CASTING INNOVATIONS
Metalcaster Leverages Simulation, FEA For Fast Conversion Monarch Industries Ltd., Win-
nipeg, Manitoba, Canada, places a premium on speed when exploring converting weldment conversions to castings. In 2013, this emphasis on quickly dealing with the early stages of a project led the ductile iron caster to successfully convert a component for agricultural tillage equipment manu- facturer Wil-Rich, Wahpeton, N.D. Previously constructed with eight steel pieces (torch cut and bent or saw cut, then welded and machined), the component is a double disc ripper that is the main mounting structure for the shank assembly to be attached to the tillage unit frame. It also contains three of the major pivot points for the trip assembly. Monarch Industries, after receiv- ing a solid model of the weldment, created an initial cast design that ad- dressed fi t, form and function within a week. After addressing a few of the customer’s needs, Monarch Industries then simultaneously handled FEA and simulation. “For our FEA, everything came
up the fi rst go-around. T ere were no issues,” said Mark Hildebrand, general manager, Monarch Industries. “In parallel with that, we ran it through Magma simulation, which only re- quired a few iterations to make sure it was moldable and tooling was feasible.” Turnaround time for an initial
design can be a matter of days. When customers see a feasible design that reduces costs, they can’t help but be interested. “We took a quick look at it and told them our initial design would cost them X, and they said, ‘Whoa, we like that,’” Hildebrand said. “Now it’s a matter of fi ne-tuning.” Monarch Industries, by reducing the demands on the customer, hopes to ease the conversion of various parts to castings. Educating the customer on casting-specifi c considerations, such as tolerances, can remove poten- tial roadblocks in the later stages of collaboration. “Instead of waiting on the custom-
er’s engineer, you can present ideas,” Hildebrand said. “We take a lot of the work away from them. We want to re- move the hang-up from the customer’s engineering department.” T e casting conversion featured a single core in green sand. T e new design features windows that act as core prints. Legacy design elements like drilled holes and bosses were removed to simplify the casting’s ap- pearance. With an annual production volume of 2,000 pieces, the D64-45-12 duc- tile iron casting mea- sures 22 x 12 x 10 in. and weighs 55 lbs. (25 kg). T e customer
reduced costs by 25%, improved strength, freed up plant capacity in both the welding and fabrication de- partments, improved alignment in the holes and, with tighter hole-to-hole tolerances, eliminated issues related to warpage and assembly.
The castings are primary mounting structures on Wil-Rich’s SoilPro 513, a double disc ripper tillage unit. 50 | MODERN CASTING October 2014
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