Would You Like Them To?

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Video update: Flying robots build a 6-meter tower.

That link above was posted yesterday to one of (the several) Facebook Groups I have recently found myself a part of.  With it, the poster wrote:  “Flying machines: the contractors of the future??”

Of course this intrigued me.  And before I go too deep, maybe I tell you it’s a post about a live-action exhibition at the FRAC (Fonds Regional d’Art Contemporain) Centre in Orleans, France.  The exhibit is entitled “Flight Assembled Architecture.”  A “swarm” of “flying robots” assemble a tower made of 1,500 prefabricated polystyrene bricks.  The exhibit was developed jointly by Swiss architect(s) Gramazio & Kohler and Italian robot designer Raffaello D’Andrea.

You can see the FRAC Centre’s exhibition in the video below.

Flight Assembled Architecture/Architectures volantes from FRAC Centre on Vimeo.

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Now . . . clocking in at almost eight minutes, and while I watched, this vid gave me a little time to think.

What if?  I mean — What if little tiny ‘bots could replace the construction workers/contractors of the world?  What would that mean?

Hmmmm . . . jotting quickly:

• For the builders and/or homeowners of the world — no more communication breakdowns, no lip-back and no more plumbers crack.  No more loafing or re-dos, no mud on the carpet, no lunch breaks . . . hmmmm.  No more cost overruns . . . ?  Wow, accurate estimates, too?
• For the architects and designers of the world — your vision (and as if it was not already immensely important) executed flawlessly, and well . . . no lip-back, no lunch breaks, and really . . . all the other stuff listed above.
• For the diyers of the world — How ’bout your own personal . . . “DIY. . . Hymie”?  HA! A DIYBot?  Hmmmm.  It  could still get in too deep or do it just right.  But would you still get that intense sense of personal satisfaction?

And Okay… I only had a few minutes to hack this out, but what do you think?

What could a robot do just a little bit better than that live-action contractor you know?  I mean  — minus the human factor, would the work improve?

Or Hey, for the craftspeople of the world, what of your hard work, the job security and . . . the legacy?  I welcome any of your thoughts in the comment section below . . . that is, ‘less of course, you’re a ‘bot, android, cyerborg, or . . . a spider.

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Thanks for reading and happy day.  ~jb