Maritime Application Center: 3D printing boats in the boat factory of the future

The MAC: first-of-its-kind factory for 3D printing boats

In Delft, right around the corner of CEAD’s headquarters, CEAD is transforming a 2300 m2 space into the boat factory of the future: the MAC, where boats are developed and produced through a highly automated, digitally driven manufacturing process. With the launch of the MAC, CEAD introduces a two-fold vision for the maritime sector.

Automated manufacturing in CEAD-powered boat factory

Shipbuilding today requires the combined efforts of an entire shipyard ecosystem, relying heavily on skilled labor, large-scale infrastructure and complicated, interconnected value streams. Many shipyards have spent decades optimizing for cost and specialization, creating highly segmented workflows and centralized resources.

However, recent growth in demand is straining shipyards already facing surge in employee retirements, aging infrastructure and day-to-day operational inefficiencies, making it difficult to scale or adapt quickly to market demands. There is also an increasing demand to lower the maritime industry’s impact on greenhouse gas emissions, as targets set by the International Maritime Organization (IMO) requires organizations to transition towards more sustainable manufacturing approaches.

The current conditions within the maritime sector make it particularly well-suited for large scale 3D printing technology, which addresses many of the bottlenecks the maritime industry currently faces. Large scale 3D printing technology enables the production of boat hulls directly from a digital file, eliminating time-consuming, waste-generating steps and reducing reliance on skilled manual labor. In doing so, it helps lower costs, shorten lead times and allows manufacturers to quickly adapt to changing market demands in both design and production capacity.

CEAD has developed a dedicated system, based on its proven extrusion technology, specifically designed to 3D print boat hulls in an automated manner. With this dedicated machine, they created a production technology that enables boat building in a manner not feasible with standard robotic 3D printers.

These machines form the foundation of their high-volume boat factory, a cleaner, quieter and more compact production facility with the flexibility to scale output as demand grows. Unlike traditional shipyards, this boat factory operates without the need of heavy infrastructure, zoning or labor demands, making it viable in light industrial or even urban environments like the city of Delft.

The MAC demonstrates that technology-driven factories offer compelling advantages alongside the robust infrastructure of traditional shipyards.

Innovation through partnerships

Recognizing the complexity of 3D printing entire boats, the MAC is built on a collaborative model. CEAD works closely with industry partners and provides a platform to learn and grow while building the boat factory of the future. Together, they will explore everything from 3D printing design for boat hulls, material development for marine environments to process optimization and software innovations.

“We bring deep expertise in large scale 3D printing technology, but true innovation happens when we combine that with the knowledge our industry partners have: whether it’s about boat design, regulatory requirements, or real-world performance. It’s that exchange of expertise that makes collaboration so powerful” emphasizes Charléne van Wingerden, Chief Business Development Officer at CEAD.

Application focus: 3D printing industrial boat hulls

At the heart of the MAC’s activities is a clear focus: developing and refining the process of 3D printing hulls for the professional maritime sector, currently targeting boats up to 12 meters in length, intended for industrial or defense applications, such as workboats, for example: patrol boats, fishing boats, supply boats, etc., and unmanned surface vessels (USVs). The team is deeply engaged in hands-on experimentation, exploring every aspect of the application.

With the launch of CEAD®HDPro, a new material engineered to outperform conventional HDPE in heavy-duty maritime applications, they demonstrate their commitment on all levels. The team’s efforts recently led to the successful production of their first full-scale fishing boat using CEAD®HDPro, completed in just 88 hours of printing time. “It’s an exciting learning process, we’re learning by doing: testing, tweaking, and printing in real-time.

We have to figure out new things, but that’s exactly how real innovation happens” says Maarten Logtenberg, CTO at CEAD. His enthusiasm for the MAC and its mission is evident in the way he documents and shares the team’s progress on his personal Linkedin and the YouTube channel @3Dprintingboats: from technical insights to real-time print updates and behind-the-scenes moments – such as building an indoor pool for testing or using a sledgehammer to demonstrate the boat’s impact resistance. “The MAC is intended as a place to educate, while continuing to learn and evolve ourselves’’ adds Logtenberg.

Innovation is in CEAD’s DNA

Since its start in 2014, CEAD has placed research and development, as well as customer success, at the core of its mission. The company is known for pioneering composite large format 3D printing technologies that enable the automated production of large complex composite parts. It’s commitment to R&D is evident in the portfolio that CEAD has developed, including both robotic-based and gantry-based solutions, a range of pellet extruders and additional functionalities such as ATLAM, scan-2-mill, datalogging, and more. “Our relentless drive to innovate stems from the team’s ambition to develop a technology with transformative potential across industries, always with the goal of delivering measurable value for customers” says Lucas Janssen, CEO at CEAD.

With this mindset, the company explores sectors where the impact of automated manufacturing could be especially significant, recognizing maritime as a high-potential area for impact for the above reasons. However, while the technology holds immense promise to automate traditional shipbuilding processes, its adoption for 3D printing entire boat hulls has so far been relatively limited. To fully unlock its potential, the technology still requires exploration, adaptation, and collaborations.

The MAC is a direct result of CEAD’s vision to go beyond delivering a machine, but to offer complete, integrated systems that provide an end-to-end solution for their customers. The MAC embodies this approach, where broad-based research is aimed at enabling the successful and accelerated adoption of large scale 3D printing within the maritime industry.

Future of local, automated, and greener manufacturing

In order to reach the targets set by the IMO to reduce carbon emissions in the maritime industry, collaboration and innovation are essential. By enabling automated, local production with minimal waste and reusable materials, the MAC supports the maritime industry’s shift towards greener, more resilient supply chains. Large scale 3D printing technology empowers shipbuilders and operators to produce vessels and components where they’re needed and when they’re needed.
The set-up of the MAC can be readily replicated at strategic locations around the world: closer to the point of use in non-traditional, compact environments.

The MAC serves as a blueprint for an approach CEAD calls a ‘CEAD-powered microfactory.’ These high-output, compact, automated production facilities are build around CEAD’s technology where the machines are tailored to specific applications. Thanks to the modularity of their systems, this microfactory model is not limited to one sector, but applicable across industries.

While the MAC is specifically designed for the maritime industry, other microfactories have already been realized, such as the recently launched Haddy facility in Florida, focused on localized, sustainable furniture production.
With this approach, CEAD aims to contribute to a more sustainable and resilient future of manufacturing.

Invitation to the industry

While the MAC is already operational and on the verge of announcing its first partnerships, the MAC will officially open its doors on the 20th of June, inviting maritime professionals, shipbuilders, designers, and OEMs to experience the future of boat manufacturing firsthand. Those interested in attending the launch or learning more about the initiative can request an invitation by emailing mac@ceadgroup.com directly.

The MAC is more than a boat factory, it’s a collaborative innovation hub designed to support maritime manufacturing as it enters a new era where digital production, new materials and automation converge to deliver solutions that are innovative and transformative – shaping a more efficient, local, and sustainable solution. The MAC is open to collaborations to shape the future of maritime manufacturing, together.