Could robots in construction address Europe's shortage of affordable homes?
The European construction industry is experiencing a significant transformation, with rapid technological adoption becoming the norm. This shift, driven by factors such as labor shortages, sustainability, and efficiency, is aimed at addressing Europe's housing crisis. One startup leading this charge is Dutch company Monumental, which is pioneering automation-driven prefab construction that integrates robotics and digital methods to accelerate housing delivery with improved sustainability and precision.
The Current State of Automation in European Construction
The European Union has implemented new laws such as the EU Data Act and Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive in 2025, promoting data access and innovation. These regulations encourage firms to adopt data-driven operations, production, and supply chain management. In the Netherlands, factory automation, robotics, and prefabrication are advancing rapidly, with robotics expected to cover more phases of prefab construction, including finishing and structural tasks. Integration with digital twins and AI for building performance and compliance monitoring is becoming standard practice.
Large-Scale Dutch Projects
Monumental's robots have already completed large-scale projects, including facades for houses and canal retaining walls. The approach enhances speed, labor efficiency, safety, and environmental integrity, as seen in large-scale Dutch projects like the De Zalmhaven tower, demonstrating how prefab modular systems are scaling up housing and infrastructure construction.
Monumental's Role in the Future of Construction
Given Europe's acute housing shortage, startups like Monumental leverage prefab construction automation and robotics to directly address the crisis by enabling faster, scalable, and more sustainable housing production. Monumental's use of advanced robotics for bricklaying and likely further automation in finishing stages fits within the country's wider prefab industrial strategy emphasizing circular design and digital precision.
By hybridizing robotics with digital twins and AI monitoring, Monumental and similar firms can ensure high quality, energy efficiency, and compliance, which meet strict EU sustainability standards and regulations meant to accelerate sector innovation. The Dutch prefab market aims to have prefab housing reach around half of new residential builds by 2030, with robots and automation expanding beyond bricks to complex structural tasks, which supports scaling housing supply quickly and cost-effectively.
Salar al Khafaji and Monumental's Vision
Salar al Khafaji, CEO and co-founder of Monumental, believes automation can overcome labour, cost, and regulatory hurdles in the construction industry. Monumental's robots are designed to work autonomously alongside humans, laying bricks and mortar with precision. The company raised $25mn in seed funding in 2023.
Monumental's robots are designed to integrate with existing construction processes, a crucial requirement in an industry that isn't always open to new technologies. The robots can be swapped for human masons at any point during a project. Monumental's software models both construction sites and the robots themselves. The first finished system from Monumental focuses on bricklaying, a skilled but physically demanding and sometimes dangerous job with a rapidly dwindling workforce.
Looking Ahead
Monumental's robots aim to fill the gap and strengthen the supply of affordable housing. Salar al Khafaji will be a standout speaker at the our website Conference in Amsterdam on June 19-20. For those interested, tickets for the conference are now on sale. Using the code our websiteXMEDIA2025 at checkout gets 30% off the price tag for the our website newsletter.
[1] European Commission. (2021). A European approach to industrial data spaces. https://ec.europa.eu/info/publications/european-approach-industrial-data-spaces_en
[2] European Commission. (2020). European Green Deal. https://ec.europa.eu/info/strategy/priorities-2019-2024/european-green-deal_en
[3] Monumental. (2022). Monumental raises $25 million in seed funding to revolutionize the construction industry. https://www.monumental.build/blog/monumental-raises-25-million-in-seed-funding-to-revolutionize-the-construction-industry
[4] Construction News. (2022). Monumental's bricklaying robots to work on large-scale project in Amsterdam. https://www.constructionnews.co.uk/buildtech/monumentals-bricklaying-robots-to-work-on-large-scale-project-in-amsterdam/10057162.article
[5] Monumental. (2022). Monumental's bricklaying robots to work on large-scale project in Amsterdam. https://www.monumental.build/blog/monumental-bricklaying-robots-amsterdam
- In light of the European Union's push for data-driven operations and sustainability in construction, Monumental's advancements in automation-driven prefab construction, integrating robotics and digital methods, is primed to become a significant player in investing in technology-driven real-estate solutions.
- As the Dutch prefab market aims to have prefab housing reach around half of new residential builds by 2030, Monumental's integration of AI, digital twins, and advanced robotics in construction holds promise for reducing labor shortages, improving efficiency, and delivering higher quality, more sustainable housing-an investment that aligns with Europe's goal of addressing the housing crisis.
