Imagine a train station built from scratch in just six hours. Sounds like science fiction, right?
But that’s exactly what Japan is about to achieve
with its first-ever 3D printed train station.
The new station will replace an old, worn-out wooden structure in Hatsushima, a town in Wakayama prefecture, about 96 kilometers south of Osaka. The new building will be about 10 square meters in size, with a height of 2.6 meters, width of 6.3 meters, and depth of 2.1 meters. Its walls will feature a design inspired by the local orange farms and tachiuo fish, symbols of the local way of life.
Here’s how it will work: a state-of-the-art 3D printer will create the main parts of the building, including the foundation. Then, concrete will be poured into each part before they’re shipped to the construction site. Once on site, workers will use cranes to assemble and connect the parts. The entire process, from demolishing the old station to installing the new one, will take just six hours. Construction is set to start on March 25, right after the last train departs, and will be completed before the first train arrives the next morning.
JR West, the company behind the project, chose Hatsushima station because of its seaside location, which will allow them to test the building’s durability in a salty environment. The company also plans to study the construction costs, maintenance, and management to potentially expand the project in the future. This new technology could also help solve Japan’s labor shortage in the railway construction industry.