Trains, Planes and Automobiles: The Global Impact of 3D Printing

As we were organizing our Product Focus on 3D Printing Materials for this issue (see page 21), I received an interesting news alert about the first-ever 3D-printed train station. The 100-square-foot station was built overnight, replacing an aging wooden structure in Arida, a rural town in Japan.

The components were 3D-printed off site in seven days using a robotic arm that extruded a quick-drying mortar to form hollow molds that were reinforced with concrete and steel rebar to ensure structural integrity. They were then delivered by truck to Arida and assembled on site in six hours. Building a replacement station the traditional way would have taken more than two months and cost twice as much, according to the West Japan Railway Company; the station will be fully operational next month with interior work ongoing.

This...