WTEC panel report on advanced casting technologies in Japan and Europe
- Massachusetts Inst. of Tech., Cambridge, MA (United States)
- Worcester Polytechnic Inst., MA (United States)
- Amcast Automotive, South Hill, MI (United States)
- Oak Ridge National Lab., TN (United States). Metals and Ceramics Div.
- GM Powertrain Casting Operations, Saginaw, MI (United States)
- Univ. of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, AL (United States). Metal Casting Technology Center
This report presents the results and conclusions from a study of the Japanese foundry industry conducted by a WTEC study team in January 1996. Results of that study were supplemented by additional visits later in the spring to foundries and foundry laboratories in Europe. During its week in Japan, subgroups of the team visited 22 facilities. Included in these were four metal mold foundries, five iron and steel (sand mold) foundries, four investment casting foundries, four industrial research laboratories, four universities, and one government office. In Chapter 2, Melting and Handling, Diran Apelian discusses what he considers the most critical components in the overall metal casting operation: the melting of the metal and the process of liquid metal handling. Chapter 3 written by H.W. Hayden, reports findings on active R and D efforts in the Japanese casting companies directed to the development of new cast alloys and materials, new ceramic and cermet materials for application by the foundry industry, and major new process/product developments such as amorphous metals and magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) effects on the continuous casting of steel rolling ingots. The next chapter, Metal Mold Casting by Diran Apelian, discusses casting technologies in which the mold cavity is made of a metallic material. The fifth chapter, Japanese and European New Cast Product Development by Paul H. Mikkola, reports findings on new cast products being developed in both Japan and Europe. In Chapter 6, Specialized Sand Casting Technologies, Thomas S. Piwonka assesses the current state of innovation in the field of sand casting in Japan and Europe. In Chapter 7, Current Investment Casting Technology, Thomas S. Piwonka looks at the US precision investment casting industry, which developed during the Second World War. Chapter 8 by Dennis Bertram, assesses the state of manufacturing in Japan: how the Japanese use foundry processes, specialized equipment, alloys, human resources, and the collective knowledge of the R and D people to fulfill the casting needs of the customer. In the last chapter, Employment, Environment and Energy Issues, by Thomas S. Piwonka, the issues of employment, the environment, and energy--important to all manufacturing enterprises--are scrutinized as they concern the casting industries of Japan and Europe. Appendices to this report include biographies of the WTEC panelists (Appendix A), site reports for each of the visits the team made in Japan and Europe (Appendices B and C, respectively), and a glossary of terminology used throughout the report (Appendix D).
- Research Organization:
- Loyola Coll., International Technology Research Inst., Baltimore, MD (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE Office of Energy Research, Washington, DC (United States)
- DOE Contract Number:
- AI05-92ER30197
- OSTI ID:
- 348870
- Report Number(s):
- DOE/ER/30197-T1; ISBN 1-883712-45-9; TRN: AHC29920%%20
- Resource Relation:
- Other Information: PBD: Mar 1997
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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