Converting fabrications to one-piece austempered ductile iron castings offers significant advantages, allowing our customers to:
- Increase product performance (strength, wear resistance, toughness)
- Reduce number of components
- Reduce weight
- Reduce total cost
- Save internal engineering time
Steps in the conversion service
- Determine customer goals and priorities
- Create casting concept
- Collaborate with customer on design
- A final concept is presented
- Review prototype or production foundry source options with customer
- Austempering of samples or production components.
Example Conversion
This two-piece, 42-component tedder hinge was converted into a one-piece austempered ductile iron casting.
A single, machined casting replaced all required components for both hinges.
The New Design Resulted in:
- 95% reduction in inventory
- 82% reduction in assembly time
- 64% reduction in cost