Vulcan Engineering Co - The World Leader in Lost Foam Technology

DECEMBER 2008

Vulcan Fluid Bed Sand Cooler/Classifier - The Vulcan Engineering Co cooler/classifier offers a unique maintenance friendly design that allows quick exchange of bundles even on a partial down shift. Optional inlet vibratory screens are available to add one more level of screening for removal of unwanted debris from the sand stream. The forced air cooling system also provides an excellent method for the removal of unwanted fines from the sand stream. (Excess fines will absorb binder and directly reduce mold strength.)

The non-linear path of the sand and the multiple-stage weir layout ensures efficient heat transfer from the sand to the water through heavy-duty finned tubes. This design provides a maximum of sand cooling in a minimum of floor space, low-maintenance operation and high reliability.

The plenum-plate fluidization method maintains a constantly flowing bed of sand, thus providing ample retention time for cooling as well as protecting the finned tubes from the abrasive characteristics of the sand. Features are as follows:

Designed to fluidize, cool and transport various types of foundry sand
Interchangeable heat exchanger cooling element assemblies designed for easy removal and replacement, if required
Multiple stage, centrifugal type, direct drive fluidization blower complete with NEMA T-frame motor and inlet silencer. This type blower requires less maintenance and is more tolerant of contaminants than positive displacement type blowers used by competitive products.
Fluidization air ductwork and air flow adjustment valves to allow blower to be positioned within a reasonable distance of the sand cooler
Thermometers for sensing sand and water inlet and outlet temperatures
Fluidization and exhaust air pressure switches

Advantages of the Sand Cooler Design:

Finned tube heat transfer elements greatly increase the heat transfer surface area thus reducing the size of the fluidized bed requiring less fluidization air and consequently reduces power consumption.
Larger tube diameter and wall thickness (1-1/2” schedule 40) greatly increases strength and serve to further protect tubes from sand abrasion.
Thermal expansion of the cooling elements is accommodated by allowing entire cooling element to expand into the non-fluidized sand area inside the cooler.
Finned tubes are assembled into cooling elements by welding at both ends. There are no 0-rings subject to damage from high sand inlet temperatures. The gasket at each end of each cooling element is not exposed to actively fluidized hot sand.
Easy-open inspection doors allow unobstructed view of sand cooler interior for initial adjustment and periodic inspection.
Each cooling element has a dry removal weight of less than 2,000 lb and is approximately 62” long. This allows for much easier and quicker removal and maintenance of the cooling elements as compared to competitive designs.
Smaller overall footprint that competitive designs due to the unique cascading design.

The Non-linear path of the sand ensures efficient heat transfer. The plenum-plate fluidization provides ample retention for cooling as well as protecting the finned tubes from the abrasive characteristics of the sand.

DECEMBER 2008

Heavy Robotic Grinding Cell - Recently, a manufacturer of heavy steel forgings (up to 3,000 lbs. and beyond) sought out Vulcan Engineering Co. to help tackle a portion of the heavy grinding being performed in their finishing department. Vulcan developed a robotic grinding cell to suit the task, using their design/build capabilities and a foundry-duty robot along with measurement and software technologies to handle the dimensional variations inherent in the customer’s process. Key features of the cell are:

Heavy-duty load/unload turntable to introduce part with minimal interruption of operation
Servo-driven 2-axis part manipulator on each side of turntable
Foundry Duty ABB IRB 7600 Robot
Hydraulic 100hp grinder with manual quick-change of resin bonded wheels
Laser measurement for part calibration
Wheel measurement and dressing system
Vulcan TruPath 3D software for robot path tuning

The Challenge Grinding of large and/or heavy parts has long been a formidable task in the metalcasting and forging industries. Just moving these parts—many weighing thousands of pounds—between processes or manipulating them for a manual grinder is a challenge in itself. Grinding such parts typically requires the removal of large quantities of metal and, due to manual constraints, the horsepower of the grinding tool is often limited to what an operator can readily handle. Combine difficult handling with severe power and pressure limitations, and the result is an inefficient, labor-intensive, time-intensive operation…a situation all too familiar to manufacturers of heavy castings or forgings. That alone is enough of a problem, but let’s not forget the significant part-to-part and run-to-run dimensional variations inherent in most molding operations for large parts, along with increasingly stringent customer standards for appearance and consistency of the product. The challenge: Transform this inefficient and ergonomically undesirable scenario into a lean, efficient, consistent process.

Robotic Grinding to the Rescue - For the purposes of this article, we shall examine a robotic cell designed to grind flash from large steel forgings. The extremely heavy flash (at times over an inch thick) and the material properties of this application dictate a high-powered hydraulic grinder and resin bonded abrasive wheels. However, with other materials and processes, electric grinders and superabrasive wheels may be used.

Today’s modern robots, with their high payload capacity and consistent performance under load, are capable of carrying very powerful tools. No longer, then, is the process limited to low-power man-operated tools. In our example, we use a hydraulic grinder powered by a remote-mounted hydrostatic unit with a 100 HP (73kW) motor. The 6-axis, foundry-duty robot used—a beast with 400kg capacity—is amply strong to apply the pressure needed to fully utilize the grinder horsepower as well as the abrasive itself. Meanwhile, a non-contact sensor periodically measures grinding wheel diameter so the system can automatically compensate for wheel wear. Thus, the robotic system can accurately remove material at a rate many times greater than a human. And since such heavy material removal translates into relatively frequent grinding wheel changes, the grinder is outfitted with a specially designed spindle/arbor interface to enable an operator to quickly replace a spent grinding wheel with a fresh one.

For part handling, the system uses a specially designed, multi-axis positioner that serves as both a means to load/unload the cell and to manipulate the part in front of the robot. In addition to the main turntable axis used to introduce the part into the cell, each side of the positioner features a horizontal rotation axis, a hydraulic clamping mechanism and a servo-driven rotation axis for infinite part positioning. The servo axis carries the fixture mount, and is controlled as a seventh axis of the robot so that it can be fully coordinated with the motion of the robot. A universal set of cones holds and clamps all of the cylindrically shaped parts, avoiding tooling cost for a large portion of the product range. Custom-designed fixtures are easily interchanged to support other part shapes. Thus, a part is easily loaded/unload by an operator with an overhead crane outside the cell while the robot precisely controls the position of the part inside the cell.

To address dimensional and positional variation of the parts, the system utilizes a laser sensor to automatically calibrate the robot’s grinding paths based on the actual part in the cell. The sensor is used with the robot and servo axis in search mode to find and measure the split line of the forging, then to gather data points in other critical areas. This routine ensures that the robot grinds relative to the actual part rather than a theoretical set of coordinates. To complement the calibration system, the operator can also use Vulcan’s TruPath 3D software to fine-adjust robot paths right on the HMI touch-screen. Thus, the system can consistently process parts within prescribed tolerances regardless of normal part variations.

Overall, the robotic grinding system allows far greater material removal rates than manual processing while eliminating much of the handling and work-in-process typically associated with unwieldy parts. And with integrated intelligence calibrating to each part, consistent results are readily achievable even with the dimensional variation inherent in forging or sand casting processes. At the end of the day, overall productivity and efficiency are typically increased many times over. Hazardous manual grinding and those all-too-familiar bottlenecks are in the past, making for a leaner and more competitive enterprise.

DECEMBER 2008

FOX Air Float Cut-Off Machines - The FOX air float cut-off machine is ideal for gate and riser removal on small to medium size castings or castings on runner bars or trees. The unit is excellent for small to medium production runs since fixtures are very easy to change and generally no other settings are required. It is ideal for castings that are too heavy for operator handling as the air float feature makes moving several hundred pounds almost effortless. Once the casting is fixtured cutting can take place anywhere around the periphery since the floating gondola allows for fast, easy positioning and repositioning of heavy casting trees or individual parts. The abrasive cutting is rapid using the hydraulic down pressure system. If the gate or riser is on a flat surface, additional grinding may be eliminated or greatly reduced.

The Fox Air Float Cut-Off machine incorporates a hydraulic down pressure system and air floatation table with appropriate hydraulics and controls. The unit incorporates a vacuum hold-down system for the tooling gondola so the gondola is secure during cutting. The casting gondola is designed to accommodate interchangeable tooling to secure the castings, increasing the flexibility of the system as a whole. A low power laser is mounted to the machine providing a vivid red line where the edge of the cut-off wheel will descend aiding in the alignment process. The unit is simple to use:

Operator installs the proper fixture in the gondola
Operator secures the casting in the fixture
Air flotation feature is activated by depressing a foot pedal and applying air to the gondola pads
Gondola is effortlessly moved until the desired gate is under the saw and aligned with the laser
Foot pedal is released applying vacuum to the gondola
Saw is pulled down manually until it just makes contact with the casting
As soon as a small “scoring” cut is made, a push button in the end of the handle bars is depressed applying the down pressure to the cut
Saw is forced down through the material
When the sawing is completed, the push button is released and the saw raised
Casting can be quickly repositioned or moved to the edge of the table and removed from the fixture

General specifications include 40 horsepower motor, standard 24” wheel operating at 14,200 SFPM and Blanchard ground table. All electricals, hydraulics and pneumatics are included and installed so the machine is ready to run when received.

DECEMBER 2008

Vulcan Introduces Latest Automatic Green Sand Mold Handler - Vulcan Engineering Co. has been manufacturing automatic mold handling equipment for flaskless molds since 1984. There are more than 150 units that have been sold worldwide. Most of these initial units were designed for gray iron castings requiring less cooling time as compared to ductile iron and other metals being poured today.

Numerous issues now, more than ever, must be considered in the design of automatic mold handlers. The primary ones are:

Increased molding machine speeds
The demand for pouring other metals and alloys
Increased in-mold cooling times required to improve casting machineability
Increased demands on casting Quality from customers
Provide lower operating and maintenance cost equipment
Cleanliness of the workplace

Vulcan Engineering Co. recently delivered one of their new Truflo 3H Automatic Mold Handlers. This is a horizontal indexing line with 56 mold cars and 3 molds per car.

This fully automatic molding line is designed to operate at the customer’s desired molding rate and has been integrated with the new molding machine, the existing sand handling and molten metal delivery systems. The cooling time required for the various metals poured was designed into the new mold handling system as well as other features to improve casting quality and foundry cleanliness.

Hydraulic proportional valving or electronic drives control all mold movements. This enables the molds to be handled very gently to eliminate parting line shift and molten metal sloshing while attaining the desired speed of the system. The hydraulic valve blocks and hard piping to the mechanical devices are pre-piped at the Vulcan factory for ease of on-site installation and startup.

Vulcan’s simple but rugged equipment design assures high uptime at low operating cost. High efficiency motors, sealed for life bearings and ease of maintenance contribute to making this equipment very efficient and productive for it’s owner.

Another example of Vulcan’s striving to lower operating cost and have high uptime is the use of hardened rail for the mold cars. Vulcan’s mold cars ride on hardened rail and not inverted angle that wears out in a matter of months. Vulcan’s rail is warranted for a period of two years against excessive wear. The mold cars that ride on these rails are provided with hardened flanged wheels equipped with sealed for life bearings.

Cleanliness is an issue that all foundries pay more attention to than in years past. Vulcan’s mold cars are sized to retain a large part of the sand that crumbles as the mold cools. This sand is then wiped off the cars as the mold is discharged onto the mold dump conveyor.

Additionally, with Vulcan’s, patent pending, new design end transfer devices, spill sand that accumulates at the end transfers is contained and swept to a single collection point during the normal operation of the molding line. This eliminates stopping the line or the end of shift cleaning experienced with an end transfer unit supplied by others.

An optional mold weight and jacket cleaner unit was incorporated into the mold handler. During the normal molding cycle this unit wipes the inside walls of the jackets clean and scrubs the bottom of the weight to remove sand sticking in these areas. The Cleaner can be run in “automatic” or switched off if cleaning is not desired.

All of this is for naught without an operator that is equipped with a “Human Machine Interface” and controls package that make running this equipment simple and helpful for the operator. The HMI touch screen provides the operator full visibility of the molding line and hydraulic system with system and component diagnostics for quick solution of any line stoppage.

DECEMBER 2008

MegaBot Line Reigns as the World's Largest Articulated Robots - Vulcan Engineering has responded to industry demands for larger capacity and longer reach robots. Its MegaBot line of robots is designed with payload and reach capabilities that rank them as the world’s largest. With both 5 and 6 axis versions, these robots provide the valuable flexibility that has allowed robotics to feed the manufacturing community’s productivity.

The MegaBot line consists of both servo-driven electric models as well as hydraulically-driven models. Both designs maintain the articulated mechanical configuration that is typical among industrial robots. The all electric five axis 3350 series offers models with capacities up to 1670 kg (3675 lbs) and reaches out to 4.3 meters (14 feet). The six axis 3360 series offers greater reaches with slightly less payload capacity, as its variants offer up to 4.7 meters (15.5 feet) of reach and 1285 kg (2825 lbs) payloads. For the ultra high payload and reach requirements, Vulcan looks to its hydraulically-powered robot. Among the many models available, there is the 2860R, whose payload is a staggering 3175 kg (7000 lbs) and reach is 6.5 meters (21.5 feet). “That combination of reach and payload is unheard of in the industrial robot community.” says David Sutherland, Vulcan’s sales manager for the MegaBot line. “Bigger is better, but only if you offer flexibility along with it, and that’s what we’ve done with this line of robots.”

As if long reach and great strength weren’t enough, the MegaBot was born of the metalcasting industry, and thus is designed to withstand all but the harshest of environments. “Our business has concentrated in the foundry industry for over 30 years. We demand a lot from our equipment as it has to endure some of the worst conditions including high heat, molten metal, metallic dust and other abrasive elements which can destroy all but the most robust machines, especially at high duty cycles. The MegaBot was designed with this in mind. It’s comfortable in hostile environments.” With features such as IP67 rated motors and sealed components, the MegaBot is well-shielded from the abusive environments commonly found in many manufacturing plants. Designed mainly as a material handling robot, the MegaBot will see applications in the automotive, construction material, bottling/packaging, and truck industries to name but a few. “That’s one of the great things about robots,” says Sutherland, “Their amazing flexibility leaves only our imagination to constrain what they can do.” The MegaBot will certainly give manufacturers something to think about.

DECEMBER 2008

Large Conveyor System for Metal Recycling Industry - During 2007, a recycling company approached Vulcan Engineering Co. to design and manufacture a conveyor system for low temperature metal transportation.

Our challenge was as follows:

Design and manufacture a conveyor system with a total load of 364 tons
Conveyor to be designed to work around a rotating furnace
Conveyor also designed to run in reverse

The system was designed to accept metal from a rotary furnace into molds, which allowed it to cool while traveling. Once cooled, molds would be taken off of the conveyor so metal could be extracted at the same time that empty molds were to be placed on conveyor system. The total size of the line, which incidentally is a loop, is a length of 175 feet by a width of 37 feet.

The conveyor is specifically designed for a continuous motion based on a total of 56 gondolas linked together and supported by wheels, all of which run on rails around the plant floor. The drive mechanism is by four large hydraulic cylinders, which allow a mechanism to slide into machined notches on either side of the conveyor. The cylinders, once engaged, proceed to index the conveyor by 6.5 feet then unlock, retract ready for the next stroke.

Once the conveyor has stopped, additional clamps come into play, which avoid any conveyor movement until the latches are in place once more, ready for the next stroke of the conveyor indexing. Latches prevent overstroke / understroke and ensure positive location for the entire line.

The conveyor has an additional design feature that allows it to travel in reverse. This allows any excessive travel to be adjusted by the conveyor being moved in a reverse direction. By employing a continuous reverse motion, the conveyor can be positioned to accept pouring from virtually any location.

DECEMBER 2008

Shell Management Systems Increase Foundry Production Control - Vulcan Engineering has been implementing shell management systems for investment casting foundries as well as traditional sand-mold facilities for several years. This technology has allowed foundries to track products through the different processes associated with each product through the use of radio frequency identification tags.

Radio frequency identification technology consists of the following components: antenna or reader, transceiver (with decoder), and transponder (RF tag) electronically programmed with information unique to the product.

The RF tag process begins when the antenna sends a radio signal to activate the tag, and then reads or writes data to it. The antenna controls the system’s information gathering and dissemination. It can be set to a consistent-read setting or can be triggered by a sensor device within the tag. When a tag passes through the read area, the antenna detects the activation signal. The antenna deciphers the information on the tag and passes it to the host computer for processing.

RF Tags come in several different types. Two of the most widely used types are passive and active tags. Passive tags require no internal power source. These tags are only active when an RF Tag Reader is nearby to power the tag via wireless illumination, while active tags require a small battery for its power source. The battery power of an active tag typically gives it a longer read range. Battery powered tags take up a larger footprint than passive tags, have a greater cost and a shorter operational life. Passive tags on the other hand are less expensive, much lighter and have an unlimited lifetime. Passive tags have shorter read ranges and usually require a higher-powered reader. One of the main advantages for using RFID technology in foundries is that they can read through a wide variety of substances, such as water, paint, dust, etc. This is especially useful in places where barcodes or other read/write technologies are useless.

To increase productivity and enhance product tracking, the investment casting industry began using RFID technology. A good example of this type of system can be seen at Doncasters-Southern Tool in Anniston, Alabama.

Doncasters-Southern Tool manufactures a variety of castings. This particular project is designed to assist in tracking and development of casting for the Aerospace industry. The system guides and tracks the part in the manufacturing process from wax shell until they are ready to be placed into the autoclave.

The shell management system software features a database structure that allows Doncasters to enter and store a wide range of information. Doncasters uses RF tags to store the following types of information:

Part description/name
Date created
Number of shell coats to be applied
Robot recipe for that particular shell
Minimum dry time per shell coat
Temperature of parts during the drying process

From these criteria and others not mentioned, Doncasters will be able to track certain parts through the manufacturing process, as well as make changes to the process as needed, to develop the best shells possible.

The Nobake Sand Foundry is another area where Vulcan has seen this type of RFID technology. Andritz Group in Muncy, PA uses this type of technology to make, track and identify molds going through the nobake process.

Andritz Group uses a barcode to collect pattern numbers at the start of their production run. A database computer system is used to write a recipe which contains different types of information such as: Mold weight, pour temperature, sprue location, vent option, vent depth compaction time, box type, core type, sleeve type, etc. RF tags are mounted at each of the stations on the carousel. Vulcan used an RF writer mounted at the load/unload station to write this recipe information to the RF tags as the part travels from one station to the next. RF tag readers mounted at each station read the information from the tag and instruct the device at that particular station what process to follow. Example: The reader communicates to the compaction table the time required for that particular pattern.

Once the pattern is complete, the tag is read and the information about the pattern is sent to a mold marking system. A printer mounted at the end of the line inscribes typewritten data and a barcode on the side of the mold. This information usually includes the pattern number, pattern weight, temperature, alloy type and pouring line designation. A reader at the end of the system then reads the barcode on the pattern to relay the necessary information to the customer’s conveyor system to transport the mold to the correct molding line. By using this technology Andritz is able to track and change their manufacturing process to develop the best product possible.

In summary, radio frequency identification technology can increase productivity and enhance product tracing for many different kinds of foundries, making any of the desired processes more user friendly. The key to successfully utilizing RFID technology is to work with a solution provider, which understands the business and has extensive experience in RFID technology.

OCTOBER 2008

Vulcan Engineering Co., Helena, Alabama has reached an agreement for the transfer of Richards Engineering Inc., Leicester, England to Omega Foundry Equipment, Peterborough, England. The agreement will transfer the ownership and manufacturing of Richards’s products, including thermal reclamation systems, to Omega.

Vulcan will retain access to the Richards product lines through an OEM agreement with Omega. All existing Vulcan Engineering, Co. customers of reclamation equipment will continue to receive fully backed parts and service support.

The sale of Richards is in line with Vulcan’s strategic plan to focus globally on the core business of General Foundry Projects along with specific equipment lines focused on Casting Handling, Metal Finishing, Robotics, Automation and Lost Foam. Vulcan Engineering Co., through its Vulcan Europe Inc. subsidiary, will maintain production, sales and service of Vulcan products in Leicester, England to serve and support the European market.

JULY 2006

Weir Warman of the United Kingdom has recently purchased a Lost Foam Pro-500 Bead Pre-Expander from Vulcan Engineering Co., Helena, Alabama.

JULY 2006

Vulcan Engineering Co., a leading supplier of automation to the investment casting industry, announces it has received an order for a TruGlu Wax Assembly Machine from Stryker Orthopaedics, Mahwah, New Jersey. The new wax assembly machine will automatically assemble wax patterns onto trees. This machine was chosen for its great flexibility and ease of programming, and it’s ability to use existing trees and parts without modification. Using a laser to measure the trees, the robot program is automatically adjusted to match the variation of the tree so that parts are placed in the proper position. The machine also features a vision system that locates the wax parts on the infeed conveyor, feeds this information to the robot, which reorients the gripper to pick up the part. This feature eliminates the need for part dependant fixtures and setup time for each part. Quick-change tooling is standard on each machine which makes job changeover time less than one minute. The parts are dipped in sticky wax and placed on the tree. Once assembly is complete, the robot seals the joints with a torch. The Stryker machine will begin operating during the 4th quarter 2006.

JULY 2006

PSA Peugeot Citroën of Charleville, France has placed an order for a 30 flask per hour Lost Foam Casting Line from Vulcan Engineering Co. of Helena, Alabama. The line will mark the third lost foam system purchased by PSA Peugeot Citroën.