Arche 3D turns a manufacturing seam into part of the design

Every large format 3D print made from multiple sections has a seam somewhere, the join where one section of toolpath ends and the next begins. Most projects try to hide it. For a large-scale sculptural column commissioned by Vision Creative Studios, Arche 3D decided to do the opposite, making the seam follow the same spiral logic as the column itself, so it reads as part of the design rather than a manufacturing compromise.

Aibuild CAM, an Aibuild software for large format additive manufacturing (LFAM) build preparation and toolpath generation, was used to plan and control that toolpath.

The column’s geometry develops vertically through a continuous spiral movement. The real challenge was finding a toolpath strategy that preserved that spiral’s visual continuity throughout the entire print, including at the transition points between sections.
Arche 3D’s team set out to make the unavoidable joining line between sections follow the same spiral logic that defines the column’s geometry.

Using Aibuild CAM, Arche 3D developed a continuous line-type shell toolpath, with the joining line specifically controlled to follow the spiral along which the geometry develops. The aim was to turn what’s normally a technical manufacturing constraint, the seam, into part of the object’s aesthetic expression.

The result, rather than interrupting the column’s visual continuity, is that the seam follows and reinforces its spiral movement, to the point where it becomes almost indistinguishable from the design language itself. Arche 3D credits Aibuild CAM with giving them the level of control over the robotic toolpath needed to pull that off.

The column was printed in white PETG on a WASP XL pellet extruder, using robotic large-format pellet extrusion through a 3mm nozzle. It took around 10kg of material and roughly 10 hours to print.

Key stats:
● Material: white PETG, approximately 10kg
● Print time: approximately 10 hours
● Nozzle: 3mm
● Manufacturing technology: robotic large-format pellet extrusion
● Extrusion system: WASP XL pellet extruder
● Toolpath strategy: continuous line-type shell, seam controlled to follow the spiral geometry

Multi-section large format prints usually treat the seam as a defect to minimise or disguise, something to sand, fill or hide behind a design feature. Controlling the toolpath at that level of detail means the seam doesn’t need hiding at all. It becomes another design decision, planned with the same intent as the rest of the geometry.

That’s a meaningfully different starting point for anyone briefing a large-scale sculptural piece, the manufacturing strategy itself can become part of the design, rather than something to work around once the design is finished.

Arche 3D keeps finding new ways to push what a toolpath can do beyond simply producing a shape, and this column is a strong example of that. We’re glad Aibuild CAM gave the team the control they needed to carry the spiral all the way through, seam included, and we’re looking forward to seeing what Arche 3D and Vision Creative Studios do next.

Arche 3D is a design and additive manufacturing studio based at Wasp Hub Mantova, Italy, working in large format robotic 3D printing.

Vision Creative Studios is a Dublin-based design and innovation hub bringing together companies working across branding, interior design and bespoke creative projects.

WASP is an Italian manufacturer of large format 3D printing systems, including pellet extrusion machines used across ceramics, construction, industrial manufacturing and design.