3DPTEK-J400P — Production-Scale Binder Jetting for Metal and Ceramic Parts
When your R&D phase is done and you are ready to produce — the J400P delivers. 380 × 380 × 300 mm build volume, 3 or 6 high-resolution printheads, and up to 3.6 L/h (metal) or 5.3 L/h (ceramic) throughput. Print MIM-ready metal and ceramic parts at volumes that make traditional tooling look slow and expensive.
Metal Binder Jetting: The Production Technology Between Prototype and Mass Manufacturing
There are three ways to make metal parts at scale. Only one eliminates tooling without sacrificing throughput.
SLM / DMLS
Best for Pilot & Mid-Volume
- Géométries complexes
- No tooling
- Laser traces every part — slow at batch
- Support structures required
- High per-part cost at volume
Binder Jetting (J400P)
Your Production Bridge
- No tooling — print from CAD
- Inkjet speed — entire layers at once
- No support structures — dense nesting
- Uses your existing MIM sintering line
- 50× faster than SLM at scale, ~1/5 the cost
MIM (Traditional)
Established at 100K+ Volume
- Lowest per-part cost at 100K+
- Established quality standards
- Tooling: weeks per mold, costly per part family
- Design changes = new mold
- 40–50% binder limits part size
The J400P replaces only the injection molding step. Your debinding and sintering furnaces, your material certifications, your QC procedures — they all stay the same. This is not a rip-and-replace. It is a drop-in upgrade to the front of your existing MIM line.
Skip the MIM Tooling. Go Straight to Sintered Parts.
Traditional MIM requires a dedicated mold for every part design — weeks of fabrication, significant tooling cost, and zero flexibility when the design changes. The J400P eliminates the mold entirely.
15% Binder vs. MIM's 40–50%
Less binder means larger parts can print and sinter without cracking. MIM is limited to small, thin-walled components; the J400P handles parts MIM cannot — while still feeding your existing sintering line.
Zero Tooling Iteration
Test five design variants in a single build. In MIM, that is five molds. On the J400P, it is one print job. Design feedback in days, not months.
Drop-in to Your MIM Line
The J400P replaces only the injection step. Your debinding furnace, sintering furnace, and post-processing stations continue operating exactly as they do today. No re-certification, no process requalification.
±0.1 mm Accuracy at 1200 dpi
High-density powder spreading and 1200 dpi inkjet resolution deliver the precision MIM, mold and tooling customers demand — including fine features and thin walls.
How It Works: From CAD File to Finished Metal Part
Metal binder jetting in 7 steps — the J400P is your bridge from R&D parameters to pilot production volumes.
Conception CAO
Create or import your 3D model. Export as STL/3MF. Standard CAD formats — no proprietary file types.
Slice & Setup
AFSWin3DP-L software slices the model. Define binder saturation, layer thickness and print strategy.
Binder Jetting Print
Powder spreader deposits a uniform layer. Multi-nozzle inkjet head binds at up to 3.6 L/h across 380 × 380 mm.
Cure Green Part
Printed "green" parts are cured to harden the binder. The build chamber handles full 300 mm height.
Debind
Thermal or solvent debinding removes the binder. Compatible with standard MIM debinding equipment.
Sinter
High-temperature furnace fuses metal particles to 98%+ density. Shrinkage is uniform and compensated in software.
Finished Metal Part
Production-ready component. Optional: CNC finishing, polishing, heat treatment per application spec.
Caractéristiques techniques
Core parameters. Full datasheet available on request.
Paramètre | Value |
|---|---|
Build Volume (L×W×H) | 380 × 380 × 300 mm |
Dimensions du réservoir (L × l × H) | 400 × 400 × 310 mm |
Printhead Resolution | 400 / 800 / 1200 dpi (metal); 400 dpi (SiC) |
Épaisseur de la couche | 0.03–0.2 mm (metal); 0.1–0.3 mm (ceramic) |
Max. Print Speed | 3.6 L/h (metal); 5.3 L/h (ceramic) |
Précision de formage | ±0.1 mm |
Green Part Density | ≈67% |
Nozzle Count | 3 or 6 (field-configurable) |
Matériaux | 304/316L, Copper Alloy, High-Temp Alloy, Tungsten Alloy, SiC |
Post-Processing | Curing → Debinding → Sintering |
Logiciel de contrôle | AFSWin3DP-L V1.0 |
Dimensions de l'équipement | 2,470 × 1,730 × 2,400 mm |
Poids de l'équipement | ≈2.5 t |
Dual-Platform Materials: Metal & Ceramic
The J400P is one of the few systems in its class that switches between metal and ceramic printing — with over 30 validated material process formulas and 20+ binder formulations in 5 series.
Stainless Steels
SS304, SS316L, SS420, 17-4PH — for medical, food processing and general engineering. 98%+ sintered density with WU08/SU06 binders.
Titanium Alloys
TC4 (Ti-6Al-4V) — aerospace and biomedical. Clean sintering with low-residue WU08 binder.
Copper & Alloys
CuSn10, pure copper — thermal management and electronics. SU06 solvent binder for precision.
Superalloys
IN625, IN718 — turbine and exhaust components. 650 °C+ service temperature.
Refractory Metals
Tungsten alloys — radiation shielding and counterweights. Solid-state sintering.
Tool Steels
4140, M3/2, H13 — conformal cooling inserts and cutting tools. 30–40% cycle time reduction documented.
Silicon Carbide
Advanced ceramic for wear parts, armor and semiconductor equipment. CU02 binder at 5.3 L/h throughput.
Custom Qualification
Your powder, our process. Average 4–6 weeks to validated parameters. 20+ binder formulations available.
Production Advantages Over Traditional MIM Tooling
The J400P transforms how MIM factories approach pilot production and small-to-medium batch manufacturing. Eliminate the bottleneck that slows every new part introduction: the mold.
Zero Tooling Required
Traditional MIM requires weeks of fabrication and significant tooling investment. The J400P prints directly from CAD with zero tooling — new part designs go from digital file to green part the same day.
500–5,000 Parts Per Build
Pack hundreds to thousands of small components per print with dense, support-free nesting. Ideal for the batch sizes where MIM tooling amortization becomes uneconomical.
3.6 & 5.3 L/h Dual-Mode
3.6 L/h for high-precision metal parts; 5.3 L/h for ceramic components. Switch materials in under 30 minutes — one printer serves two completely different production workflows.
Iterate Without Penalty
Every design change is a new mold in MIM — and free on the J400P. Modify the CAD file and print again. Test multiple variants in a single build. This is how production engineering should work.
Free Sample Part Program
Send us your STL. We print it on a J400P in your chosen material, sinter it, and ship it back with a full process report.
Smartphone Hinge Cover
SS316L | WU08 | 200+ parts per build
SiC Mechanical Seal
Silicon Carbide | CU02 | 5.3 L/h
Conformal Cooling Insert
H13 Tool Steel | SU06 | 35% faster cycle
Medical Implant
TC4 Titanium | WU08 | ISO 13485
Scale-Up Path: R&D → Pilot → Mass Production
All 3DPTEK binder jetting systems share the AFSWin3DP-L platform and binder ecosystem. Parameters transfer seamlessly as you grow.
Exemples d'application
Real results from 3DPTEK equipment in the field.
3C Electronics Housings
Smartphone hinge covers, watch cases and bezels printed at 400 dpi with superior surface finish — eliminating multi-step CNC + MIM assembly.
Conformal Cooling Mold Inserts
Print injection mold inserts with embedded conformal cooling channels in tool steel. Cycle time reductions of 25–40% documented.
Production Tooling & Wear Parts
Drill guides, wear inserts and fixtures printed in tool steel — delivered in days instead of the weeks a machined or MIM tool requires.
Medical & High-Value Components
Titanium implant components and complex surgical instruments with fine lattice structures — impossible to mold, effortless to print.
Foire aux questions
Answers to the questions MIM and metal parts manufacturers ask most before investing in a binder jetting system.
The 3DPTEK-J400P supports stainless steels (304/316L/420/17-4PH), titanium alloys (TC4), copper alloys, superalloys (IN625/IN718), tungsten alloys, tool steels (4140/H13) and silicon carbide — over 30 validated material process formulas. Full material parameter sheets are included with every system, and 3DPTEK offers material qualification for custom powder formulations.
The J400P uses only 15% binder versus MIM's 40-50%, so larger parts can be printed and sintered without cracking. It eliminates mold tooling entirely — print directly from CAD, test multiple design variants in a single build, and use your existing MIM debinding and sintering furnaces without process requalification. It is a drop-in upgrade to the front of an existing MIM line.
Standard lead time is 8-12 weeks from order confirmation. Installation and operator training (3-5 days on-site) are included with every system. 3DPTEK engineers handle uncrating, positioning, calibration and first-article print verification.
Yes. 3DPTEK's applications engineering team provides parameter development, binder selection, sintering profile optimization and mechanical property verification. We have developed 5 series of binders with 20+ formulations and over 30 material process recipes. Remote and on-site support packages are available.
The J400P features a quick-change build module and dedicated binder circuits. Metal mode uses WU08 (water-based) or SU06 (solvent) binders at 3.6 L/h. Ceramic mode switches to the CU02 binder at 5.3 L/h. Changeover takes under 30 minutes. Both modes share the same AFSWin3DP-L control software with material-specific parameter libraries.
Yes. All process parameters, binder selections and material qualifications developed on the J160R transfer directly to the J400P. 3DPTEK offers trade-in programs and package pricing for customers scaling from R&D to pilot production. The same AFSWin3DP-L software and binder formulations are used across all BJ platforms.
Compare with other metal 3D printers
For a different build volume or material set, compare the metal systems: 3DPTEK J160R, 3DPTEK J800P, AFS-M120. Or browse the full metal 3D printers range.