Modern Casting articles from October 2003

Modern Casting archives from October 2003

Question of the month.(moderncasting.com)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2003... Septembers website question asked, "If you were to build a foundry today from the ground up, which molding process would you utilize?" Answers: * 57%--Green sand. * 21%--Investment. * 14%--Permanent mold. * 7%--Lost...

We aren't car salesmen, are we?(Editorial; metal casting industry)
October 1, 2003... Recent discussions with OEM purchasers and engineers revealed to me that U.S. metalcasters are still relying on negative selling in an attempt to combat low-cost, offshore casting suppliers. My response to them was that I couldn't believe it...

New secretary in Commerce Dept. to focus on China trade practices.(Washington Alert)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2003... On September 1, President Bush gave an address in which he announced that the administration would be increasing its focus on the state of the U.S. economy, specifically in the manufacturing sector The president stated that a new assistant...

U.S. pressures China on currency issue, wants free-floating Yuan.(Washington Alert)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2003... During the first week of September, Treasury Secretary John W. Snow visited China to encourage leaders to allow the country's currency to float freely. Free-floating currency, as opposed to currency targeted to the U.S. dollar, will help...

OSHA continues to push silica rule, request SBREFA panel for this year.(Washington Alert; Occupational Safety and Health Administration; Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act )(Brief Article)
October 1, 2003... OSHA has formally requested the Small Business Office of Advocacy to convene a crystalline silica Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act (SBREFA) panel for this year Under U.S. law, OSHA is required to convene a small business panel...

Intermet announces new European business, Mexican foundry.(North America; Intermet Corp)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2003... Intermet Corp., Troy, Michigan, has been named the front suspension control arm supplier for PSA Peugeot-Citroen's new Berlingo and Xsara Picasso mini-MPVs to be built in France and Spain. Production of the ductile iron components is scheduled...

Amite Foundry melts World Trade Center steel for New U.S. Navy ship, USS New York.(North America)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2003... In September, hundreds gathered at Amite Foundry Machine, Inc., Amite, Louisiana, to sec part of the World Trade Center take on new life for the U.S. Navy. A 24-ton steel bean from the World Trade Center was melted and recast into a part...

Final Rule Established for Iron and Steel MACT.(North America; Maximum Achievable Control Technology)
October 1, 2003... In August, the administrator of the U.S. EPA signed the final rule establishing the National Emissions Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants (NESHAP) from iron and steel foundries (referred to as the MACT standards). The AFS 10E MACT...

DaimlerChrysler to phase out Indianapolis foundry.(North America)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2003... According to the Indianapolis Star, DaimlerChrysler, Stuttgart, Germany, will phase out production at its Indianapolis foundry over the next four years, culminating with the closing of the facility. The closing was part of a four year agreement...

Section 332 request from AFS Trade Commission approved by House Ways and Means Committee.(Metalcasting Associations; American Foundrymen's Society)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2003... In September, the AFS Trade Commission was informed by the U.S. House of Representatives Ways and Means Committee that Committee Chairman Bill Thomas (R-CA) had approved the Society's request for a Section 332 general fact-finding investigation...

CISA focuses on a rebounding market at summer meeting.(Metalcasting Associations; Casting industry Suppliers Association)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2003... The 2003 summer meeting for the Casting industry Suppliers Assn. (CISA), Chicago, was held August 10 12 in Vail, Colorado, and featured encouraging economic news for the metalcasting industry and the country as a whole from speaker David...

Crane Valve, Inc.(Newscast)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2003... Crane Valve, Inc., Washington, Iowa, announced that it will close due to declining business conditions and increased pressure from international casting suppliers.

Georgia Iron Works, Grovetown, Georgia, has purchased a 2200 lb/min mobile mixer.(Newscast)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2003... Georgia Iron Works, Grovetown, Georgia, has purchased a 2200 lb/min mobile mixer from IMF North America, Inc., Muskegon, Michigan.

Amcast Industrial Corp., Dayton, Ohio, announced that its subsidiary, Casting Technology Co. (CTC), Franklin, Indiana, signed a credit facility with The Provident Bank.(Newscast)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2003... Amcast Industrial Corp., Dayton, Ohio, announced that its subsidiary, Casting Technology Co. (CTC), Franklin, Indiana, signed a credit facility with The Provident Bank to provide a three-year revolving line of credit for up to $5 million and a...

Takata-Petri.(Newscast)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2003... Takata-Petri, Port Huron, Michigan, will close three diecasting plants by the end of the year, consolidating its Michigan operations with preexisting plants it has in Brazil and the Czech Republic.

Gradmatic Equipment, Inc., Bala, Ontario, Canada, announced that it has licensed its refractory installation and vibration technology to Euro-Equip.(Newscast)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2003... Gradmatic Equipment, Inc., Bala, Ontario, Canada, announced that it has licensed its refractory installation and vibration technology to Euro-Equip, S.A., Bilbao, Spain.

Casting Industry Suppliers Assn. (CISA).(Newscast)
October 1, 2003... The Casting Industry Suppliers Assn. (CISA), Chicago, will sponsor foundry technical seminars in Monterrey, Mexico in January. The seminars are free of charge for all foundry owners, managers and technical staff.

ISPC acquires US Filter's Surface Prep. Group.(Acquisitions; International Surface Preparation Corp.)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2003... International Surface Preparation Corp. (ISPC), Evergreen, Colorado, has acquired U.S. Filter Corp.'s Surface Preparation Group. "Surface Preparation was a non-com business unit of U.S. Filter," said Richard Bard, chief executive officer...

Modern Casting editor receives promotion.(North America)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2003... Joseph Maffia has been promoted to associate editor of MODERN CASTING and Engineered Casting Solutions magazines. Maffia joined the staff of the magazines full-time in 2002 as assistant editor. He had previously worked as an assistant editor...

AFS, CMI making changes to more effectively, efficiently serve metalcasting industry.(American Foundry Society; Cast Metals Institute )
October 1, 2003... The American Foundry Society (AFS) and its Cast Metals Institute (CMI) have announced recent and future changes to their business structure to be better prepared to serve the North American metalcasting industry. CMI has instituted a new...

Hayes Lemmerz International, Inc.(Personals)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2003... Hayes Lemmerz International, Inc., Northville, Michigan, named George T. Haymaker, Jr. lead director of its board of directors and Gregory A. Kalin director of internal audit.

Winsert, Inc.(Personals)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2003... Winsert, Inc., Marinette, Wisconsin, named Patti Kloida accounting manager.

Roura Iron Works.(Personals)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2003... Roura Iron Works, Holly Springs, Mississippi, named Curtis A. Harrison president and CEO.

Ashland Specialty Chemical Co.(Personals)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2003... Ashland Specialty Chemical Co., Dublin, Ohio, named Len R. Gelosa senior vice president and general manager of its Drew business groups.

Brock Solutions.(Personals)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2003... Brock Solutions, Kitchener, Ohio, named Rod Hartung, head of field sales and marketing efforts.

Pillar Induction Co.(Personals)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2003... Pillar Induction Co., Brookfield, Wisconsin, named Jody Smith director of the Aftermarket Sales and Service Div., William Weller inside sales manager and Dean Stefanac engineering manager.

The Federal Metal Co.(Personals)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2003... The Federal Metal Co., Bedford, Ohio, named C. Todd Kidder chief metallurgist.

Applied Process, Inc.(Personals)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2003... Applied Process, Inc., Livonia, Michigan, named Mark Stein plant manager of its facility in Elizabethtown, Kentucky.

Obituaries.(Industry News)(Obituary)
October 1, 2003... C. Frank De Meo, former chairman and CEO of General Casting Co., Cincinnati, died in September. De Meo was a founding member of the Ohio Cast Metals Assn., and went on to serve as president. He also served on the AFS board of directors class of...

Calendar of events.(metal castings industry)(Calendar)
October 1, 2003... View the Extended Industry Calendar at www.afsinc.org October October 14-15--Cast Metal Coalition (CMC) Portfolio Review, Ramada Plaza Rosemont, Illinois. October 26-28--AFS Midwest Regional Conference, Cleary International...

Gartland Foundry takes lead in compressing leadtimes: with steady reinvestment and a customer-driven culture, this century-old iron foundry is reinventing itself in a niche of quick, as-needed deliveries--in as little as 5 days.
October 1, 2003... With casting orders seemingly leaving the country at the drop of a hat, Gartland Foundry, Terre Haute, Indiana, has been positioning itself to service customers a bit less likely to rely on foreign sources. Who on earth would that be, you...

Baume: complete coating control?(foundry coatings)
October 1, 2003... AFS Molding Div. Mold-Metal Interface Reactions Committee (4-F) Inside This Story: * A comprehensive analysis of the Baume test for refractory coating process control is performed. * Using the Baume test as a sole quality control...

Benchlife: the core quality issue.(metal castings)
October 1, 2003... AFS Molding Div. Cured Sand Committee (4-I) Inside This Story: * Foundries using phenolic urethane coldbox cores and molds can experience quality problems if the prepared sand mixture is not properly stored and handled prior to curing....

Bringing SSM casting to the masses.(Technology in Progress; semi-solid metal )
October 1, 2003... Inside This Story: * Two SSM casting processes, rheocasting and sub liquidus casting, ate profiled. * While SSM has a reputation as a high-cost casting process, these two innovations present opportunities improve its cost...

Casting market focus: auto: the automobile depends on castings, from the engine to the brakes. It also presents a platform for casting design to shine.
October 1, 2003... Excuse the pun, but it is entirely accurate to say that motor vehicles "drive" the metalcasting industry. In any given year, the passenger car and light truck market can represent one-third of the total casting shipments in the U.S., with about...

Designing castings with thin sections.(Casting Design Notebook)
October 1, 2003... Casting processes provide design freedom by allowing engineers to place metal where needed to meet desired criteria. Typically, functional demands of the part as well as induced stress distribution result in a non-uniform mass distribution in a...

Q What are the factors to consider to determine the optimum binder formulation for our foundry green sand system?(Casting Answers & Advice)
October 1, 2003... Background: There are many different green sand binders and binder formulations available on the market, each utilizing a wide variety of materials or additives for specific castings and metals. For any foundry, a composite binder formulation...

Q Can we use existing gating and casting methods to cast lead-free copper alloys?(Casting Answers & Advice)
October 1, 2003... Background: Most lead free alloys contain bismuth (Bi) as the major alloying element. Bismuth replaces lead in the copper alloys and contributes to the machinability and pressure tightness of the alloys. Some of the lead-free alloys also...

More about the acronyms.(CEO Journal; management models)
October 1, 2003... There was a pretty strong reaction to August's column, The Acronym Conundrum. Part of that came from a colleague of mine who chided me for criticizing those who don't take these programs seriously without offering practical help to those who...

Be on the same page.(Small Foundry Management)
October 1, 2003... Do you have an employee who isn't performing up to your expectations? Is there a boss, who doesn't perform to his employee's expectations? What do you do when the employee and the boss don't have the same concept of what their roles are? ...

MICHIANA -- In September, Ron Dishman, Rochester Metal Products Corp., presents a speaker's award to Frank Peters.(AFS Chapter News)
October 1, 2003... MICHIANA -- In September, Ron Dishman (l), Rochester Metal Products Corp., presents a speaker's award to Frank Peters, Iowa State Univ., following his presentation, "Manufacturing System Improvements." [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

ST. LOUIS -- In September, Bruce Dienst, Simpson Technologies Corp., is congratulated by Brandon Kruse.(AFS Chapter News)
October 1, 2003... ST. LOUIS -- In September, Bruce Dienst (l), Simpson Technologies Corp., is congratulated by Brandon Kruse (ctr), Student Chapter Chair, and Von Richards, Univ. of Missouri, following Dienst's presentation on the opportunities for growth in the...

STATELINE -- In February, Scott Honeyman, Bentonite Performance Minerals, accepts a speaker's award for his presentation on the mining process of bentonite from Peter Rundquist, Rockford Foundries, Inc.(AFS Chapter News)
October 1, 2003... STATELINE -- In February (above), Scott Honeyman (l), Bentonite Performance Minerals, accepts a speaker's award for his presentation on the mining process of bentonite from Peter Rundquist, Rockford Foundries, Inc. In November (below),...

CENTRAL INDIANA -- In September, Jeff Larrison, Citizens Gas & Coke Utility, presents a speaker's award to Paul Cervellero.(AFS Chapter News)
October 1, 2003... CENTRAL INDIANA -- In September, Jeff Larrison (l), Citizens Gas & Coke Utility, presents a speaker's award to Paul Cervellero, retired, following his presentation on the past year of the American Foundry Society. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

Chapter meetings.(AFS Chapter News)
October 1, 2003... BIRMINGHAM November 17--Wynfrey Hotel, Birmingham, Alabama. December 8--Wynfrey Hotel, Birmingham, Alabama; Christmas Party. January 12--Wynfrey Hotel, Birmingham, Alabama. February 13--Wynfrey Hotel, Birmingham, Alabama. March 12--Tuscaloosa,...

PBR Columbia utilizes workcell concept to produce brake calipers.(New Product; PBR Automotive )
October 1, 2003... When purchasing a vehicle with aluminum brake calipers, chances are those brakes carry the PBR brand. PBR Automotive is a subsidiary of the Pacifica Group, Melbourne, Australia, a designer and manufacturer of automobile components and friction...

Littlestown Foundry increases productivity with new molding systems.(Case History)
October 1, 2003... Littlestown Foundry has found that investing in itself is one of the best ways to beat the competition. Recognized as one of the "best" green sand matchplate molding operations in North America in the August 2003 MODERN CASTING, this...

Non-toggle diecasting.(Metalcasting supplies)
October 1, 2003... The HPM Div. of Taylor's Industrial Services introduced a non-toggle diecasting machine at the 22nd International Die Casting Congress & Exposition in Indianapolis in September. HPM debuted the 900-ton model, which uses a hydromechanical...

Zinc-aluminum alloy casting.(Metalcasting supplies)
October 1, 2003... Graphicast, Inc. offers the ZA-12 casting process, which is ideal for the manufacture of high-precision flat frames and bases used in medical devices and other electro-mechanical/electro-optical equipment. The process uses permanent graphite...

Diecasting machines.(Metalcasting supplies)
October 1, 2003... Mueller Weingarten has adapted its diecasting equipment to the requirements of the North American market. The firms new line of machines, under the name "OptiCast Technology," has sizes ranging from 600-2000 tons. The system includes a...

Die release.(Metalcasting supplies)
October 1, 2003... D.A. Stuart Co. has introduced Dasco Cast 1130, a water-based diecasting lubricant designed for both conventional and high-integrity casting (semi-solid, thixotropic, rheo and squeeze casting) of magnesium, zinc and aluminum. The lube is based...

Die lubricant.(Metalcasting supplies)
October 1, 2003... Hill and Griffith Co. now offers Diluco 135WA, a die lubricant that provides clean and consistent performance. Specifically formulated to handle the wide range of operating temperatures in the diecasting process, the lubricant reduces over...

What has been the best source of new casting work for your foundry?(Voice of the Industry)
October 1, 2003... New casting work for us has come from being flexible and meeting customers needs, which means keeping the customer involved in continuous improvements and communicating opportunities where both ourselves and the customer can benefit. We are...