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number,” Blaise said. “We opened a new market that never existed. [T e traditional hydrant was] designed for a high maintenance situation. Ours requires minimal to no maintenance. We never have to look back.” So, volume was a central concern


when Sigelock began sourcing the casting it would need to make the paradigm shift happen. Its starting point was 500 units per day of available capacity. Sigelock furthermore wanted to utilize only domestic suppliers—the numerous high volume casters operating in low-cost countries were off limits, due to both a desire to maintain a “made in America” status and to avoid quality concerns. “Let’s say a


company in China said they could do it a little cheaper. I wouldn’t consider it,” Sigelakis said. “To me, it was very important to stay in the U.S.A.” A review of the


domestic landscape revealed few suppliers in the country that could meet the company’s needs. Some of those said the shape of the casting was too diffi cult to work with. To solve the sourcing dilemma, Sigelock turned to one of the largest iron metalcasters in the world—T yssen- Krupp Waupaca Inc., Waupaca, Wis.


T e company operates vertical green sand molding machines, the fastest of the sand casting platforms, while also off ering large fl ask sizes, uni- form products from run to run, tight dimensional tolerances and smooth surface fi nishes. Waupaca’s Tell City, Ind., facility had the capacity available to take on Sigelock’s volumes and then some, off ering the ability to produce more than 100 castings per hour—not just 500 per day.


“We researched Waupaca because


its technology was available at a reasonable cost,” Blaise said. “Due to the weight and size of the casting, it was an easy decision. With the cost effi ciency combined with the volume, there was no need to consider other methods than vertical green sand molding.”


A Clam’s Home According to Sigelakis, the traditional


fi re hydrant has been made the same way for 100 years, and it’s highly vulnerable to tampering. T e cliché image of urban kids playing in water from the neighbor- hood hydrant is no myth, he said, and when people open the devices to enjoy their cool spray or wash their cars, it damages them. T at can cost lives. “When hydrants break down,


fi refi ghters have to go to the next hydrant,” Sigelakis said. “And every second after 2.5 minutes, the fi re doubles in size, increas- ing the risk of backdrafts and people dying.” To reduce the risk of unneces-


sary deaths, Sigelakis fi rst redesigned the traditional hydrant with a built-in


locking mechanism. Next, he needed a way to protect the new lock. T e high strength ductile iron clamshell design turned out to be ideal, keeping scoffl aws from prying into it and defl ecting blows from blunt objects like sledge hammers. “T e casting is the body of the


hydrant and the protection of the operating parts. It is a key part,” Sigelakis said. “A regular fi re hydrant is like a faucet. It’s just a pipe coming out of the ground. T e operating nut sticks out and is exposed.” Sigelock calls its new hydrant the


Spartan, and the company said the overall eff ect of the new, enclosed


A ductile iron casting is the main structural element of the Spartan hydrant, enclosing and protecting the working parts.


30 | MODERN CASTING October 2011


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