5 Y
Ways to Fix Your Finishing Room
(Without Changing Your Finishing Room)
Eliminate your grinding bottlenecks by remedying problems upstream from the process. SHEA GIBBS, MANAGING EDITOR
ou’ve heard it before: the best way to streamline the finishing room is to fix problems before
they start, upstream from the cleaning room. But how exactly do you fix the problems you’re currently addressing through finishing? And how much can you save by undertaking an upfront process solution instead of grinding the problem away after casting? By the reckoning of most common
industry costing models, finishing is among the most expensive processes in the metalcasting facility (Fig. 1). At or more than 25% of the total piece price in ferrous facilities (some models pin it at nearly 40%), the expense of grinding away excess metal can eclipse melting and molding in many plants. While nonferrous casting facilities generally have lower finishing costs (no more than 10%), they too can save significantly on their bottom line by limiting grinding. Cleaning room costs include the
labor, energy and equipment needed to remove excess metal. Labor is the most significant portion of this cost, according to several industry analysts, and the costs associated with labor are driven higher by the high turnover and injury rates found in the finish-
38 | MODERN CASTING January 2012
ing room. But by harnessing the inherent advantages of the casting process, post processing operations can be eliminated, and finishing costs can be reduced. “We work with our customers to reduce weight [and] take out
stock,” said Bill Marlatt, operations manager for U.S. Foundry & Manufacturing Corp., Medley, Fla. “In most metalcasting facilities, the cleaning room is the biggest cost driver because there are so many operations that are still being manually performed. Clean- ing and finishing equipment is self-destructive; the less pressure required, the greater the opportunity to reduce costs.”
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The cost of grinding and gate cut-off are driven by labor expenses, which are compounded by the high turnover and injury rates in the finishing room.
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