Additively manufactured ultra-thin ceramic packaging made from clay as an alternative to single-use plastic, produced in decentralized micro-factories

GaeaStar Corp.

San Francisco (US)New on Amplifa

GaeaStar Corp.Legal form

San Francisco, CA (US)Headquarters

1,000–10,000 units/dayAnnual/daily capacity

approx. 300 sq ft per micro-factoryFactory footprint

About GaeaStar

GaeaStar Corp. is a California-based company headquartered in San Francisco that develops ultra-thin ceramic packaging as an alternative to single-use plastics. Production uses a patented additive process called Surface Printing™, in which material is applied as a 3D-contoured layer, creating rotationally symmetric ceramic shapes within seconds. The raw materials used are clay, silica, quartz, salt and water, with local clay and mineral deposits able to be utilized, as the process dynamically adapts to changing rheological properties. Production takes place in modular micro-factories with a footprint of around 300 sq ft, comparable to a shipping container, which can be set up at almost any location. The first application is clay to-go cups for the food & beverage industry; the technology is also suitable for containers in cosmetics and pharmaceuticals.

Site: San Francisco, CA
Processes: Surface Printing™ (additive ceramic printing process, 3D-contoured film), Manufacture of ultra-thin ceramic packaging (to-go clay cups), Distributed Manufacturing / Micro-Factories, Additive Manufacturing (Surface Printing™), Use of local clay and mineral raw materials, Turnkey manufacturing solutions
Materials: Clay, Silica, Quartz, Salt, Water, Surface Printing™
Industries: Food & Beverage, Cosmetics, Pharmaceuticals

01
Characterization of local clay and mineral raw materials
02
Surface Printing™ (additive application of a 3D-contoured layer)
03
Shaping of ultra-thin ceramic parts within seconds
04
Local production and local use

Materials & Processes

Clay

Main raw material of the to-go clay cups, natural and locally sourceable.

Silica

Natural mineral that, together with clay, forms the ceramic structure.

Quartz

Mineral component of the packaging formulation, modeled on the eggshell.

Salt

Natural additive in GaeaStar's material mix.

Water

Component of the simple, natural raw material base.

Surface Printing™

Patented additive process that applies material as a 3D-contoured film and creates ultra-thin ceramic shapes within seconds.

Locations

San Francisco

Headquarters

Materials: Clay, silica, quartz, salt, water

Micro-factory (modular production system, approx. 300 sq ft)

Components

**To-Go Clay Cup**Surface Printing™ · Food & Beverage

Inside the production

Last-mile manufacturing with micro-factories

Industries

Food & BeverageCosmeticsPharmaceuticals

Processes & technical limits

Processes	Tolerance	Max. part	Weight	Lot size	Materials
Surface Printing™ (additive ceramic printing process, 3D-contoured film)Additive	–	–	–	up to 10,000 units daily	Clay, Silica, Quartz, Salt, Local clays and minerals
Manufacture of ultra-thin ceramic packaging (to-go clay cups)Additive	–	–	–	from 1,000 units daily – up to 10,000 units daily	Clay

1 Anlagen & Maschinen

Machine	Manufacturer / model	Quantity	Working area	Year built	Site
Micro-factory (modular production system)	GaeaStar	–	approx. 300 sq ft (footprint comparable to a modular shipping container)	–	distributed (distributed manufacturing, freely locatable)

Additional services

Distributed Manufacturing / Micro-FactoriesAdditive Manufacturing (Surface Printing™)Use of local clay and mineral raw materialsTurnkey manufacturing solutions

History

Founded by Sanjeev Mankotia, inspired by traditional single-use clay cups ('kulhars') in India