Modern Casting articles from December 2008

Modern Casting archives from December 2008

Worth repeating.(HOTLINE)
December 1, 2008... "I wanted to control my own detiny. I saw building an in-house metalcasting facility as a way to do that."--Vic Edelbrock Jr., Edelbrock Corp.

Where it's at.(moderncasting.com)
December 1, 2008... Wherever you find the cast metal Where It's At sign (right) in this issue, access additional content exclusively on the web at www.moderncasting.com or the otherwise indicated website: * Table of Contents: Web-only article on vertically...

Virtual tours.(moderncasting.com)
December 1, 2008... In a new feature on moderncasting. com, we take you on video tours of some of the casting facilities we've visited recently, including Corbitt Manufacturing Co., St. Charles, Mo., and AlumAlloy Co. Inc., Ontario, Calif.

Question of the month.(moderncasting.com)
December 1, 2008... The October web poll asked: How many generations of your family have been in the metalcasting industry? I'm the First 35.5% More Than Two 27.1% One 20.6% Two 16.8% This month's question is...

Casting innovation from a casting buyer.(EDITORIAL)
December 1, 2008... We need to look outside our industry for inspiration. Lessons from the Apples and Starbucks of the world can help metalcasters both soar and avoid failure. This idea is not unique, which is why management books on these and other successful...

Eliminator Performance Products wins CGI contract for hydrogen engines.(North America)(compacted graphite iron )(Brief article)
December 1, 2008... Hydrogen Engine Center Inc. (HEC), Algona, Iowa, contracted Eliminator Performance Products, Rochester Hills, Mich., to provide compacted graphite iron (CGI) engine cylinder blocks and heads for a new hydrogen V8 engine. The new engine,...

Boeing strike affecting aerospace metalcasters reaches end with four-year agreement.(North America)
December 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] A labor dispute between the Boeing Company and the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM), which had begun to pinch some aerospace metalcasters, ended when machinists in Washington,...

OSHA data indicates injuries to metalcasters are down for the third straight year.(North America)
December 1, 2008... The metalcasting industry recorded its third consecutive decrease in recordable injury and illness cases in 2007 after experiencing a rise in 2004, according to the results of an Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) study. ...

Metaldyne fails to find buyer for Niles diecasting plant.(North America)
December 1, 2008... Metaldyne Corp., Plymouth, Mich., said it will close its aluminum diecasting plant in Niles, Ill., on March 31, 2009, after failing to find a buyer. The motor vehicle industry supplier, which was acquired by parent Asahi Tec, Shiuzuoka,...

Taiwanese caster Da Shiang wins new CGI contract.(Around the World)
December 1, 2008... Da Shiang Precision Co. Ltd., Tianjin, Taiwan, received a high volume production order last month for compacted graphite iron (CGI) integrated exhaust manifold/turbocharger housings. The company's production of silicon-molybdenum-alloyed...

U.S. Aluminum Castings announces expansion.(North America)
December 1, 2008... U.S. Aluminum Castings, Entiat, Wash., recently announced its expansion into a new 10,000-sq.-ft. warehouse for storage of active tooling and raw materials. The warehouse was built with low energy, proximity-controlled high output...

FEF announces awards at annual conference.(North America)
December 1, 2008... FEF, The Foundation for Metal Casting Education, Schaumburg, Ill., held its 61st annual College Industry Conference on Nov. 2021 at the Drake Hotel in Chicago, bringing together more than 265 industry executives, student delegates, key...

Quality certifications.(INDUSTRY NEWS)
December 1, 2008... The following metalcasters and metalcasting suppliers have passed recent certification or surveillance audits: Bronze Craft Corp., Nashua, N.H., (ISO 9001:2000); Carpenter Brothers Inc., Milwaukee, (ISO 9001:2000); ESK Ceramics...

Aristo Cast, Precision Castings, Uni-Cast win casting contest.(North America)
December 1, 2008... Aristo Cast Inc., Almont, Mich., Precision Castings of Tennessee (PCT), Gallatin, Tenn., and Uni-Cast, Londonderry, N.H., won the Investment Casting Institute's 2008 international casting contest. The casting contest is open to members of...

Don't go into isolation, metalcasters.(Letterbox)(Letter to the editor)
December 1, 2008... It was with a great deal of interest that I read the October editorial ("An Open Exchange of Ideas"). My feelings exactly. My first Metalcasting Congress after arriving in North America in 1972 from Germany was 1973 in Montreal. I presented...

Charlevoix Manufacturing Co.(Newscast)
December 1, 2008... According to several local news reports, aluminum metalcaster Charlevoix Manufacturing Co., Charlevoix, Mich., will discontinue operations by the end of the year. Officials for Charlevoix did not return repeated requests for more information...

Aluminium Casters' Association of India.(Newscast)
December 1, 2008... The Aluminium Casters' Association of India is planning to host the upcoming Asia Pacific Aluminum Conference-Alucast 2008, Dec. 11-14, at the Chennai Trade Centre in India.

Cookson Group plc, London, announced it has entered into an agreement to sell its filters business Hi-Tech Ceramics.(Newscast)
December 1, 2008... Cookson Group plc, London, announced it has entered into an agreement to sell its filters business Hi-Tech Ceramics, the final step in satisfying anti-trust conditions placed on the company when it purchased Foseco Plc, Staffordshire, U.K., on...

Epic Machine Inc.(Newscast)
December 1, 2008... Epic Machine Inc., Fenton, Mich., recently celebrated 30 years in the tool and die business. Epic, which operates a 39,000-sq.-ft. facility, was formed in 1979 and currently has about 25 employees. The company offers-replacement parts used in...

Blanchard Metals Processing Co., Salt Lake City, Utah, has added a new furnace that will be dedicated to commercially heat treating aerospace components.(Newscast)
December 1, 2008... Blanchard Metals Processing Co., Salt Lake City, Utah, has added a new furnace that will be dedicated to commercially heat treating aerospace components. The furnace, provided by Ipsen Inc., Rockford, Ill., has a work zone of 18 x 14 x 24 in....

Magna-Tech Manufacturing.(Newscast)
December 1, 2008... The Lincoln Economic Development Association announced that Magna-Tech Manufacturing, Muncie, Ind., will lease the Keith Corporation's 38,500-sq.-ft. shell building in the Lincoln County Industrial Park to create a new production facility to...

Pyrotek Inc., Spokane, Wash., and IGC Technologies LLC, Milwaukee, have entered into an alliance to market powdered fluxes to the aluminum metals industry in North America.(Newscast)
December 1, 2008... Pyrotek Inc., Spokane, Wash., and IGC Technologies LLC, Milwaukee, have entered into an alliance to market powdered fluxes to the aluminum metals industry in North America. According to the terms of the agreement, Pyrotek, an aluminum industry...

Citation Corp.(Personals)
December 1, 2008... Citation Corp., Novi, Mich., named Louis Lavorata senior vice president and chief financial officer, replacing Robert Sawyer. Also, Citation announced its vice president and chief information officer Koke Veljasevic was nominated for the 2008...

Roberts Sinto Corp.(Personals)
December 1, 2008... Roberts Sinto Corp., Lansing, Mich., has promoted Bob Conrad to vice president of metalcasting sales. The company also has added a new representative in the south, Ronnie Norris of Norris Brothers Corp. Norris will cover Georgia, Florida,...

Obituaries.(INDUSTRY NEWS)(Disa Industries )(Obituary)(Brief article)
December 1, 2008... Mary Beth Krysiak, New Hudson, Mich., died Oct. 10. She was 45. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Krysiak began her career in 1981 with Disa Industries (formerly George Fischer Foundry Systems and the Harry W. Dietert Co.), Herlev, Denmark, where...

Calendar of events.(International Conference and Exhibition on Aluminium Die Casting)(Conference news)(Brief article)(Calendar)
December 1, 2008... December December 11-14--Alucast 2008 International Conference and Exhibition on Aluminium Die Casting, Chennai Trade Center, Chennai, India. January January 21-23--AFS International Iron Melting Conference, Holiday Inn...

Loans to go global: the Small Business Administration's loan programs help U.S. manufacturers compete overseas.(WASHINGTON ALERT)
December 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] The credit crunch of the current economy can inhibit metalcasting businesses looking to jump on opportunities in overseas markets, but the U.S. Small Business Administration's (SBA) Office of International Trade...

Waxman defeats Dingell for chair of House Energy & Commerce Committee.(On the Hill)
December 1, 2008... On Nov. 20, U.S. House Democrats selected Rep. Henry Waxman (D-Calif.) to replace Rep. John Dingell (D-Mich.) as chairman of the House Energy & Commerce Committee. Waxman's takeover caps his quarter-century rivalry with Dingell. While they...

OSHA: injuries in parking lot can be work related.(On the Hill)
December 1, 2008... OSHA recently released an interpretation letter that states employee injuries in a company parking lot can be deemed "work related" and therefore "recordable" if the work environment either caused or contributed to the injury, or significantly...

Edelbrock revs up capacity: Edelbrock Corp. banks on Americans' love of the automobile for the success of its cast aluminum aftermarket parts.(Cover story)
December 1, 2008... Edelbrock Corp., Torrance, Calif., was born in the heyday of hot rods, when car enthusiasts began to tinker with speed, and weekend races in the dry lakes of California were chances to show souped up versions of street cars. The races were...

42nd Census of World Casting Production--2007: global production on the whole grew by 4%, but some countries saw gains of 10% or more.
December 1, 2008... A MODERN CASTINGS Staff Report Global casting production increased moderately to 95 million tons in 2007--a 4% increase from 2006, according to this year's MODERN CASTING Census of World Casting Production. It's not the gain typically seen...

Be proto-type-cast: three case studies show how rapid prototyping can provide a casting when only a casting will do.
December 1, 2008... You know you can give your customer large numbers of quality engineered metal castings, given a reasonable lead time. The reusable tooling in the metalcasting process is ideal for delivering high-run products in a couple of months. But...

Take control of your wax room: four investment casting facilities took different approaches to making their wax rooms more efficient.
December 1, 2008... Improving process control helps reduce labor and improve the efficiency of your facility. By controlling the variations of a process, metalcasters control the outcome. The control comes from knowing how the variations affect the end product,...

Avoid the methylene blue blues: one of the sand tests vital to your plant's success is also one of the most controversial in the industry.
December 1, 2008... The, debate that ensued when 24 metalcasters and scientists got Together for a meeting two years ago surprised Sarah Joyce, vice president of quality and technology at Badger Mining Corp., Berlin, Wis., and chairperson of the industry sand...

Thriving in a down market.(MARKETING MATTERS)
December 1, 2008... There are always folks who claim to thrive in the stock market no matter what the conditions may be. Why can't metalcasters make the same claim? In fact, we can and will thrive in whatever the market conditions are, if we plan and act...

NEOAFS Chapter, Boy Scouts of America sponsor educational session at Kent State Univ.(AFS/CMI NEWS)
December 1, 2008... The AFS Northeastern Ohio Chapter (NEOAFS) Educational Committee sponsored a metalcasting education session Nov. 15 at Kent State Univ. (KSU), Kent, Ohio. The learning experience, held in conjunction with NEOAFS, KSU and the Boy Scouts of...

Be a millionaire with safety awards that highlight significant achievements.(AFS/CMI NEWS)
December 1, 2008... Entries for the 2008 AFS Millionaires Safety Award now are being accepted. The award is designed to recognize AFS corporate member firms that succeed in providing the highest level of safe and healthy workplaces. This annual award...

Google search enhances world's largest metalcasting library.(AFS/CMI NEWS)
December 1, 2008... AFS released an updated and advanced library website with more than 37,000 papers and articles about metalcasting available for purchase. Located at www.afslibrary.com, the website houses the world's largest collection of metalcasting reference...

Exhibit space available for the 113th Metalcasting Congress.(AFS/CMI NEWS)
December 1, 2008... Exhibit booth space is available for the 113th Metalcasting Congress to be held April 7-10, 2009, at the Paris Hotel, Las Vegas. Hosted by AFS and the North American Die Casting Association, the annual Metalcasting Congress is an...

Metalcasting Solutions seminar, marketing course kicks off east coast regional.(AFS/CMI NEWS)
December 1, 2008... The 2008 East Coast Regional Conference was held Oct. 2-4 at the Heritage Hills Golf Resort, York, Pa. Prior to the official conference kick-off, AFS sponsored its Metalcasting Solutions seminar and a Cast Metals Institute (CMI) marketing...

AFS co-sponsors Keith Millis symposium on ductile iron.(AFS/CMI NEWS)
December 1, 2008... More than 200 metalcasters attended the Keith Millis Symposium on Ductile Iron, held Oct. 20-22 at the Orleans Hotel & Casino, Las Vegas. The event was co-sponsored by AFS and the Ductile Iron Society. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Alfred...

Prof. John Campbell teaches second annual workshop.(AFS/CMI NEWS)(American Foundry Society )(Brief article)
December 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] For the second consecutive year, AFS offered a practical two-day workshop with Prof. John Campbell, Univ. of Birmingham, U.K., which focused on the structure and properties of castings and reduction of entrainment...

Wage and benefit, forecast and trends publications released.(AFS/CMI NEWS)
December 1, 2008... The 2008 Wage and Economic Benefit Survey and the 2009 AFS Forecast and Trends have been released and are available for purchase. The 2008 Wage and Economic Benefit Survey, which is the only hourly survey of wages and benefits in the...

New media drum fits Bentonville's large castings.(New Product)
December 1, 2008... Gray and ductile iron caster Bentonville Casting Co., Bentonville, Ark., had been using a rotary media drum in their shakeout since 1991. But as business grew, so did the demand for larger castings, and the system was showing its limits. ...

Conveyors keep castings ding-free.(New Product)
December 1, 2008... A small nick, chip or ding looks bad on any finished product, particularly when it happens during the final stages of processing precision investment castings. This was the issue facing investment caster Signicast, Hartford, Wis. The...

Mesh conveyor belt.(METALCASTING SUPPLIES)
December 1, 2008... The MaxMesh Belt System from Wheelabrator Group allows for continuous blast cleaning without the possibility of damage from part-on-part contact. It is best for low-profile parts and components that are difficult to process on conventional...

Aluminum furnace.(METALCASTING SUPPLIES)
December 1, 2008... Thermtronix aluminum melting and holding furnaces feature high efficiency combustion burner systems and solid state power and flame control panels. The crucible-type furnace design allows for easy alloy changes, while the speed of gas-fired...

Matchplate molding.(METALCASTING SUPPLIES)
December 1, 2008... The new DISA Match 28/32 offers larger matchplate molding for shorter, moderate production runs with frequent pattern changes. The Quick Match Plate Changer, combined with production speeds of up to 100 uncored and 80 cored molds per hour (with...

High temperature furnace.(METALCASTING SUPPLIES)
December 1, 2008... Grieve Corp.'s high temperature 2,200F electrically heated, inert atmosphere floor furnace is currently used for various heat treating applications. Workspace dimensions measure 24 x 48 x 24 in. Special inert atmosphere construction includes a...

Queen City's iconic casting.(SHAKEOUT: In case you didn't know ...)
December 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] The fountain on this page is probably familiar, but you may not be able to put your finger on where it's from. It's Cincinnati's Tyler Davidson Fountain, symbol of the city and the centerpiece of the downtown...