Japanese engineering design, built in Malaysia – backed by engagement with Malaysia’s Construction Industry Development Board (CIDB) on certification for the sector.
KUALA LUMPUR, 6 OCTOBER 2026 – V3D Asia Ltd., a Japan-founded 3D construction printing (3DCP) technology group operating under the philosophy ‘Designed in Japan, Built in Malaysia,’ has established Nuvah Sdn Bhd as its Malaysian commercial arm to build the country’s first locally developed 3D construction printing company.
The industrial printing platform is engineered and designed in Japan, while the specialist workforce, materials science, structural engineering and quality control needed to apply the technology locally are developed in-house in Malaysia. Nuvah is working with CIDB as its strategic 3DCP technology partner towards having 3D construction printing recognised as a seventh system under Malaysia’s Industrialised Building System (IBS) framework, adding to the six construction methods currently listed – building on the same framework under which the government raised the mandatory minimum IBS Score to 70 for qualifying private projects from July 2024, with CIDB overseeing implementation, and under which more than 300 IBS manufacturers are already registered with the board. In June 2026, the company also announced a collaboration with SIRIM, to help develop the country’s first industry standards for 3D construction printing.
“Malaysia’s opportunity in 3D construction printing will not be built by machines alone. Any country can buy a printer. What is far harder, and far more valuable, is a workforce that understands the technology, the materials, and the craftsmanship behind it,” said Mr Kazuhiro Ono, Group Chairman of V3D Asia.
“Our ambition is not to sell equipment into Malaysia. It is to build the industry here – the printers, the homes and, above all, the people. If we do that properly, Malaysia will not be a customer for this technology in ten years’ time. It will be the region’s supplier of it.”
That ambition extends to the people who will carry it forward. Recently, V3D Asia signed a memorandum of understanding with Sunway University, placing a V3D construction printer on campus so engineering students can train hands-on with the technology – part of a parallel effort also underway with Universiti Malaya, for Mr Ono believes that in order for the industry to advance, it has to start in the classroom and not on the job site.
Nuvah’s own activities are already underway. Beyond the standards work, the company has completed a pilot project in collaboration with the Government of Brunei, and is now taking 3DCP from demonstration projects into mainstream residential, commercial and infrastructure delivery – combining the technology with a Quiet Luxury design language and working through partnerships with established Malaysian developers and contractors rather than in competition with them. The next milestone is Concave House in Eco Majestic, Gentlebre – Malaysia’s first 3D printed luxury bungalow – with construction targeted to commence in November 2026, followed by a 12-villa development in Bali, Indonesia, built for sale and targeted for completion by December 2027. That pipeline responds to real pressure on the industry: an estimated 70–80% of Malaysia’s construction labour is foreign, and contractors have flagged ongoing shortfalls even as recruitment policy has tightened – the conditions under which automated methods move from novelty to necessity.
Certification is central to that shift. Approval is what allows 3DCP to be specified in tenders, financed by lenders, insured by underwriters and adopted by developers at scale – and once established for Malaysian conditions, the same evidence base supports adoption across comparable ASEAN markets.
“This is just the beginning. What we build in Malaysia today is the foundation for what the region builds tomorrow,” said Mr Kazuhiro.
For more information on Nuvah and its upcoming developments, please visit www.nuvah.com.my.
