Wastewater

U.K. project installs 3D concrete printed wastewater chamber

Sept. 26, 2022

By piping mortar through a robotic arms to a precise computer design, the demonstration at a test facility in Cheshire could lead to significant reductions in material and labor costs.

A project in the United Kingdom’s water industry has successfully used 3D concrete printing to develop and install a wastewater chamber, leading to significant reductions in carbon, costs, and labor.

United Utilities, serving 7 million people in northwest England, worked with ChangeMaker3D to demonstrate of the use of 3D concrete printed components at one of the utility company’s test facilities in Cheshire.

The new technology, called “printfrastructure” by ChangeMaker3D, lead to reductions in carbon, costs, and labor when compared to traditional methods. The build time was also fast: the chamber was printed in only four hours.

“This is important for us in realising our aim to drive efficiency and improvement in everything we do for the benefit of our customers,” says Lisa Mansell, United Utilities’ chief engineer of innovation. “The future is exciting for water companies like United Utilities who are trailblazing innovation. We have a huge capital program to deliver under tight deadlines. Digital technologies such as 3D construction printing can drive efficient construction and help us meet our net zero goals for carbon.”

Natalie Wadley, Co-Founder and CEO of ChangeMaker3D, said: “After months of hard work, we are thrilled to see the water chamber in situ, with proven environmental and cost benefits. It’s the result of a brilliant collaboration with United Utilities and our team of delivery partners, including CyBe Construction, Costain, Constructure, Ainscough Crane Hire and AutoMutatio. Thanks to them, we have achieved several UK ‘firsts’ – including the design, print and installation of a 3D concrete printed component for this sector, and the UK’s first crane lift of a 3D printed structure.

The team created an accurate digital model of the 1.8m cylindrical chamber, printed it at an offsite factory, and then craned it into position at its new home in Cheshire.

At the start of 2021, ChangeMaker 3D was selected for United Utilities’ Innovation Lab— a competition in which new ideas are incubated and brought to market. Over a 12-week design sprint, they worked with the company to identify the best component to design and demonstrate. The team selected a wastewater distribution chamber – providing enough technical challenge, together with the opportunity to bring a more sustainable approach to a component which has traditionally been carbon heavy.

Supported by the competition’s wealth of expertise and resources, the team created an accurate digital model of the 1.8m cylindrical chamber. This was then printed offsite in a factory by Dutch technology providers, CyBe Construction. Natalie explained that the process involves piping 3D mortar through a robotic arm to a precise computer design – a bit like icing a cake. The chamber was craned into position at its new home in Cheshire earlier this year, where further testing has since taken place.

The partners have released a video, ‘Printfrastructure – Together for a Net Zero Future’, which documents the journey of the chamber from concept to testing: