Japan shows the path to India follow suit? The world’s first 3D printing train station is manufactured within 6 hours
The new Hatsushima station is built by Serendix, a company known for 3D printed houses, located in a quiet seaside town in Arida City, Wakayama County.
In a groundbreaking move, Japan built the world’s first railway station using 3D printed parts and assembled within six hours. The new Hatsushima station is built by Serendix, a company known for 3D printed houses, located in a quiet seaside town in Arida City, Wakayama County. The project aims to replace the old wooden structure with modern and durable buildings. About 530 people use the station every day, and the train runs one to three times an hour. According to JR West, the new station has a smaller range with a coverage of only 100 square feet, but is faster and cheaper to build. A traditional build will take two months and take twice as much.
To speed up, JR West has partnered with Serendix. The parts were printed at a factory in Comanto County about 500 miles away and reinforced with concrete within 7 days. The finished components were transported by road and arrived at Hatsushima on the morning of March 24.
Construction began after the last train departed using a crane at 11:57 pm, workers gathered in the block all night, and by the time the first train arrived at 5:45 AM, the new structure was ready
“This approach reduces the number of workers and the time required,” said Ryo Kawamoto, president of JR West Innovations. Serendix co-founder Kunihiro Handa, adding that traditional station work often extends on many nights.
The station still needs to be installed internally, including a ticket machine and a card reader. JR West hopes it will be fully open to the public in July.
Hatsushima was selected for the project because its coastal location allows testing the durability of the structure in salty air. This innovative approach could also help address Japan’s labor shortage in construction, especially in rural railway areas.
The project marks an important step in integrating technology with public infrastructure – suggesting that the future of architecture may only have one print.
