Steel Melting Process
After the foundry produces and prepares the mold for pouring, it is time to melt metal and pour the casting. Keep in mind that sand casting is the ideal solution for producing low volumes at a low tooling cost, which is one or our primary specialties.
Our facility utilizes three electric arc melting furnaces rated at 10 tons each for the steel production process. The furnaces are basic lined and have the capability of melting up to 40,000 gross tons per year. We can melt and pour out of two furnaces in to one mold, up to 42,000 pounds.
Melting & Pouring is the one process everyone wants to see on a plant tour. And why wouldn’t they! Between the noise from the arc to the glowing light from a full ladle, there is plenty of excitement watching the steel melting process.
Taking scrap steel, foundry returns, and then alloying the chemical elements to make high quality, clean steel is our specialty. We clearly define the process, but you should understand that there is an art to steel melting. Adjustments must be made throughout the procedure as the materials melt and slag forms, such as knowing when to make additions, checking the chemistry, pulling the slag, and how much super heat to add so the temperature comes out correct in the ladle.
Our experienced melting crew fine tunes the steel melting process per heat to ensure the end product going into the mold and to your facility is only the highest quality. We melt and pour two types of steel: Carbon/Low alloy and Manganese steel.
We keep these process streams separate but melt and pour them at the same time. Pouring happens through bottom pour ladles, with metal exiting the ladle at over 200/lbs. per second at 10+ MPH! Our foundry engineers harness this velocity through controlled gating systems, calculated and verified using Magmasoft simulations.
Our Metallurgical Testing
Our metals lab will certify each heat of metal with our spectrometer, which measures 22 different elements as well as our gas analyzer for monitoring Nitrogen levels. This is very important to know for the end product to meet specifications and perform the way you expect.
Additionally, we can perform tensile, Charpy, metallography and Brinell tests to ensure each heat is made to the required standards. If needed, we can destructively test castings for mechanical properties, using EDM to extract samples from heavy casting sections.
And if we don’t have the capability, or you require 3rd party inspection, we work with several outside testing laboratories to complete the necessary evaluations.
When completed, you get EXACTLY what you need!
Contact Us
Contact our experts today and learn how working with a premier steel casting foundry will make your life easier and save you time and money!