Case Study: Liberty Pattern achieves on‑demand, cost‑effective hybrid tooling with ExOne S‑Max binder‑jet 3D printing

Traditional Pattern Shop Uses Binder Jetting for Hybrid Tooling

Liberty Pattern, a third‑generation full‑service pattern shop in New Liberty, Iowa, faced rising customer demand for increasingly complex castings and faster turnaround that traditional hard tooling couldn’t meet. In 2017 they invested in an ExOne S‑Max sand binder‑jet 3D printer to bring digital sand printing in‑house and support foundries with more flexible, rapid tooling solutions.

By deploying a fleet of four ExOne S‑Max systems and combining binder jetting with traditional machining for hybrid tooling, Liberty Pattern delivered on‑demand molds and complex cores, enabled reverse engineering, and cut tooling complexity (often replacing 20–40 core boxes with one or two printed cores). The shift drove quick business growth—new customer wins, faster turnaround, roughly 25% of capacity running serial jobs—and measurable improvements in tolerance, flexibility, and production continuity.

Liberty Pattern

Rick August

Additive Manufacturing Manager