Case Study: B&J Specialty achieves 30% higher production rate with 3D Systems' metal 3D‑printed conformally‑cooled injection mold

Metal 3D Printed Conformally-Cooled Injection Mold Increases Production Rate by 30%

B&J Specialty, a tooling and additive-manufacturing supplier, faced a productivity problem on an injection-molded automotive duct: conventional straight cooling lines produced extreme temperature swings (132°C) and part warpage, forcing long cooling cycles and reducing throughput. The challenge was to achieve more even cooling to cut cycle time without sacrificing quality.

Using 3D Systems’ end-to-end AM toolchain—Cimatron CAD/CAM for conformal channel design, 3DXpert and a ProX DMP 300 with LaserForm maraging steel for metal 3D printing, Moldex3D for simulation, and Geomagic/blue‑laser scanning for inspection—B&J replaced straight drills with conformally cooled, complex internal channels. The new insert cut temperature variation to 18°C (≈86% reduction), shortened cycle time from 60 to 40 seconds (30% higher throughput), improved part quality, and extended mold life through reduced molding pressures.

B&J Specialty

Jarod Rauch

Information Technology and 3D Printing Manager