SAGA Space Architects and MS+ Arkitekter has opened Europe’s largest 3D-printed housing development, comprising 36 student apartments arranged across six low-rise buildings. Located in Holstebro, Denmark, the project moves 3D printing beyond experimental architecture and into everyday housing. Titled ‘Skovsporet’ and positioned close to VIA University College, the 1,650sqm development serves as a student village with self contained individual housing. Each home includes a kitchen, study area, lounge, bathroom and sleeping space, while shared courtyards, gardens, pathways and bicycle parking encourage interaction between student residents for community building.
The buildings were constructed using a COBOD BOD3 printer, which deposits concrete in precisely controlled layers to create the structural walls. The process became increasingly efficient as construction progressed, with printing time reduced from several weeks for the first building to just five days for the final six-apartment cluster. The complete project took 12 months, including conventional construction work such for the roofs, doors and interiors.
Sustainable approaches used for the construction and site planning included the use lower-carbon D.fab concrete incorporating FUTURECEM, along with experimental MEVOcem elements which contain no cement and offer an 84% reduction in CO₂ emissions. The development was also carefully positioned between existing trees, preserving around 90% of the site's mature woodland. Skovsporet’s 3D-printed architecture prototypes sustainable, high tech approaches to building real communities at scale.
