Empire Die Casting Company Bankruptcy Filing – CHICAGO — Empire Die Casting Co. Inc. has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection and is seeking court approval to be acquired by a company that would operate it as a going concern. …
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Die Cast Tooling and Its Forms
Die Cast Tooling and Its Forms. Die cast tooling are the dies and the molds used for die casting. These die cast tools many forms namely Trim Dies used for die cast parts, Die Cast Family Mold Tooling, Complete Class “A” Die Cast Mold Tooling or Die Tooling, Unit Die Tooling, Prototype Die Cast Tooling Inserts and Die Cast Tooling Inserts.
I would be focusing this article on the latter form, the die cast tooling inserts since among all the die cast tooling, these are the least expensive. These actually are just enough steel to create cavities plus extra steel to put up with the fluctuations of the temperature of molten metal injecting under force. To extend the tooling life, the inserts should be heat treated to reach their proper hardness, not too hard and not too soft. Making it too soft will cause it to easily get damaged or easily wear from erosion and making it too hard, on the other hand could result to the steel cracking due to high temperature. Toolmakers who do not use enough steel in the inserts may reduce its potential life.
The die casting tooling inserts need to be supported by a type of holder so that metal could be injected into it and also to provide a sort of a path for the metal to pass and go in while the gases escape. These gases should be removed because it can produce porosity. This holder of inserts are called unit die, family die or mold base.
Die casting is no simple task. You would need to ask expert toolmakers to do this job for you. You just simply need to look online for you to find the expert that could help you. Varying websites of different die casting companies can be found in the internet. All you need is to choose which is the one nearest you.
Posted in Tooling Die Casting
Tagged die casting tooling, Tooling Die Casting, Tooling Inserts
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Manufacturing Index Rises, Job Losses Slow: Can Manufacturers Be Optimistic Again?
It seems to me that getting the economy to recover is a little like trying to fly with fairy dust. Fairy dust doesn’t work unless you belive in it; close your eyes, jump on the bed, imagine yourself flying out the window and poof! You’re in the air. Of course, there’s always the risk that you will end up on the floor instead.
Rather like when former President Bush attempted to rally Americans to go shopping during 2008’s holiday season. If Americans would spend their last nickels and dimes – if they just BELIEVE in the economy – it would right itself. Unpleasantly reminiscent of Reagan’s “trickle down” economics, Bush’s call went largely unanswered; underemployed consumers stayed home, businesses slashed jobs, clients cut orders and executives stopped marketing campaigns. Whether it was the fault of consumers not spending or of corporations spending irresponsibly, unemployment skyrocketed, Wall Street bellied up and the auto industry toppled. During spring’s harshest season of job losses, having faith in our economic system seemed absurd.
As the recession has worn on, businesspeople have become increasingly skeptical of “good” news. Most have not been willing to trust in occasional spikes in the manufacturing index or consumer market at the cost of precious dollars and scarce optimism – and understandably. “[I]s it insane to hold off on optimism when you’re not sure whether another customer could bite the dust?” asks bag manufacturer Kevin Kelly in a May Newsweek Web Exclusive.
The economy can do a lot in two months, however, and the early signs and tentative predictions of improvement that were made earlier this spring have held steady. Economic reports from July confirm that although the job market probably won’t bottom out until mid 2010, the recession is indeed coming to a close.
The ISM manufacturing index for July indicates manufacturing may be out of the red by the end of the month: July’s index was 48.9, a full 5 points up from June and 1.1 points away from indicating positive economic growth. Confirming this market trend is a recent Reuters survey finding “large US industrial manufacturers are far more optimistic about domestic and global economics than they were three months ago”. 43% of respondents indicated they were optimistic about this upcoming year’s economy, a huge rise since last quarter’s poll. More respondents also indicated plans for new hires, new investments and business expansions than in previous recession polls. A large number of manufacturing industries saw positive growth last month, among which were mineral products, paper and printing products, transportation equipment and appliances.
Area Development Online and Bloomberg.com report an unexpected decline in July’s unemployment rates. Job losses slowed from an unemployment rate of 9.5% in June to 9.4% in July, marking the smallest number of monthly jobs lost since August 2008, far below what had been predicted. With 6.7 million total jobs lost since the recession’s beginning in late 2007, this bit of progress is dearly bought, and between continuing layoffs from Boeing, Verizon and others, we probably haven’t seen the end of job cuts yet. Just like the slow in manufacturing decline we saw in April, this slow in unemployment is not final – but it’s a healthy indicator.
“The basic message,” The New York Times quoted IHS Global Insight chief economist, “is that the rate of job cuts is diminishing, and that’s good news.” President Obama’s stimulus packages are predicted to begin making a significant impact in unemployment in 2010, with many thousands of jobs having been already saved by green energy manufacturing initiatives.
Undoubtedly, realistic thinking and hard-headed business have kept many business and jobs afloat during the past 18 months. But could it be time to let skepticism go? Our recovering economy needs all the support it can get, and some confidence from manufacturers – pillars of the U.S. economy – may go a long way in speeding that recovery.
Source: IQS
Aluminium Long-Term Outlook Q2 Update
Aluminium Long-Term Outlook Q2 Update. According to Brooke Hunt, industrial production growth is set to average 3.1% p.a. over the period 2009 to 2020, up slightly from 2.7% p.a. for the period 2000 to 2008. China is expected to lead growth with IP anticipated to increase 10.1% in 2009 – 2020.
The economic recession which followed the failure of some western financial institutions and banks ten months ago was initially expected to have only a small effect on Chinese growth. However, the resultant collapse in worldwide demand and subsequent collapse in requirement for Chinese exported products has had a significant effect on the economy of China. The most recent trade data suggests that the fall in demand for Chinese goods may be bottoming out but the trends indicated by these figures do not carry across to the Chinese aluminium market. We expect aluminium demand to fall by 1% in 2009 to 12.7Mt. This contrasts with compound average annual growth of 17.9% p.a. seen over the first eight years of this decade.
As a large section of the global economy slid into recession in late 2008 and into 2009 global aluminium demand has been destroyed, particularly in mature economies and has led to a forecast surplus in 2009 of 2.5Mt. Although we are forecasting a 6% drop in smelter production in 2009, a greater decline of 8.3% is forecast for demand. Stocks are therefore expected to continue to rise in 2009 reaching 102 days of consumption. For the market to be balanced with the current consumption forecast production would need to fall by 12% in 2009. Brook Hunt is forecasting that LME cash prices will decrease from the 2008 average of $2571/t, to $1445/t in 2009. We have allowed for 70kt, 4.9Mt and 8.3Mt of curtailments in 2009, 2010 and 2011 respectively as prices cut into the cost curve. The significant volume of curtailed capacity will act as a cap on prices over the period 2012-2020.
Our analysis of long-run aluminium incentive prices that will provide sufficient incentive (15% IRR) to justify the expansion of capacity to meet incremental demand growth indicates that a price of ~$1928/t ($2009) is required.
Our base case supply forecast is seen as more than adequate to meet projected demand of 57Mt in 2020, equivalent to 3.5% per annum growth. The base case supply forecast can meet projected demand growth of 4.2% per annum, while the combination of Base case and projects in our highly probable category can meet demand growth of 5% per annum through 2020.
SGA production is estimated at 72.4Mt in 2009, down 10.4% y-o-y and is forecast to grow at 4% per annum to 88Mt in 2014 when capacity utilization is projected at 92%. Consequently, we forecast modest spot price appreciation through 2014 from current levels of $210/t to average $270/t or 14.5% of the LME aluminium cash price. Furthermore, there is little or no risk of being capacity constrained through 2020.
Die Casting Videos
Porosity in Die Casting Parts
Porosity in die casting parts. Die casting porosity is an unwanted result brought about by poor handling and method. It would be unclear until you know the meaning of die casting. Die casting is a technique or process of pushing an ample amount of molten material such as metal, plastic or resin into a container then pushing it with great force in a mold until it cools down and takes its form. Usually, metals used for die casting are non-Ferrous metals, or those containing no Iron, because Iron promotes oxygenation and rusting of the metal. The most ordinary metals used are magnesium, copper, zinc, lead and aluminum. Porosity in die casting parts is the presence of large bubbles of air inside the molded material, which makes it easier to break up. Porous die casted materials are commonly regarded to as something with low class and low quality.
Is there a way to reduce the occurrences of porosity in die casting parts? Fortunately, there are a few simple ways to be able to reduce and even eliminate the chances of having porous results in die casting. First of all, you need to conduct check-ups on your machines on a regular basis. Crevices and chinks on the surfaces of your molds allow air to seep through the machine, causing air bubbles within the plastic and metals. You can easily fix this problem by sealing it up with a sealant and cleaning it. Another thing you need to consider is to replace your molten materials with ones which have higher quality. The less cohesive and pure your metals and resins are, the more likely will it cause air bubbles inside.
Manufacturing Aluminum Hardware Handles
Manufacturing Aluminum Hardware Handles. When it comes to manufacturing, one of the best metals to use in certain parts and products is aluminum. This metal is ideal because it is relatively easy to acquire, hence it is cheap. Companies can mine them almost everywhere. Not only is aluminum cheap, its characteristics are of high quality. This metal is comparable to steel when it comes to strength and durability. In terms of weight, aluminum is also significantly lighter than steel as well. This is why it is used in making hardware handles.
Aluminum Hardware Handles are designed so that it can take high amounts of punishment. It is used to be pulled, pushed, turned and takes much abuse in order to open doors and other entry ways. In using Aluminum Hardware Handles, manufacturers can be sure that it will last longer compared to other materials because of its characteristics. And by using die casting, they can also produce them faster and with better consistency.
The manufacturing process known as die casting uses heat and pressure to make the parts or products, in this case, Aluminum Hardware Handles. The process starts with the raw aluminum, it is then subjected to an intense amount of heat in order to melt it. The liquefied metal is then injected into molds where its cavities give its shape. Using pressure of up to 30,000 PSI, the liquid metal is forced into every nook and cranny of the mold. After the mold cools down, the resulting Aluminum Handles have accurate dimensions, consistent and with great surface quality.
