Ford Helps Sharrow Marine Scale Boat Propeller Production with 3D Sand-Casting
Ford's advanced 3D sand-casting techniques have slashed Sharrow Marine's propeller manufacturing time from 130 days to about two weeks.
130 days
~2 weeks
60,000 sq ft
What Happened
Ford Motor Company's Advanced Industrial Technology & Platforms team worked with Sharrow Marine over nine months to adapt the propeller design to 3D-printed sand-casting. The process, which previously took 130 days using traditional wax and ceramic casting, now takes approximately two weeks. Michigan Central, Detroit's mobility innovation hub, facilitated the partnership.
130 days to ~2 weeks
Using 3D sand-casting techniques developed by Ford.
“Sharrow is exactly the kind of company we're here to support — an innovator with proven technology and growing demand.”
The collaboration has enabled high-volume production to meet surging demand from recreational boaters, commercial operators, and government agencies. Sharrow also expanded to a new 60,000-square-foot facility in Harper Woods, Michigan, and sees potential applications in drones, air mobility, and energy systems.
Why this matters
This collaboration shows how automotive manufacturing expertise can help smaller companies scale innovative products, meeting growing demand faster and boosting local manufacturing.
Terms in This Story
- sand-casting
- A metal casting process using sand molds, often enhanced with 3D printing for complex shapes.
- propeller
- A device with rotating blades that propels a boat or aircraft through water or air.
- additive manufacturing
- The industrial production name for 3D printing, building objects layer by layer.
Summarised from the linked release; details can be imperfect — always verify against the original source.