Printing the last of six Danish student-housing blocks took five days, down from several weeks for the first, its printer maker says

HOLSTEBRO, Denmark, Nov. 6, 2025 — Printer maker COBOD says builder 3DCP Group has finished printing 36 student apartments at Skovsporet in Holstebro, which it calls Europe's largest 3D-printed housing project. Here's what happened, what it cost, and what went wrong.

Cost and outcome (as of Nov. 6, 2025)

Outcome: Printing phase completed in October 2025, per COBOD, with interior construction next. (COBOD release, Nov. 6, 2025)
Cost: Not published by COBOD or 3DCP. (COBOD release, Nov. 6, 2025; 3DCP Group project page)
Speed: Printing one six-apartment building fell from several weeks for the first to five days for the last, "equal to more than one apartment per day," COBOD says. (COBOD release, Nov. 6, 2025)

What was built

Skovsporet ("The Forest Trail") sits near VIA University College's Holstebro campus. It has six buildings, each with six student apartments of 40 to 50 m², for a total printed area of 1,654 m², COBOD says. The client is NordVestBO, a public housing association in Holstebro and Struer that manages more than 3,300 homes. (COBOD release, Nov. 6, 2025)

3DCP Group says each apartment has a kitchen, study area, lounge, bathroom and double bed, and that the printed walls are left visible alongside timber, plywood and skylights; some apartments use the roof height for a loft. The design is by SAGA Space Architects. (3DCP Group project page)

How it was printed

COBOD says 3DCP Group used its BOD3 printer, which runs on a ground-based track that can extend along one axis so long wall sections print without interruption, operated by a three-person team. It claims millimetre accuracy across all printed walls. (COBOD release, Nov. 6, 2025)

"As we deepened our understanding of the technology, we increased productivity from one building to the next," said 3DCP Group co-founder Mikkel Brich, who added that the project showed printing "can meet the strict requirements of subsidized housing." COBOD founder Henrik Lund-Nielsen said the results confirm "the technology is ready for multi-unit residential developments." (COBOD release, Nov. 6, 2025)

Who's behind it

COBOD, based in Copenhagen, says it has distributed more than 85 construction printers worldwide and counts General Electric, CEMEX, Holcim and PERI among its shareholders. 3DCP Group says it combines an engineering company, an architecture firm and a construction company, so it can take a printed building from idea to turnkey, and that its ambition is "to build better, cheaper, and more sustainably." (COBOD release, Nov. 6, 2025)

With the printing finished, COBOD said in November 2025, Skovsporet was moving on to interior construction before the 36 apartments could be let. (COBOD release, Nov. 6, 2025)

Materials and site

The walls used D.fab concrete with FUTURECEM, a low-carbon cement from Aalborg Portland, COBOD says. 3DCP adds that selected elements, including the bicycle shed, used a cement-free concrete it developed with MEVOcem; 3DCP adds that "the development was funded by Innovation Fund Denmark." (COBOD release, Nov. 6, 2025; 3DCP Group project page)

Print beds were placed between existing trees, and COBOD says 95% of the site's trees were kept. (COBOD release, Nov. 6, 2025)

What went wrong

Slow start. The first six-apartment building took several weeks to print; the gain to five days came only by the last building. (COBOD release, Nov. 6, 2025)
No cost data. Neither COBOD nor 3DCP published the build cost, rents, or a comparison with conventional student housing, so the claims of higher productivity can't be checked in money terms.
Vendor-only account. The speed and accuracy figures come from the printer's maker and the builder. (COBOD release, Nov. 6, 2025; 3DCP Group project page)
What we don't know yet: what Skovsporet cost per apartment, when students moved in, and whether NordVestBO plans a second printed scheme.

Our follow-up question for NordVestBO

What did Skovsporet cost per apartment against conventional student housing, and when did the first students move in?

Sources

COBOD International, “Europe's Largest 3D Printed Housing Project Completed in Denmark Using COBOD's BOD3,” Nov. 6, 2025. cobod.com
3DCP Group, “Skovsporet — 36 completed student homes,” project page, read Oct. 29, 2026. 3dcp.dk

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