Hong Kong native Vriko Yu was stunned by the immense degradation of coral during one of her dives several years ago. It’s not a localised problem. Scientists have noted that coral reefs are being destroyed at an alarming rate due to increasing ocean temperatures all over the world.
The global coral reef cover has halved since the 1950s, according to a 2021 study published in One Earth. For hundreds of millions of people, too, corals provide food, jobs, and income, and act as tsunami barriers.
As coral devastation affects our way of life, Yu has tackled the problem head-on. When she started a PhD in Biological Sciences at the University of Hong Kong, she met her PhD supervisor Dr David Baker. The duo toiled for seven years to perfect the reef tile, a 3D-printed artificial clay structure that grows coral. To commercialise the solution, they founded Archireef with a third partner, Deniz Tekerek.
Photo: Archireef.
It may look simple, but the patent-protected reef tile is an engineering marvel. “The top layer is incredibly intricate. It needs to be dynamically designed based on environmental and ecological conditions, such as local pH levels, salinity, and water temperature,” says Yu. Moreover, because it must be made from terracotta clay, production engineers must have a preternatural understanding of the material to avoid breakage. Yu and Baker have made the seemingly impossible look easy.
It’s only been two years, but Archireef, much like the marine brethren it’s saving, has expanded. “Our revenue has roughly grown by a factor of 20. Our staff strength has also increased from just the two of us to 20 now.”
In December 2022, it also unveiled an eco-engineering facility in Abu Dhabi capable of printing five 3D reef tiles a day. Additionally, Archireef has already booked US$2.7 million (S$3.65 million) in sales for 2023. Sales in the previous year totalled US$1 million. Yu expects the business to continue growing.
Although she is glad that more commercial partners are taking this issue seriously, she believes governments should step up to encourage private companies to follow. “We must develop systems that allow us to grasp the size of the problem. Restoring biodiversity is critical to the survival of our planet. We need more businesses to think ahead of the curve.”
Yu has grand dreams. In five years, she plans to create the world’s first coral highway and scale eco-engineering at a pace similar to traditional large-scale manufacturing.
Photo: Archireef.
As they say, the proof of the pudding is in the eating. Archireef’s tile deployment at Hoi Ha Wan Marine Park, which began over two years ago in July 2020, is showing great promise. The new corals have a survival rate of over 95 percent, four times greater than traditional restoration methods.
Yu has been back to the site. Ultimately, it is the one that catalysed this journey. She doesn’t even have to don her diving gear on good days. Below the water’s surface, she sees vibrant corals blooming brightly, a beacon reminding us of what humans can accomplish when we work together.
