Al Arkan to 3D Print in Saudi and Beyond, Interview with Tarek Alhalabi

Dar Al Arkan is a Saudi-listed real-estate company that has built over 15,000 homes as well as malls, planned developments, and luxury villas. Active in eight countries, including Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Oman, the UAE, and Spain, the firm usually focuses on the luxury segment. Villas cling to cliffs over the coast near Muscat, while UAE buildings are designed with interiors from international designers such as Missoni, Pagani, Aston Martin, and others.

In 2021, the firm invested in 3D printing by purchasing two BOD 2 3D printers from COBOD. The $500 million revenue firm saw the technology as strategic and potentially cementing its leadership in construction technology. Over the past three years, the firm has been evaluating 3D printing to see if it’s suitable for prime time. We spoke to Tarek Alhalabi, the 3D Printing Department head and a Project Manager, about their initiative.

In 2022 the company 3D printed Saudi Arabia´s first 3D printed villa. The 9.9-meter tall 345 square meter building complied with the building code, was one of the world´s largest, and was built over 26 days. The company is also working on more 3D printed buildings. We talked to Tarek about why the company chose 3D printing and what it hopes it can do.

“We wanted to open a new pathway in the construction industry. We aimed to create flexibility in design through 3D printing, allowing us to work faster and become more efficient. We knew we had to invest in the technology and understood that there wouldn’t be an immediate ROI, but we believed we would pave the way for the construction industry in adopting this technology.

“We wanted to start simple with pilot projects that were permanent buildings and had to pass the building code. Then, we could expand our designs freely. 3D printing is not practical or feasible for every project; we needed to find those that made sense. First, the building has to be safe and built according to the building codes. The most important thing is, ‘Can we make a building that serves the customer’s needs?’ Only then can we think about making something that will inspire and grow the market.”

I appreciate that structured focus. The company didn’t go for an over-the-top, architect-driven project, which wasn’t a priority. They didn’t want to make waves and then fail on implementation. Their more conservative, step-by-step approach seems very sensible, especially when dealing with buildings. Many other initiatives seem focused on generating news and inspiring people as a primary goal of their first buildings. Dar Al Arkan’s approach seems like it will be the most fruitful in the end.

Initially, the company focused on printing villas, but now major clients and the government want to use the company’s expertise as well. Dar Al Arkan is conducting several pilot projects, all aiming to build permanent buildings for different use cases. It hopes that third-party clients will help them verify, improve, and grow the technology. One client, Aramco, is using 3D printing to build industrial buildings and a 3D printed mosque. The main reason Dar Al Arkan wants to work with Aramco is not revenue. Instead, Aramco’s rigor and high standards will raise the bar on Arkan’s 3D printing efforts and help others see 3D printing as a viable alternative.

Aramco is interested in efficiency and evaluating 3D printed construction, especially for remote sites. This is an area that Tarek considers to be especially fruitful in Saudi Arabia, where many mega construction projects are ongoing in oil and gas, residential, and infrastructure sectors. For the huge NEOM project, Dar Al Arkan has already created small 40-square-meter dwellings consisting of a kitchen, bathroom, and bedroom. These units are 3D printed offsite and transported to the location, where two pieces are joined onsite using a “modular approach.”

For larger projects, site printing in remote areas is viable and less expensive than traditional methods. There is a real need for remote projects where thousands of dwellings will need to be built for engineers and other workers. Often, these projects constitute a “temporary city” which may need to stand for six to seven years. Container and other prefab structures often have a three-to-four-year lifespan, so 3D printing can be a viable alternative. Near cities, construction 3D printing is typically more expensive than traditional methods, but in very remote areas, it can be more cost-effective. Tarek says, “For traditional methods, the more remote you get, the more expensive it gets, but 3D printing is the same cost wherever you are.”

This is compounded by the fact that Dar Al Arkan needs around 1% binder material that is imported, while the rest of the materials are sourced locally. This, combined with the more durable remote 3D printed structures, can be a real cost advantage. Additionally, Tarek sees a real possibility of using the same techniques for remote hotels and resorts, which can be built in nature without disturbing it.

I was curious why Dar Al Arkan chose the Bod2 and COBOD with its gantry systems over robot arm-based systems. For robot arms, there is a lot of portability, and setup times are quick. However, when printing large structures, they end up having to join together many parts made in different builds. Cost-wise, aesthetically, and practically, a large gantry system is better for larger buildings. Meanwhile, when a smaller building is needed, it can often be printed at the location using the gantry printers and shipped to where it is needed.

For example, Dar Al Arkan printed a 4 by 3-meter drive-through coffee corner for a local firm. In that case, the printer couldn’t be placed at the coffee shop location, so it printed it offsite and trucked it in instead. This kind of practicality points to different possible modalities and choices for central 3D printing at a factory location, large local gantry printers, and shipping preprinted modules to a site.

This may mean that gantry-based systems could win out in the end due to productivity, or perhaps we will see multiple robot systems outpace them at some point. Dar Al Arkan is content to explore 3D printing carefully to find out the answers. For now, Dar Al Arkan, as Tarek mentioned, is:

“trying to increase the appetite for 3D printing with the clients they work for, get more approved by end users, and explore more applications. We will also now be more creative with the technology, doing things that are more complex, special, and inspiring, while sticking to the guidelines for normal buildings. We hope to continue being the leading 3D printing construction company in Saudi Arabia. We are the first to spread it, and now we’re doing more projects and making it more user-friendly. Yes, I love the layer shapes on a personal level, and we want to be creative with the designs, but the priority is to make it practical, feasible, and cost-effective. One layer at a time.”

I really like Dar Al Arkan’s measured approach to building 3D-printed buildings that work. The idea of code, then usability, and then inspiration before socializing the idea of 3D-printed buildings seems to be a good framework to spread the technology. Given Saudi Arabia’s many mega projects and the many remote building projects, in particular, the Kingdom could be one of the biggest markets for construction 3D printing worldwide. It is still early days in construction 3D printing, but we’re seeing that this is a viable and quickly growing industry with real potential to grow even faster.