Aerospace Casting—Mission-Critical Components, Zero Tooling
3DPTEK delivers AS9100-quality aerospace castings using 3D printed sand molds, SLS wax patterns, and SLM metal printing. From turbine housings to structural brackets—prototype to production in days, not months. Trusted by AVIC, AECC, and CASC.
Why Aerospace Manufacturers Choose 3DPTEK for Castings
Aerospace casting demands precision, repeatability, and rigorous certification. 3DPTEK eliminates the most painful bottleneck: pattern making. By printing sand molds and cores directly from CAD, we compress a 12-week tooling process into days.
Patternless. Tool-Less. Limitless.
No patterns. No tooling storage. No geometry limitations. 3D print sand molds and complex cores directly from your CAD model. Design changes are free — iterate as many times as needed before committing to production.
Complex Internal Cooling Geometries
3D printed sand cores enable conformal cooling channels, thin-walled sections, and integrated passageways that improve turbine component performance. Geometries impossible with traditional pattern-based tooling.
Prototype to Production — Same Process, Same Quality
The same 3D printing technology that delivers your first prototype casting in 5-10 days scales directly to serial production. No process change, no tooling transition, no requalification. When your design is approved, production starts immediately.
Aerospace Components We Deliver
From turbine housings to structural brackets — mission-critical castings for commercial aviation, defense, and space applications.
Turbine Housings & Casings
Inconel 718 & 625 turbine housings. Complex internal cooling channels cast as single pieces. Up to Ø800mm. CT4-CT6 precision. Eliminates multi-piece welding and brazing.
Impellers, Blisks & Diffusers
3D printed sand mold + SLS wax core for complex blade geometries. Titanium, stainless steel, and superalloy options. Dynamic balance verified on first article.
Brackets, Frames & Ribs
A357 / A356 aluminum structural brackets. Topology-optimized for weight reduction. 30-50% lighter than machined equivalents. Load-tested with full documentation.
Combustion Liners & Heat Shields
Superalloy castings with thin-wall cooling features. 0.8mm minimum wall thickness. Integrated thermal barrier geometries printed directly.
Housings, Manifolds & Fuel Systems
Multi-port hydraulic manifolds and fuel system housings cast as single pieces. Internal passages printed — no drilling, no cross-drilling, no brazing.
Three Technologies. One Quality Standard.
Different components demand different approaches. We deploy the right technology for each part.
3DP Sand Mold Printing (Binder Jetting)
Best for medium-to-large structural castings with complex internal cores. Build volumes up to 2,200mm. Materials: aluminum A356/A357, stainless steels, nickel alloys, titanium.
SLS Wax Pattern + Investment Casting
Best for precision components requiring Ra6.3 surface finish. Ideal for turbine blades and thin-wall superalloy parts. No wax injection tooling needed.
SLM Direct Metal 3D Printing
Best for small, ultra-complex components. Direct metal laser melting of titanium, Inconel, and stainless steel. No casting required — part goes from powder to finished component.
Flight-Proven Results
Components currently in service with major aerospace programs.
Complex Structural Components
AECC, ChinaHybrid "SLS coated sand + 3DP resin sand" molding eliminates deformation and washouts in complex oil circuits. Delivers high-precision, high-strength integrated castings for thin-wall parts. Recognized by MIIT.
A357 Structural Bracket — 45% Weight Reduction
COMAC SupplierTopology-optimized A357 aluminum bracket for commercial aircraft interior. 3DP sand mold enabled organic geometry impossible with traditional tooling. 45% lighter than the machined-from-billet predecessor. 500+ units delivered.
Closed Impeller for Fuel Pump — Single-Piece Cast
AVIC SubsidiaryComplex internal blade geometry cast as one piece using SLS sand core + 3DP mold. Eliminated 5-axis CNC machining and brazing. Dynamic balance passed G2.5 at 12,000 RPM. Dye penetrant & X-ray certified.
Aero-Engine Casing — Large-Scale Thin-Wall Integration
CASC Supplier
Addressed the challenges of large-scale, thin-wall complex structures. Utilizing SLS wax investment casting with segmented assembly technology to achieve one-piece integrated forming. Significantly eliminates high tooling costs and dramatically shortens lead times compared to traditional casting.
Manufacturing Power at Scale
10 manufacturing centers. 50+ industrial 3D printers. One quality system.
Printers That Power Your Parts
The machines behind every aerospace casting we deliver.
3DPTEK-J4000 Pro
Sand Mold | 2200x1600x700mm
3DPTEK-J2500
Sand Mold | 1800x1200x600mm
LaserCore-6000
SLS Sand & Wax | 600x600x500mm
SLM Metal Printer
Direct Metal | Ti, Inconel, SS
10 Manufacturing Centers. One Standard.
Distributed manufacturing across China for capacity, redundancy, and logistics.
Suzhou Precision Foundry
Suzhou, Jiangsu- AS9100D & ISO 9001 certified
- SLS wax + 3DP sand dual process
- In-house X-ray, CMM, spectrum analysis
- 15+ aerospace clients served
Dongguan Superalloy Center
Dongguan, Guangdong- Specialized in nickel & cobalt superalloys
- Vacuum induction melting (VIM)
- Hot isostatic pressing (HIP) available
- Inconel 718, 625, 713C qualified
Weifang Iron & Steel Works
Weifang, Shandong- Large-scale iron & steel castings
- Up to 2,200mm build box (3DPTEK-J4000)
- 8,000t annual aerospace capacity
- MIL-STD compliant heat treatment
Every Part Inspected. Every Result Documented.
Aerospace-grade quality is not optional. It is our baseline.
X-Ray & CT Inspection
Internal defect detection for critical castings. Porosity, shrinkage, inclusions verified.
CMM Dimensional
Coordinate measuring machine with ±0.005mm accuracy. Full dimensional reports with every shipment.
Spectrum Analysis
OES spectrometer verifies chemical composition against spec. Heat-level traceability on every pour.
Mechanical Testing
Tensile, hardness, impact testing per ASTM standards. Test coupons machined from same pour as your parts.
Dye Penetrant (PT)
Surface defect detection. Fluorescent penetrant available for critical Class A surfaces.
Full Documentation Package
3.1 / 3.2 certificates, NDT reports, dimensional reports, material certs — all delivered in one PDF.
Partners in Flight
Aerospace organizations that trust 3DPTEK with mission-critical components.
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions from aerospace customers about 3D printed sand mold casting.
We cast 6 alloy families for aerospace applications: aluminum alloys (A356, A357, AlSi10Mg), titanium alloys (Ti6Al4V per AMS 4928), stainless steels (17-4PH per AMS 5355, CF8M), nickel-based superalloys (Inconel 718, Inconel 625) for turbine and hot-section applications, cobalt-based superalloys, and cast iron/steel for structural components. All processes follow AS9100-quality standards with full material certification, NDT, CMM inspection, and mechanical property testing. Complete lot traceability with every order.
For prototype aerospace castings, 3DPTEK delivers from CAD to finished casting in as little as 5-10 business days. Sand molds are printed within 24 hours using Binder Jetting. Including casting, heat treatment, NDT inspection, and certification documentation, typical delivery is 2-3 weeks — compared to 8-16 weeks for traditional pattern-based methods. Rush service available for critical timelines.
Yes. Our Suzhou facility is AS9100D certified, the global quality management standard for the aerospace industry. We also maintain ISO 9001:2015, ISO 14001, ISO 45001, Nadcap NDT, and GJB 9001C (Chinese military quality standard). Every casting is documented with full material certs, NDT reports, CMM dimensional data, and FAI documentation.
With zero tooling, design changes are implemented instantly. Update your 3D model, we print the new mold, and you have a revised casting in days. A typical aerospace program can iterate 3-5 casting designs in the time traditional methods produce one. Our engineering team provides design-for-casting (DFC) feedback to optimize your part for the additive process.