It has been yet another day of gains for shareholders of Fastbrick Robotics Ltd (ASX: FBR). Its shares have climbed 8% to 13 cents today, bringing its year-to-date return to an astonishing 350%.
Fastbrick Robotics is a Perth-based technology company which has developed and globally patented a robotic bricklayer that is able to create the shell of a building without the need for human hands.
According to the National Bricklayers Association the average bricklayer is able to lay 400 bricks per day. Whereas the company's revolutionary Hadrian X commercial prototype is capable of delivering upwards of 1,000 standard brick equivalents per hour.
The truck-mounted, fully automated, end-to-end bricklaying machine can do this over a 30-metre boom from a single position on-site and is estimated to cut the standard construction of a residential property down by six to eight weeks.
I'm sure time-savings of this magnitude would be very appealing to property developers such as Cedar Woods Properties Limited (ASX: CWP) and Lendlease Group (ASX: LLC).
The technology has already caught the eye of one developer. An agreement has been signed with Archistruct Builders & Designers to construct the world's first 3D printed brick houses. All in all, an agreement to construct upwards of 11 houses using Hadrian X is in place.
So should you invest in this exciting company today?
Whilst I think the technology has enormous potential, it is of course still very early days. The company is working towards the physical build of the Hadrian X, so it could yet be some time before we see it in action commercially.
For this reason I would hold off an investment and at least wait until the first Hadrian X has been delivered and is operating successfully.
Every so often I come across stories about how robots are going to come and steal all our jobs. It would appear as though this could finally be coming true. Watch out brickies!
