Case Study: Ventana Group achieves a 40% lighter aircraft door hinge with ExOne’s binder-jet sand 3D printing

Extra-Light Aircraft Door Hinge Cast in Magnesium

Ventana Group, a France‑based foundry serving aerospace customers, faced the challenge of demonstrating meaningful weight savings and design freedom for a large aircraft door hinge. To showcase how binder‑jet sand 3D printing could shorten development and enable complex cores, Ventana turned to ExOne and its S‑Max / S‑Max Pro sand 3D printers and sandcasting service.

Using ExOne’s binder‑jet sand technology, Ventana topology‑optimized an “organic” hinge, 3D‑printed the sand cores, paired them with traditional molds and used low‑pressure casting to produce a magnesium hinge that weighed ~5.9 kg versus the standard 10 kg — about a 40% reduction. The ExOne‑enabled process achieved a successful first pour, reduced development time, delivered precise castings showcased at Formnext 2021, and demonstrated measurable mass savings and broader aerospace potential.

Ventana Group

Christophe Richard

Chief Technology Innovation Officer