Case Study: Ekstrametal achieves faster lead times and lighter, higher‑precision iron castings with ExOne sand 3D printing

Efficiency and Precision through Sand 3D Printing in Iron Casting

Ekstrametal, an iron foundry in Ankara, Türkiye, was the first Turkish foundry to adopt sand binder jetting to modernize casting operations and address challenges like long lead times, complex core geometries, tooling costs, and customer demands for lighter, certified parts. To do this it partnered with ExOne and deployed ExOne S-Max® sand binder-jet 3D printers to produce molds and cores rather than relying on traditional patterns and core boxes.

Using ExOne’s sand binder jetting, Ekstrametal prints single-piece cores and molds that cut lead times (best case 10–11 days, prototypes often 1–2 weeks), eliminate hard tooling costs, reduce scrap, and enable lighter designs—for one part wall thickness fell from 12 mm to 8.5 mm and weight dropped 22% (197.5 kg → 155 kg). The company also reduced production time and labor for a GJV‑450 fixture (from ~65 hours to 42 hours) and achieved about 20% material savings; Ekstrametal subsequently invested in a second ExOne S-Max to scale capacity.

Ekstrametal

Arda Çetin

Deputy General Manager