Demonstrating the benefits of 3D concrete printed components for the water industry in conjunction with the United Utilities, North West water company, Manchester Metropolitan University and Scottish Water.
Our print hub is being used to print a range of equipment, including combined sewer overflow (CSO) chambers which will play a role in helping to reduce spills from the sewer network.

The printing process for a CSO chamber is just over an hour, they are then left for a minimum of three hours to dry, which is drastically shorter than the two days needed using traditional methods. Some small items can be printed in as a little as 45 minutes.

Water Industry Printfrastructure is being back by the Ofwat Innovation Fund, a £200M fund to grow the water sector’s capacity to innovate.

The hub, at Wigan Wastewater Treatment Works, is also being used to demonstrate the benefits of this innovative process to other water companies, construction partners and other sectors.

Products are produced using robotics and materials from CyBe robotics. Some of the items produced are being shared with Scottish Water for trialling on one of its projects.

The technique is also financially and environmentally efficient, with carbon savings of around 50% achieved in some products.
It also delivers safety benefits by reducing the requirement to work at height or in confined spaces.

The ambitious project is the culmination of three years of development and testing which began when we were selected to take part in United Utilities’ award-winning Innovation Lab back in 2021.

Together we have already achieved a first for the water industry in 2022 when we produced a wastewater chamber for use at one of

United Utilities’ test facilities in Cheshire. Since then, both the printing process and finished products have undergone rigorous testing to prove their suitability for use.
United Utilities head of innovation Kieran Brocklebank said: “We’ve been working closely with

ChangeMaker 3D for three years during which time the processes have been honed. To finally see a production line of assets being printed is a huge step forward and one we were all excited to see.
“We are about to embark on our biggest ever capital investment programme and have tight deadlines to meet. Digital technologies such as 3D construction printing will play an important role in driving efficient construction and helping us meet our Net Zero goals for carbon.”