Thinking About 3D Printing? Use NAHB Resources to Protect Your Business

Liability
Published

The use of 3D printers in residential construction is growing at a rapid pace. While 3D printing has a very long way to go before it replaces traditional home construction methods, builders should know how to protect their business from risk if 3D printing is involved in a project.

NAHB’s Construction Liability, Risk Management, and Building Materials Committee recently partnered with law firm Akerman LLP to publish a 3D Printing Best Practices Guidance document for members.

The guidance provides builders with an understanding of the challenges and basic considerations before using 3D printing on their projects. It also includes a series of checklists to manage potential risks stemming from the use of 3D printing.

The first step in using 3D printing in home building is to decide how to engage with the technology. Home builders have three basic ways to deploy 3D printers on a jobsite:

  1. Retain a construction company that has its own 3D printing technology.
  2. Use a subcontractor that specializes in constructing with 3D printing technology.
  3. Directly invest in 3D printing technology.

Each method changes the risk assessment for the principal company on the project. For example, if using a partner, how involved will they be? Are they directing the printer itself? If investing in 3D printing technology, how should manufacturers be assessed?

Even after risk is evaluated, general contractors must determine how to transfer risk through partner selection, insurance coverage and warranties.

Another consideration is legal risk. With 3D printing in construction still in its infancy, many jurisdictions do not have laws or regulations dictating use. Local building codes also will need to be modified to accommodate 3D printing, and local building and code compliance departments must become conversant in this new building method.

NAHB members are encouraged to review this guidance before engaging vendors, even for trials.

Subscribe to NAHBNow

Log in or create account to subscribe to notifications of new posts.

Log in to subscribe

Latest from NAHBNow

Education | Remodeling

May 02, 2025

How to Diversify Your Remodeling Business for Growth

To celebrate National Home Remodeling Month, NAHB will host two Shop Talks, sponsored by Westlake Royal Building Products, to help remodelers diversify their business and build greener.

Sponsored Content

May 02, 2025

Home Builders: How to Scale Your Projects to Sustain Profitable Growth

Too many builders still feel like they’re grinding. They build a few homes at a time, reinvest their profits, and hope the next project pays off a little more than the last. It doesn’t have to be that way. The builders who scale create lasting wealth. And the key to faster scaling is smarter financing.

View all

Latest Economic News

Economics

May 01, 2025

Housing’s Share of the Economy Grows Higher to Start the Year

Housing’s share of the economy grew to 16.4% in the first quarter of 2025, according to the advance estimate of GDP produced by the Bureau of Economic Analysis. This is the highest reading since the third quarter of 2022 and is up 0.2 percentage points from the fourth quarter of 2024.

Economics

Apr 30, 2025

U.S. Economy Contracted in First Quarter of 2025

The U.S. economy contracted in the first quarter of 2025 for the first time in three years, driven by a sharp surge in pre-tariff imports, softening consumer spending, and a decline in government spending.

Economics

Apr 30, 2025

House Sharing is Not Just for Young Adults

A record-high 6.8 million households shared their housing with unrelated housemates, roommates or boarders in 2023. While college-age and young adults make up the largest subset of house sharers (close to 41%), this type of living arrangement is gaining popularity among older householders fastest, with the 55+ segment accounting for 30% of all house-sharing households in 2023.