Relatively new technology in today’s casting foundry is 3D printed patterns and molds.
The latest 3D printing equipment is capable of manufacturing a sand mold and core in just a few hours. This can save considerable time and money in some cases.
Once the pattern is produced, sand casting proceeds as usual, but the ability to use a 3D printer to produce the pattern, molds and cores greatly speed up the process, potentially saving production costs and increasing the accuracy of the casting. If an example of the item to be sand cast already exists, it can easily be scanned to create the 3D model.
Once the program for producing the sand mold and core is perfected, it can be reproduced as many times as desired. Such sand casting equipment is a growing part of the metal casting industry. The sand casting advances of today would no doubt amaze the master sand casters from a hundred years ago — not to mention those of a thousand years ago!
