World’s First 3D Print Bridge Opens in Amsterdam

The world’s first 3D-printed concrete bridge has just been opened in the Netherlands. The bridge, in Amsterdam, will mostly be used by cyclists.

A World First

Theo Salet from the Eindhoven University of Technology commented “The bridge is not very big, but it was rolled out by a printer, which makes it unique.” The bridge took a total for three months to build since printing commenced in July. The bridge is made from reinforced concrete, contains 800 layers, and is 26 feet long.

Work on printing the bridge, which has some 800 layers, took about three months after starting in June. The bridge is made of reinforced, pre-stressed concrete according to the university. Because 3D printing was used, there were several advantages over the traditional method of building bridges. These include using less concrete, as concrete is only printed exactly where it is needed, and therefore not wasted.