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A 3D concrete printer manufactured by Danish company Cobod has arrived in Latin America through the Argentine startup Grondplek and promises to transform the construction site. The printer erects the structure of a 120-square-meter house in 48 hours, with double walls resistant to earthquakes and 30% lower cost than traditional construction. The machine is 11 meters by 11 meters and 7 meters high, molds concrete layer by layer, and wastes only the material strictly necessary for each stage. In Japan, a train station was printed in six hours, and in the United States, there are already entire condominiums built with this printer.
A concrete printer the size of a small shed is changing the rules of civil construction in Latin America. The machine, manufactured by Danish company Cobod and described by its operators as “the Ferrari of 3D concrete printers,” was brought to Argentina by the startup Grondplek, co-founded by Mateo Salvatto. The printer erects the complete structure of a 120-square-meter house in just 48 hours, molding concrete layer by layer at a speed that turns weeks of manual labor into two days of automated operation.
The equipment does not build ready-to-live houses: it produces the so-called “raw structure,” which includes walls, stairs, planters, and concrete countertops. Finishes, electrical and plumbing installations, and final details still require manual work. But the printer eliminates the heaviest and most time-consuming stage of construction, reducing the total cost by 30% compared to market price and practically zeroing material waste, as the machine pumps only the concrete necessary for each layer.
How the concrete printer works
image:.www.gira.com
The printer is approximately 11 meters by 11 meters and 7 meters tall. The system features a compact mixing center connected to a pump and a special hose that feeds the print head. The material is conventional concrete combined with 2% additives, such as plasticizers and accelerators, which are easily available on the market and are adjusted according to the temperature and machine conditions.
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Instead of plastering the wall, Argentine architects left ordinary bricks exposed, without traditional mortar, without finishes, without paint, and created a perforated pavilion that looks like an art installation.
The structure is built layer by layer. During printing, cuts are made between the layers to allow the material to harden before receiving the next layer. The result is double walls with an air layer in between, ensuring superior thermal insulation and structural strength. Salvatto claims that the houses are earthquake-resistant and that “you can’t break them with anything,” highlighting that the printer allows curves and counter-curves that improve space utilization.
What has already been built with 3D printers in the world
The technology of building with 3D concrete printers has moved past the experimental phase. In 2025, a Starbucks unit built with this method was inaugurated in Texas, and in Japan, a train station was printed in just six hours. In the United States, entire condominiums are being erected with houses made by concrete printers, demonstrating that commercial scale is already viable.
image: www.gira.com
The trend is present in Asia, Europe, and North America, and now arrives in Latin America through Grondplek. The company became the official distributor of Cobod for Argentina, Uruguay, and Paraguay after a trip through Europe in search of the best manufacturers. “They manufacture the Ferraris of 3D concrete printers,” described Salvatto about Cobod, whose technology is a global reference in the sector.
image: .www.gira.com
What the printer does not replace on the construction site
The technology does not seek to replace construction workers, but to change their tasks. The printer eliminates the lifting of heavy loads and the manual assembly of walls, but the operation of the machine, supervision, and final finishes still require human intervention at each stage.
The final touches, electrical installation, plumbing, and internal and external finishes are done in the traditional way. The difference is that, with the structure ready in 48 hours, the finishing team can enter the site days after the start, instead of weeks. Salvatto describes the printer as “a portable precast concrete factory: you can take it anywhere, just level it on the ground and it starts printing.”
The limitations and the future of the concrete printer
The main current limitation is height: the model used by Grondplek allows building up to three-story buildings. However, machines with horizontal guides capable of serial printing are already emerging, allowing for five lots side by side and printing one after the other, which enables the construction of entire neighborhoods with the same printer.
The application also goes beyond housing. The printer can be used in civil engineering and mining projects, where concrete structures are needed in remote locations without access to precast factories.
With costs 30% lower, construction in 48 hours instead of months, and near-zero waste, Cobod’s concrete printer is no longer a technological curiosity: it is a real alternative that is beginning to compete with the traditional construction site.
Would you live in a house built by a 3D concrete printer in 48 hours? What impresses you the most: the speed, the 30% discount, or the earthquake resistance? Tell us in the comments.
Is this available in Portugal?
Earthquakes aren’t an issue in the Netherlands, maybe only the gas fields in the north are affected. Double walls are very common here, so that’s not really an innovation. Most houses here are built with prefab concrete slabs, already with rebar and quality controlled (air pockets, strength tests) in the factory. Building times are already fast, what takes most time is the finishing. Think of electricity, sewage etcetera. The spaces in the wall, needed for this, are already built in in the slabs. There will be some advantages in printing, but overall I think that it isn’t much faster. There’s a six storey building in construction right in front of me, and it’s almost finished after 7 months. The 4 storey apartment building next to it is ready for weeks. The only thing hindering faster building here are weather and holidays. For example: the build stop in December and January was almost a month, due to both holidays and cold weather. I don’t see a revolution happen here in building.
Great innovation.
I’m loving it for it’s time, materials and financial economic factors. It’d be great to run the business in Botswana, Southern Africa.