Casting Design

Prof. Juhani Orkas

2
Observed industrial problem
Finnish foundries sell mainly production capacity, /kg
Difficult to compete with e.g. Chinese foundries having lower cost
labor and larger production capacity
Need for other than /kg charging principle
One possibility is to start collaboration earlier with customers
product development project
-> pricing based also on knowledge, not just by /kg
= 1st contact
between projects
CONCEPT DETAIL RAMP-UP
FOUNDRYS PROCESS
MANUFACTURING
3
Obstacles for collaboration
BUYER
FOUNDRY
Minimize /pcs
No money from
design work (only
from production)
Why improve customers
design if someone else makes
the production? (business)
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!

DESIGN
ENGINEER
Evolving business models
CUSTOMER
Lack of trust
(commitment to co-
operation in the future)
Is my design good
for casting?
4
Added value of earlier collaboration
Preliminary product related information shared with
foundry (requirements, project schedule etc.)
-> Time to perform preliminary tasks required for quality production
-> Easier production capacity allocation for shorter lead times
Foundry can affect product design
Products can be optimized for casting and post-casting
manufacturing processes
-> Lower production cost and better yield - still profitable for the
foundry
-> Shorter ramp-up time -> increased profits for the customer
CONCEPT DETAIL RAMP-UP
FOUNDRYS PROCESS
MANUFACTURING
Overview
Fillets
Wall-thickness junction
Material accumulation
Avoiding of sharp corner and edges
Riser
Avoiding of cores
Support of the cores
Parting line
Mechanical processing
Tensions
Example Atlas Copco
x
Fillets
Optimal fillets Too small fillets
Difficult to mould
Shrinkage cracks
Too large fillets
Shrinkage cavity
Porosity
With roots
Smooth junctions
Heuvers`s circle-method
Wall-thickness junction
No roots
Shrinkage cracks

Material accumulation
Material accumulation
Shrinkage cavity
Porosity

Avoiding of sharp corner and edges
Sharp corners in the mould
Hot spot
Mould sand may overheat
Mould sand may beak out

Avoid tensile loading
Rip under tensile loading
Low tensile strength

Rip under pressure loading
High compressive strength
Riser
Provide connections for risers
Compensate wall-thickness junction and material
accumulation with an elaborated riser, if there is no
redesign possibility
Discuss with foundry before constructing!

Riser
Too small connection for riser
Probability for rejects
Greater connection surface
Roots
Heuvers`s circle-method

Riser
Abrupt wall thickness junction Root
Smooth junctions
Avoiding of cores
Separated surface
Easier moulding without core
Shouldered machined surface
Core is necessary
Avoiding of cores
Cast eye enlarged onto ground
No core necessary
Undercuts
Core is necessary
Avoiding of cores
Unite cast eyes to a bigger
machined surface
Enlarge onto parting line
No core necessary
Several cast eyes
Outer core is necessary
Avoiding of cores
Undercut
Outer cores necessary

Clever redesigning
avoid cores
Avoiding of cores
Transfer cast eyes and rips
inside
Only a inner core is needed
Inner and outer core is needed
Avoiding of cores
1 instead 5 fives cores without
chaplets
Easy moulding and plasterwork

Inner core support by chaplets
Costly plasterwork at the outer
cores


Avoiding of cores
Support of the cores
1 core without chaplets
Core gas can unhindered leak
2 cores and chaplets
Obstruct the leakage of the
core gas



Support of the cores
United cores and greater holes
Enough support without
chaplets
Insufficient core print
Chaplets needed


Parting line
Two piece casting
May mismatch in mould
One piece casting
Cheaper
No mismatch possible


Parting line
Fractured parting line
Core or fractured pattern
needed
Expensive
Plane parting line
Cheaper
Better for mechanical shaping


Mechanical processing
Mechanical processing
Tensions
Rigid constructions reduces external deformations, but
tensions are still there and discharge anytime
Elastic constructions can reduce tensions relative
riskless
Shrinkage due to non-uniform cooling because of
material accumulations causes tensions
Thick-walled profile causes tensile stress
Thin-walled profile causes compressive stress
Tensions
Thick walls trough the entire
length
Flat bottom
Thinner walls offset to each
other
Curved bottom
Non-uniform material
distribution
Non-uniform cooling
Non-uniform shrinkage
Bending

Tensions
Uniform material distribution
Uniform cooling
Uniform shrinkage
No inner tensions
Tensions
Non-uniform material
distribution
Non-uniform cooling
Non-uniform shrinkage
Bending
Corrected material distribution
Uniform cooling
Uniform shrinkage
No inner tensions
Tensions
Openings and free edges
Risk of crack
Edge reinforcement with bulges
No risk of crack
Example Atlas Copco
Stages of the development work
Goal
Costs
Development of
the manufacturing
method
Minimizing the
need of
maintenance
Simplify the
structure
Noise
suppression
Design
3D modeling
Flow and
solidification
simulation
Proto casting
Feedback
Realisation
Commercial
agreement
Prototype at
Suomivalimo
Series production
at Karkkila and
Weert
Background
Hammer production started 1992
Earlier generation to the markets1998
New generation to the markets 2005

Goal
Problems with earlier generation:
Price pressures
Several external hydraulic hoses
Manual foundry operation, hand moulding
Several feeders etc.
Too many cores
high demands on the tolerances (Tiukat
toleranssit)
Complicated core support systems

Design
Co-operation with the customer and
foundry.
Because of already long excisting co-
operation there vere certain confidence
with companies
Special cast iron = ADI -> not so much
competition

Design
Customer-oriented design
Foundry engineering already in the early
stages of the design work:
Feeding
Parting line
Casting simulation and product critics
after every step of the design work.

Realisation

After design were accepted contract was
made the component price was revised.
First prototypes with hand moulding
method.
Serial production with automatic moulding
lines.