DISACOOL 4300 Article
17/10/2008
The biggest operating cooling drum in Japan
The Hitachi Metals foundry in Mohka, Japan, is poised to start production in April with what must be the largest cooling drum in Japan, the DISACOOL 4300.
Hitachi Metals Ltd., which celebrates its 100th anniversary in 2010, is a development- and quality-driven company with production facilities all over Japan.
In addition to many other products based on proprietary metal technologies, Hitachi Metals is a major supplier of high-strength, ductile cast iron automotive components to the international car industry. These include exhaust manifolds, turbo charger housings, knuckles and crank shafts.
Quality and productivity are critical
As a quality driven company, Hitachi Metals needed a production technology that would ensure stable material-properties as well as good machinability. At the same time, the company sought productivity gains to support its continuing growth in a competitive market.
“We were looking for a high-quality, cost-effective solution for the back end of our moulding line,” says Mr H Kugimiya, Group Leader of Production Engineering at the Hitachi Metals foundry in Mohka. “We need to cool down a large volume of castings and sand, up to 203 tons/h, on a short distance. We also need to do it effectively with a minimum of manpower.”
Gentle and effective
The DISACOOL 4300 cools moulding sand and castings by evaporating residual water in the sand. Water is sprayed into the drum and a counter air flow removes the resulting water vapour to increase the cooling effect down to sand temperatures between 45° and 55°C with a moisture content of under 2%. Castings are tumbled gently with the sand in a smooth process during which sand lumps are broken and the sand is effectively blended prior to screening off.
Unlike traditional cooling processes, DISA cooling technology does not involve grinding media for sand separation. This means that castings integrity is preserved and that the sand is free of metal fragments, thus saving an extra process step by recycling it directly back to the sand plant.
Cost-effective and high capacity
“In addition to the resulting castings quality and increased productivity, our choice of the DISACOOL 4300 was also guided by the promise of lower operation costs, lower noise levels and energy consumption, and not least, short cooling times in relation to our annual cooling requirement of 42,000 tons castings through the DISACOOL,” Mr H Kugimiya explains. “In addition, the DISA control system enables complete monitoring and control to ensure the best possible quality and output.”
Assembled on-site
The DISACOOL 4300 is so huge that transportation from Denmark to Japan in one piece was not feasible.
Mr Shiro Amine, the DISA sales manager responsible for the project, says: “We decided to assemble the entire cooling drum on site at the foundry, where it is due for commissioning in May 2008. This has been an exciting first for DISA and we are looking forward to providing Hitachi Metals with the all-round service and support that is a DISA trademark, not only in Japan, but also in the rest of the world.”