recapitalizing [an] existing facility were analyzed versus entering [a] joint venture in Mexico,” said the technical manager of Caterpillar’s Cast Metals Organization during a 2007 interview. Te final vote was to invest in
C
Mexico, and 70% of the business at Caterpillar’s Mapleton, Ill., facility was to be moved across the border. Caterpillar had decided to launch
Technocast, a joint venture in Saltillo, Mexico, that several years later would begin production on most (if not all) of the long run gray iron engine cylinder block and head work that was being done at Mapleton. Te facility was at a crossroads. “Originally, when we made the
decision to do Technocast, we thought [Mapleton] would be able to subsist on what was left—predominately engine liners and large cylinder blocks,” said Gary Bevilacqua, facility manager. “It would have left us at about 40,000 tons per year. But when we started to peel back the layers, it was clear we couldn’t be profitable.” Tose 40,000 tons were all that were
produced in 2009 (the depths of the recession), down from 155,000 tons in 2006. In addition to the bulk of the work going to Technocast, some other small and mid-size castings were out- sourced to other global companies. But instead of closing up shop
in the face of adversity, engineers at the Mapleton plant found a way to redesign the facility producing low- and medium-run blocks, heads and commercial castings. Te result was a plant with two
entirely re-engineered production lines
aterpillar was faced with a critical decision regarding its metalcasting facilities during 2005. “Te economics of
and a streamlined employee workforce of 450 (down from 1,000) that is profit- able at 40,000 tons/year of gray, ductile and compacted graphite iron (CGI) castings. According to company execu- tives, the goal is to produce in the range of 80,000 tons annually, at which point the plant will operate most effectively. Now running all three of its major
product lines—large cylinder blocks, heads and engine liners—the plant projects to be well on its way to reaching that number in 2011. In the process, it’s also landed the title of 2011 MODERN CASTING Metal- caster of the Year.
Molding Line Is Number 1
Caterpillar’s Mapleton facility was built in 1979 around two green sand molding lines. Te lines were designed to crank out 10- to 32-liter cylinder block and head castings weighing up to 750 lbs. When the transition to Techno- cast began taking that bread and butter work, Caterpillar planned to open the facility’s capacity up to outside custom- ers. Tat turned out to be more difficult than anticipated. “It’s tough being a captive [facil-
ity] for so long and then going out and competing for external business,” Bevilacqua said. “For example, we entered the wind casting business. But say we needed $100,000 [to launch the product]—it’s difficult to prioritize resources that are not directly impact- ing Caterpillar products.” By early 2009, several years after
the Technocast launch, Mapleton’s 80 x 48 x 26-in. cope and drag molding line sat untouched in a mothballed corner of the facility. But towards the end of the year, the com- pany decided it could reuse existing equipment to produce a new line that would be flexible enough to fit its changing needs.
Mapleton coupled a robotic cold-
box packaging line (operating one of the largest robots in the world at 2,650-lb. capacity) with four 1970s coldbox coremaking machines. After the core build, the packages are placed on the mold car conveyor from the original green sand line. Te core packages are designed to fit on the old green sand drag flasks running on the mold car conveyor. Te flask is used as a containment unit for mold package breakdown after pouring, as well as potential runouts. “We essentially looked at all the high maintenance things,” Bevilacqua said. “Te mold car conveyor never broke down, so we kept it.” Also used on the line are the punchout and plow that removes the castings from the conveyor cars and a 20-year-old drying oven for the mold/core package. Te “new” mold line produces 130 molds per eight-hour shift with 10 employees manning the cell. Te flex- ible line produces low- to medium-run cylinder heads and blocks between 500 and 3,000 lbs. for Caterpillar, and because of a new pouring system, it is capable of transitioning quickly between gray iron, ductile iron and CGI. In many cases, products are being insourced from outside suppliers to the Mapleton plant, which has been able to demonstrate substantial landed cost reductions. According to Mapleton executives,
the new line is expected to pay for itself in one year, well within Caterpil- lar’s ROI mandate.
Second Line Is Key to Future Bevilacqua has purchasing in his
blood. Prior to managing the Maple- ton plant, he was responsible for purchasing head and block castings for Caterpillar’s global requirements and judging the Mapleton plant right
CAT MAPLETON NAMED METALCASTER OF THE YEAR
MODERN CASTING has selected Caterpillar’s Mapleton, Ill., facility this year’s Metalcaster of the Year for innovatively re-engi- neering two of its molding lines in order to become more flexible without making an overwhelming capital outlay. Past winners of the award include U.S. Pipe’s Marvel City Mini Mill, Birmingham, Ala.; Signicast, Hartford, Wis.; Intermet’s Stevensville, Mich., facility; Blackhawk de Mexico, Santa Catarina, Mexico; General Motors’ Saginaw Metal Casting Operations, Saginaw, Mich.; and Dotson Iron Castings, Mankato, Minn.
20 | MODERN CASTING June 2011
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60