The New York Times recently published an article about 3-D printing technology and its impact on several industries, including design and architecture. 3-D printing technology may eventually advance from the creation of architectural models to the construction of actual buildings:
A California start-up is even working on building houses. Its printer, which would fit on a tractor-trailer, would use patterns delivered by computer, squirt out layers of special concrete and build entire walls that could be connected to form the basis of a house.
For a demonstration of the kinds of products manufactured with this technology see the video included in the NYT story.