In times past, paper and pencil were the most vital tools a casting designer had - and the development of a casting was a technique that was tedious and lengthy. A paper design was created ; the blue print was introduced to the die caster - who ganged up with a toolmaker. Together, a die-casting machine was chosen ; the method and mold layout developed and costs estimated. Quotations were made. The bidding winner gave authorization to his tool vendor to order die steel and start with mold coming up with. When finished, the mold was sent to the die caster for a first test. After building it into the machine, castings were made and checked for defects.
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It wasn't till this point in the middle that those involved got any idea about the quality of the casting. If the casting didn't measure up to the desired standards, changes would need to be made. Different process settings and minor die corrections might be done at the die-casting machine right away - but if the 1st trial showed clearly that the mold had to be modified, steel had to be ground away and welded back in other places, and that work needed to be done at the tool vendor's facility. The mold traveled forwards and backwards between toolmaker and die caster until a satisfactory casting quality was achieved. The time between beginning the casting design and shipping good castings could take weeks, months or years depending on the complexity and size.
Similarly, mold designs could - and did - change, even after production had started, and those changes meant molds could have different designs, different ages and wearing patterns, and different casting qualities. Additionally to mold changes, differentiations in production parameters like die casting machine pressures, pouring velocities and transitions, lubrication volumes and locations, solidification and cycle times changed across the casting process. The everlasting need to adjust and improve the casting stopped only when the casting wasn't required anymore. Working towards a better casting quality kept a massive team active with involvements of the method engineer, the machine operator, mold maintenance and toolmaker, quality office, casting designer, casting machining, even assembly and material planning and handling group.
While there was a time when this kind of 'engineering' was mandatory, the industrial realities of today make it financially unfeasible to continue in this manner - but despite that, this "engineering" can be found in corporations that are struggling their way thru tough times.
"The die casting industry's capacity in the U.S. Shrunk ... With the closing of plants that weren't ready to keep abreast of technology..." Daniel L. Twarog, President NADCA, Letter from the Publisher, LINKS, February 2009
Streamlining the method Today
With the addition of PCs into factories, the engineering process is continually changing and becoming more streamlined. Casting are no longer drawn on paper and tooling dimensions don't need to be transformed to mold drawings anymore. Computer helped designs available in 3-dimensional volume models allow information to be transferred with the push of a button and be used as input right into the steel machining kit. Changes in models can be made efficiently shared with all design departments.
The incredible value of computerization lies in the chance to develop, design and build at nearly the same time. These parallel conditions of work decrease the development time and speeds 'time-to-market' to a level that wasn't even dreamt of years back. Computerization in the engineering and manufacturing process have also allowed for more actual machining kit in the tool shops, customized die steels and heat treatment processes that allow changes based factors such as : length of production run and material in direct contact to the melt or for better heat transfer and heat flow.
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