Industrial Machinery
Low-Pressure Casting Machine Rebuild & Modernization
Mechanical, hydraulic, cooling and controls rebuild brought 26 worn low-pressure casting machines back better than new.
CLIENT
INDUSTRY
SOLUTION
DURATION
The Challenge
The customer’s low-pressure casting machines were worn out, and replacing them would have meant a major reinvestment. Rebuilding was the better path, but it meant locating and procuring hard-to-source parts, matching the OEM’s original design intent and countermeasuring the problems the machines had developed in service, so the rebuilt equipment would perform as a next-generation solution rather than a patched one.
Key Requirements
- Rebuild to OEM design intent
- Locate and procure hard-to-source parts
- Countermeasure known failure points
- Every cooling circuit: min. 10 LPM at 0.6 MPa
- Service hydraulics and split front/rear insert motion
- Modernize PLC and HMI to a 25 kA SCCR
- Dry cycle at 35 seconds
The ICR Solution
ICR completed a casting machine rebuild on 26 machines, each one from the base up. Every guide rod and bushing (main, side, front, rear and ejection) was replaced, along with the ejection cylinder, split collar, stainless heat shields, die and base clamps, pushers and the fall-prevention pawl, springs and bushings. The unloader was rebuilt on new trays, LM guide rails and cylinders. The cooling system was flushed, leaks and faulty valves fixed, check valves added at the die entrance and every circuit flow-tested to 10 LPM at 0.6 MPa, with flow meters verified to ±0.5 LPM and all eight thermocouples replaced. A new hydraulic manifold split front and rear insert motion. Controls moved to a current-generation PLC and HMI with new master valves and a 25 kA SCCR, programmed to match the plant’s newest machines.
Equipment & Technology
- Current-generation PLC and touchscreen HMI
- New pneumatic master valves
- Hydraulic manifold, pressure-reducing valves and 16 MPa gauges
- Precision guide rods and bushings (main, side, front, rear, ejection)
- Replacement ejection cylinder and stainless heat shields
- LM guide rails and new cylinders for the unloader
- Cooling check valves, flow controls and 8 thermocouples
- Touch-start operator buttons
- 25 kA SCCR panel hardware
Scope of Work
- Machine Assessment
- Parts Sourcing and Procurement
- Mechanical Rebuild
- Hydraulic Service
- Cooling System Overhaul
- Controls Modernization
- PLC/HMI Programming
- Testing and Commissioning
Results
Rebuilding 26 machines saved the customer more than $1 million compared with buying new equipment, and the machines returned to production with known failure points countermeasured rather than simply replaced. Every cooling circuit was verified to spec, the hydraulics run leak-free, and the modernized controls match the plant’s newest machines, giving maintenance one standard to support and machines ready for 24/7 high-volume production.