Robots that conduct 3D printed construction work on Thursday, March 26, 2026, at Fort Bliss, Texas. (Rose L. Thayer/Stars and Stripes)
FORT BLISS, Texas — Massive construction robots are working around the clock here to transform a vacant stretch of land into 10 barracks buildings capable of housing 560 soldiers in open bays within six months.
With just the hum of generators heard from the construction site Thursday, workers carefully watched as the arms of the robot laid a special blend of concrete — forming walls one thin layer at a time. Every 15 minutes, the concrete formula was adjusted to adapt to the climbing temperature.
A construction worker sprays water on concrete as it cures on Thursday, March 26, 2026, at Fort Bliss, Texas, (Rose L. Thayer/Stars and Stripes)
The work of 3D printing began this month and by August the buildings will house soldiers deployed to the west Texas Army base as part of the southwest border mission. ICON, an Austin-based company that specializes in 3D-printed construction, is building the housing. It constructed similar barracks for a Texas National Guard training site in 2021.
“Last year, the Secretary of the Army [Dan Driscoll] challenged us to break free from legacy processes and embrace speed over bureaucracy,” Maj. Gen. Curtis Taylor, commander of the 1st Armored Division and Fort Bliss, said Thursday. “Today, the project behind me stands as visible proof that real change is happening across the Army.”
Maj. Gen. Curtis Taylor, commander of the 1st Armored Division and Fort Bliss, Texas, speaks during a ceremony on Thursday, March 26, 2026, to mark the beginning of the construction of barracks using 3D printing. (Rose L. Thayer/Stars and Stripes)
Maj. Gen. Curtis Taylor, right, commander of the 1st Armored Division and Fort Bliss, Texas, observes construction using 3D printing at the base on Thursday, March 26, 2026. (Rose L. Thayer/Stars and Stripes)
Taylor spoke during a ceremony to mark the construction of the barracks, which comes roughly one year after soldiers moved into two 3D-printed buildings nearby as a pilot program to test how the structures would serve the Army.
The two buildings, with their distinct walls that show the individually placed layers of concrete, house soldiers in bunk beds with locking cabinets for their personal items. Each building has bathrooms and showers, and the concrete is naturally resistant to mold growth.
These and the under-construction barracks buildings are within walking distance of gyms, dining halls, a shopping center and a recreation area, Taylor said.
When President Donald Trump sent troops to the southwest border last year, Fort Bliss was tasked with housing some of the troops, which created an “acute shortage” of barracks, Taylor said. This meant soldiers moved into housing intended for short stays that was unsuitable for the nine-month rotations of troops.
The Defense Department Inspector General reported in December that troops were living in facilities with leaking sewage and inadequate electricity. Soldiers have been moved from those barracks, Taylor said.
The new 3D-printed housing was already under discussion when the need for replacement housing became more urgent. The Army had initially asked ICON to get new barracks operational within a year but then came back asking if it could be done in six months, said Jason Ballard, ICON CEO.
To make it happen, Ballard said he brought out a larger fleet of robots to work 24 hours a day — something not possible with traditional construction because of the physical capabilities of a crew and because of the sound.
“We have been building the same way for a thousand years. It has gotten us this far, but we’re running into the limits of those ways of building,” Ballard said. “The way we are building is too slow, too expensive, too frail, and now holding us back from our potential as a society and a military. We have service members living in quarters decades past their lifespan.”
From left, Jordan Gillis, assistant secretary of the Army for installations, energy and environment; Jason Ballard, CEO of ICON; and Maj. Gen. Curtis Taylor, commander of the 1st Armored Division and Fort Bliss discuss the construction at the base on Thursday, March 26, 2026. ( Rose L. Thayer/Stars and Stripes)
Jordan Gillis, assistant secretary of the Army for installations, energy and environment, and Command Sgt. Maj. James Light, of the 1st Armored Division and Fort Bliss, Texas, walk past a 3D-printed barracks building at the base on Thursday, March 26, 2026. (Rose L. Thayer/Stars and Stripes)
Construction is seen through the breezeway of an existing 3D-printed barracks building March 26, 2026, at Fort Bliss, Texas. (Rose L. Thayer/Stars and Stripes)
The barracks cost about $87 million. A traditional build of similar size would have been five times that amount, said Jordan Gillis, assistant secretary of the Army for installations, energy and environment.
“Most of us can attest to the fact that delivering barracks has taken far too long, cost far too much, and is not always delivered to the standard that our soldiers deserve,” Gillis said. “Quality of life is not separate from readiness, it’s foundational to it, and one of the clearest places where that shows up is in our barracks.”
Once the Fort Bliss barracks are completed, the robots — there are 10 Vulcan printers on site — will move to Fort Polk, La., where ICON will build housing for soldiers doing rotational unit support at the Joint Readiness Training Center.
ICON recently unveiled technology to allow it to build multistory buildings and is in talks with the Army to create barracks for long-term housing of troops.
Once the border mission ends and the troops leave Fort Bliss, Taylor said the base will continue to have a need for the housing because it supports up to 50,000 deploying troops each year.
“At any given time, I have several thousand soldiers right in this area, many National Guard and reservists,” he said. “We want every guest and resident who comes and spends a little bit of time with us on their way to a deployed location to have a high-quality place to rest their head.”
Construction takes place on Thursday, March 26. 2026, using 3D printing will finish 10 barracks buildings within six months at Fort Bliss, Texas. (Rose L. Thayer/Stars and Stripes)
