Fast casting: why discover 3D sand printing now of all times?

3D sand printing creates flexibility in casting procurement where previously there was none. Quickly insert a small series before the large series while the models are being built? Bridge a delivery bottleneck? Order a rarely required casting only when it is actually needed? No problem with Printed Castings.

Sand printing for the direct production of molds has been a topic in the foundry industry for at least 10 years. During this time, specialist suppliers of 3D sand printers have established themselves on the market and the cost of sand-printed molds has fallen enormously.

Pioneering contract foundries have invested in sand printers and refined both the process itself and the ordering process. The supply chain problems and bottlenecks of recent years have further accelerated this development.

The result: it is now easier than ever to try out printed castings and familiarize yourself with the benefits. Produce more agilely, control risks – the properties of 3D printing make the procurement of cast parts easier at a stroke.

No more more senseless Warehousing

3D sand printing is a highly responsive, digital process. Instead of storing workpieces or wooden models in a costly and space-consuming manner in order to have quick access to the required cast parts, 3D sand printing only requires the CAD file of the component or sand mold to be kept on hand. The mold can then be printed and cast at any time “on demand” in any quantity – from the same supplier as last time or from someone completely different.

If a part is only needed in small quantities from time to time, this digital warehousing is much more efficient and practical. The additional advantage: the mould or component can also be easily changed or optimized in between.

The ace up your sleeve: Cushioning risks

Used strategically, 3D sand printing can make supply chains smoother, mitigate supply chain risks and make orders and projects feasible that would otherwise not be possible.

If a delivery of cast parts from overseas is delayed, 3D sand printing can step in, produce more locally and thus keep production running. Critical parts can be digitized in advance for safety reasons and stored as a virtual mould. These are then printed and cast by different suppliers and/or foundries depending on local availability. Supply bottlenecks can thus be compensated for in an agile manner.

The increase in options also makes it easier to say “yes” to orders that would previously have been impossible because the lead times for cast parts were too long and foundry capacities were not flexibly available.

The more complex, the better

As neither complexity nor small quantities cost extra with 3D sand printing, prices are easier to estimate – even without detailed information on the workpiece geometry.

The end-to-end digital process also speeds up the preparation of quotations and “routing” through the foundry. Delivery dates can be better predicted.

To familiarize yourself with the process, it is a good idea to run through sample components using the online calculators for direct price indication and delivery time calculation and to get a feel for the advantages and possibilities. In this way, you can quickly find a suitable first project to try out 3D sand printing risk-free and then use it strategically.