UCC Holding, in partnership with Qatar’s Public Works Authority (Ashghal), has commenced the printing phase of the world’s largest 3D-printed building project, marking a global first for large-scale digital construction.
The initiative aims to build 14 new public schools, including two schools constructed entirely through 3D printing technology. Each 3D-printed school spans 20,000 square meters—totaling 40,000 square meters—making them 40 times larger than any prior 3D-printed building worldwide. Designed as two-storey structures on 100 by 100 meter plots, these schools set a landmark for scalable, future-ready educational infrastructure in the region.
To realize this project, UCC Holding collaborated with COBOD, a Danish leader in 3D construction printing. COBOD provided two custom BODXL printers measuring 50 meters long, 30 meters wide, and 15 meters high—comparable in size to a Boeing 737 hangar—currently the world’s largest construction printers.
Following months of site preparation, assembly, and testing, the printers are fully operational. UCC Holding’s dedicated team of architects, engineers, material scientists, and technicians conducted over 100 full-scale test prints with a BOD2 printer, optimizing concrete mixes for Qatar’s climate and refining high-precision printing techniques.
In May 2025, the team completed intensive training with COBOD engineers, enhancing local expertise in printer operation, structural layering, and quality control, building Qatar’s capacity for advanced construction methods.
The 3D printing process offers significant environmental and economic benefits by reducing raw material waste, minimizing concrete use, lowering carbon emissions, and shortening construction timelines. Printing is scheduled at night to improve concrete quality and reduce heat-related issues, noise, dust, and community disruption.
Architecturally, the schools feature flowing, curved walls inspired by Qatar’s desert dunes—complex organic shapes made feasible by the design flexibility of 3D printing, which would be costly or impractical with traditional methods.
The two 3D-printed schools are expected to be completed by the end of 2025, positioning Qatar as a global pioneer in sustainable, innovative educational infrastructure.
