UK-based project to wrap up in early 2025.
An ongoing investigation led by British water services company United Utilities, ChangeMaker3D, Manchester Metropolitan University’s PrintCity and Scottish Water aims to determine the benefits and impacts of using 3D printing for water infrastructure components. The initiative, called Water Industry Printfrastructure (WIP), has been underway since 2023 and is on track to wrap up in early 2025.
Since the Printfrastructure project launched, the aforementioned partners have been exploring the potential applications and impacts of polymer and concrete 3D printing technologies in the water industry. This exploration has consisted of several innovative use cases and studies, including 3D printing water infrastructure replacement parts using a combination of 3D scanning and polymer AM at the Manchester Metropolitan University’s PrintCity facility.
To date, three replacement parts have not only successfully undergone testing and trials, but are now in use at United Utilities. The three parts are a wastewater jet nozzle, a CCTV skid plate and a trough for water monitoring instruments. 3D printing has also been used to manufacture laboratory equipment for United Utilities and Scottish Water. In the water industry—like other sectors—3D printing offers unprecedented benefits for the production of replacement components as it allows for in-house and on-demand production, ultimately reducing reliance on complex supply chains and minimizing downtimes caused by missing stock or delivery times.
Nick Hurst, technical specialist at Manchester Metropolitan University’s PrintCity, said: “This collaborative project is helping turn 3D printing into business-as-usual, an approach that will be game-changing for the sector. Some of the project’s outcomes—such as the successful printing of polymer spare parts—are already making a difference on the ground and delivering significant carbon, cost and labour savings. PrintCity has been working with the operational teams to enhance the designs, improving durability and ensuring parts can be maintained more effectively.”
On the concrete 3D printing front, United Utilities opened a temporary concrete 3D printing hub at its Wigan Wastewater Treatment Works. This hub officially opened in June 2024 thanks to a collaboration with Gloucester-based ChangeMaker3D, which has developed a concrete 3D printing platform. There, the partners have overseen the production of several concrete infrastructure parts, including combined sewer overflow chambers and Industrial Emissions Directive containment walls.
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