack. Its main advantage over other facing materials is its price. Compared to, say, decorative facing stone, clinker is much cheaper and allows you to save a significant amount of money spent on finishing the facade. The next advantage of clinker is the variety of shapes and colors. Clinker brick does not contain chemical impurities in its composition, and consists only of water and clay with the addition of dyes. This is another advantage of this facing material; it is natural and environmentally friendly. Well, the last thing I would like to note about clinker brick is its frost resistance and resistance to various natural phenomena that have a destructive effect on ordinary brick.

Warm wall

Another innovation in bricks is a block called "thermal wall". It was invented in 1999. The thermal wall is presented in the form of a block, which consists of three layers. The first layer is a load-bearing block that carries the main load, the second is a layer of insulation, usually polystyrene, less often mineral wool, and the last is a decorative facade layer. The thermal conductivity of such a block is 6 times higher than that of ordinary brick.The heating wall is installed using tile adhesive, which is applied in a thin layer, which eliminates the appearance of efflorescence on the wall surface. This material has a large variety of configurations and design options. It is also possible to produce custom blocks. These blocks have no equal in thermal conductivity; they can retain both heat in winter and coolness in summer. Thermal walls can deservedly be called the material of the future, thanks to its efficiency, speed and ease of installation and a wide variety of facade design options.

P enoplex

The next new product I would like to talk about is Penoplex. Penoplex appeared on the Russian construction market quite recently. This is a new generation of insulation. It is made of extruded polystyrene foam boards with a very low thermal conductivity coefficient, resistant to various loads, moisture-resistant, frost-resistant, with a high level of noise insulation and non-flammable. Penoplex has a very wide range of applications in insulation and sound insulation. As insulation, it can be used almost everywhere, from swimming pools to road surfaces. The plates have grooves for more reliable and convenient fastening to each other. They can be attached either mechanically or using special adhesives.

Linocrom

Next on the list is roofing material linochrome. Linocrom is perhaps the most advanced roll roofing available today. It is a layer of polyester or fiberglass, onto which a special binder bitumen coating is applied.It has high performance qualities, is resistant to temperature changes, exposure to water and is durable.Linocrom can be produced with or without special crumbs. This material is used not only on flat roofs, but also on pitched roofs, and also as waterproofing of foundations and plinths.

Liquid rubber

Continuing the roofing theme, one cannot fail to note another new material for roof waterproofing - liquid rubber. When using liquid rubber, the risk of water leakage through the roof is completely eliminated, because The coating is applied by spraying in a continuous, uniform layer. A distinctive feature when using liquid rubber is the ability to use it on roofs with any configuration, as well as from any materials - concrete or wood.The use of liquid rubber does not require removal of the old coating. The only requirement is careful preparation of the surface for further application of a layer of liquid rubber. It is necessary to clean the surface from grease and dust contaminants, and the surface must be absolutely dry; if this is missed, then there is a high risk that sufficient adhesion of the rubber to the roof surface will not be achieved. As a result, all the efforts you put in will be a waste of your energy and time. In addition, moisture must not be allowed to get into the applied rubber layer for two days; this is how long it will take for such a coating to dry.

liquid tree

Continuing the “liquid” topic, we should mention another product that has appeared on the modern construction market quite recently - liquid wood. Liquid wood is a very practical and reliable building material. It is made in the form of a board from polymer resins mixed with natural wood fibers. The advantages of such boards are obvious. First of all, the price. The price of this material is lower than the price of natural wood, despite the labor-intensive and complex production process. Liquid wood is a real find for designers and planners who want to embody the reliability of plastic and the beauty of natural wood in their ideas. The reliability of this material allows it to be used in places where natural wood will not last very long, for example near bodies of water, such as swimming pools or ponds, since liquid wood is not subject to rotting, insects do not grow in it and it is resistant to the vagaries of nature. A board made of liquid wood can withstand quite a lot of weight without deforming or breaking, it will not crack during installation, so installation is easy and quick even if you do not have the skills to work with this material.

Cork floor

Another, no less interesting wooden novelty is cork flooring. It is made from the bark of the cork tree, which grows mainly in countries such as Tunisia, Spain and Portugal. Cork flooring has amazing elasticity, which is achieved due to air pores that occupy half the volume of the cork itself. This flooring is resistant to mechanical stress, such as heels or legs of tables and chairs, and returns to its original shape after the load is removed. But you shouldn’t get carried away with the loads; it will be better if the legs of the furniture rest on special stands, because Excess weight will cause the cork to crumple, after which it will no longer return to its previous state. In addition to resistance to deformation, cork flooring has amazing soundproofing properties, so it is relevant if noisy neighbors live on the floor below. Thanks to its fine-grain structure, cork flooring is always unique and individual. The color options for such floors can be very different, but they are mostly made to order in color. Cork floors are installed using special glue. After installation, you can optionally cover the floor with varnish, although due to the large number of pores, you will need at least five layers of varnish until it stops being absorbed and begins to form an even, smooth layer. It is not recommended to make cork floors in damp rooms, as they are susceptible to moisture. This is one of the disadvantages of cork flooring. Another disadvantage is the fairly high price, so not everyone can afford such a soft, warm and environmentally friendly floor.

Rubber tiles

Well, the last new product on the construction market, which will be presented in this review, will be a product that is practically impossible to get anywhere - these are rubber tiles made from obsolete car tires. This product was invented by the European company Euroshield. The inventors of these tiles were forced to come up with such an original way of recycling old tires due to the fact that all landfills and trash cans are filled with useless tires. Rubber tiles have amazing strength, can withstand both hail and heat, are not affected by temperature changes and have an original appearance.

Recycled tire shingles are stronger than any known roofing material due to their ability to stretch and contract. Rubber tiles are mounted, like ordinary flexible tiles, using glue or using screws and nails. The warranty period for this new product is set at 50 years, but in reality it will last much longer. Even after the end of its useful life, the product can be recycled again to make new shingles, so it is essentially a forever roof.

All the new items presented in this material are new only now, but soon they will become a part of our everyday life, taking the place of outdated and less advanced materials that were used in construction before them and will finally displace the building materials we are accustomed to. And these new products will be replaced by others, and this will continue as long as man lives on Earth. His inquisitive mind constantly strives for discoveries and the desire to improve his life, finding the most amazing solutions to the most unusual problems.

Most modern people consider bamboo to be a decorative material. But in reality it is an incredible building resource. Bamboo grows quickly, is stronger than steel and more stable than cement. Therefore, Penda, an architecture studio in Beijing, China, wants to use bamboo as the main resource to build an entire city.

This city will be sustainable, environmentally friendly and affordable. Buildings will be constructed by tying bundles of bamboo together, tying them with rope. Using such technology, Penda thinks it can build a city that can accommodate 200,000 people by 2023.

Once the overall structure is complete, horizontal and vertical blocks can be easily added. In addition, a room or even an entire building made of bamboo can be dismantled without much effort, and bamboo rods can always be reused.

Diamond nanothreads

As far as we know, diamonds are the hardest mineral that occurs naturally on Earth. This makes diamonds an excellent building material if handled properly.

Scientists at the University of Pennsylvania have created innovative diamond nanothreads that are 20,000 times thinner than a human hair. At the same time, diamond nanothreads are considered the strongest material on Earth (and, possibly, in the entire Universe). In addition to being thin and durable, they are also incredibly lightweight.

The researchers were able to create these strands of ultra-thin diamonds by applying alternating cycles of pressure to isolated benzene molecules in a liquid state. As a result, rings of carbon atoms were born, which were ordered in chains.

Such nanofilaments may be unlikely to be used in everyday construction, but in ambitious projects, for example, it is possible.

Airgel insulation

Airgel is not a new material. It was discovered back in the 1920s. It is created by the process of removing liquid from the gel and replacing the liquid with gas. During this process, the substance becomes ultra-light, since it is 90% air. It is ideal for insulation. Airgel has been used to insulate pipelines in industrial areas and even on a Mars rover.

Aspen Aerogels wants to use aerogels for home insulation. The company has created a product called Spaceloft blankets, which are quite easy to work with due to their weight and thinness. Although lightweight, these blankets have two to four times the insulating properties of traditional fiberglass or foam insulation.

Spaceloft blankets also allow water vapor to pass through them and are also fire resistant, surprisingly. While homes wrapped in airgel won't be as fire-resistant as the homes in Fahrenheit 451, this type of insulation should reduce the number of home fires.

The problem is that airgel is much more expensive than traditional insulation, although it will save money on energy bills over the long haul. Additionally, not all homes can be easily retrofitted with this material. These blankets are best suited for older homes, or new ones that will be specially designed for airgel insulation.

Travel printer

Laying a road takes a lot of time. On average, one worker can lay 100 square meters per day using traditional methods. Road printers like Tiger Stone can reduce this process by printing up to 300 square meters of cobblestones per day.

Another RoadPrinter RPS can lay up to 500 square meters per day. One to three operators feed the bricks to the machine. The pusher then sorts the bricks into a pattern, like a carpet. At this moment, gravity takes its toll and the machine lays a brick road. A roller-like roller then presses the bricks into place.

These printers run on electricity and don't have many moving parts, making them easy to use and maintain. They also do not create much noise, especially compared to traditional road paving methods.

Of course, the main difference between most roads and those laid by these printing machines is that they lay bricks, cobblestones or tiles instead of asphalt. However, expensive block ones are even better than asphalt because they filter water, expand when they freeze, and last longer.

Cableless multi-directional elevators

The big problem with large infrastructure is that there is no efficient way to navigate within it. People always walk at the same speed and at a certain distance. And each elevator often has only one moving cabin. If you've ever used an elevator in a large building, you know that sometimes waiting to die is like waiting.

German elevator manufacturer ThyssenKrupp plans to get rid of these problems. Instead of using cables, he proposes using elevators based on magnetic levitation (maglev). Then they will be able to move both vertically and horizontally. This will also allow the use of more than one booth per shaft, which will save waiting time.

Finally, magnetic elevators will consume less energy, which is also good for the environment. In 2016, ThyssenKrupp plans to test a new elevator system in a building on its research campus.

Solar paint

One of the most common complaints about solar panels is that they are large, an eyesore, and not powerful enough. To change this, several researchers are working on solar cells that are so small and flexible that they can be used to draw on surfaces. In fact, a team of researchers from the University of Alberta created solar cells in the form of a spray with nanoparticles of zinc and phosphorus.

If every homeowner painted their roof with this solar paint, they could generate more than enough energy for their home, thereby reducing dependence on fossil fuels. In addition, solar paint is cheaper to produce than traditional paints. The solar panels used in this paint are not very efficient yet, but scientists are working on this problem.

Vertical cities

According to United Nations projections, by 2050 there will be more than 9.6 billion people on Earth. This is 2.3 billion more animals than we have today. In addition, it is expected that 75% of the world's population will live in cities, which will exacerbate our problems with the lack of open space in these very cities.

One way to solve this problem is to build vertical cities. There are already several proposals for vertical cities that could be built in the Sahara, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and China.

These vertical cities will have giant buildings that will provide people with homes, jobs and shops. For example, the Italian firm Luca Curci Architects is going to build a 189-story building in the UAE. It will be able to accommodate 25,000 people with shops and offices. Since people won't have to leave the building, it will solve space problems and reduce carbon emissions.

Such mega-buildings will be self-sustaining and green. Since they are large, solar panels can be placed across the entire wall area. They will also use geothermal energy and collect rainwater.

Smart concrete

When an area begins to flood, there is nowhere for the water to drain. This is even worse in the city because there is less soil to absorb water. To reduce the threat of flooding, the British company Tarmac created an asphalt called Topmix Permeable.

Most types of concrete allow water to soak into the ground, but only 300 millimeters per hour. Topmix allows you to pass 36,000 millimeters of water per hour, which is about 3300 liters per minute.

Instead of using sand for concrete, Topmix includes crushed granite pieces packed together. Water seeps through these pieces of granite and is then absorbed by the soil, flowing down the drain, or collected in a water reserve. In addition to reducing the chance of flooding, Topmix will be able to keep streets dry and safe. In addition, water can be sent to reservoirs and used for needs.

The problem with pervious concrete is that it can only be used in areas that are not too cold. Cold weather will cause the concrete to expand, destroying it. It will also be more expensive than regular concrete, but over the long haul, cities can save money by reducing flooding.

Smart bricks

Taking a look at Kite Bricks' Smart Bricks, it's easy to see their resemblance to Lego bricks. These building bricks have handles on the top and can be connected like Lego pieces. Smart bricks are held in place by reinforcement and come in a variety of shapes.

Instead of using cement, these bricks are held together with strong double-sided adhesive. From inside the building, removable, replaceable panels can be attached to the bricks. These panels can be removed if necessary. There are also cubes for building floors and ceilings. The blocks are empty in the center and can be filled with insulation, pipes and electrical wiring as needed.

Such bricks could lead to improved heat control, flexibility in production and a 50% reduction in production costs.

Swarm of construction robots

In search of innovative construction methods, Harvard researchers turned to nature for inspiration, in particular termites. Termites can build large structures in the absence of central control. For this purpose, they simply carry a piece of dirt to the site of the first construction site. If she is busy, they carry her to the next place.

The TERMES project uses the same idea of ​​swarm construction, but uses small robots. These simple, inexpensive drones build structures by following the original design and placing blocks in the first available space until the structure is complete. The swarm does not require human intervention at all after setting the initial task.

This type would be ideal for constructing structures in dangerous places, in space or under water. He could also do menial jobs, saving people time.