“You can clearly see the improvement in our products”
Jiangsu Weide switches from old horizontal flask lines to DISA matchplate molding to triple capacity, halve labor costs and boost casting quality
For more than two decades, Jiangsu Weide Sports Equipment Co., Ltd (“Weide”) has been supplying the health and fitness industry with heavy-duty gym equipment such as dumbbells and kettlebells. Demand for its products continued to climb, but its production capacity couldn’t keep up.
“We strive for excellence and cost-effectiveness,” says Chen Dejun, General Manager of Jiangsu Weide. “We used to produce on old horizontal molding lines but production speed barely reached 80 molds per hour. We needed to upgrade our equipment.”
200% extra capacity and higher quality — with fewer operators
The Weide team decided to move from horizontal to matchplate molding technology, choosing a DISA line for a step change in speed. Weide’s new DISA MATCH fits its needs perfectly, able to run at speeds up to 150 uncored molds per hour with fast pattern changes. Since Weide started using its DISA MATCH line, it has tripled its production capacity. The bottleneck caused by the old horizontal flask line has disappeared and iron utilization has increased significantly.
“Our operating status and cycle time has improved by at least 150%,” says Mr Chen. “The operating speed reaches approximately 120–130 molds per hour and we never have to wait for the molding line. In fact, our MATCH molds are now waiting for iron pouring.”
The DISA MATCH’s rigid and precisely-controlled green-sand matchplate system also delivers consistently excellent casting quality. This has completely resolved Weide’s previous surface quality issues that used to require painstaking manual finishing. With casting quality right after shake-out, only half the number of people are required on the line.
High quality molding on DISA wins new business
“The mold is now tightly and firmly pressed during molding, and the casting surface is less prone to flash and burrs,” says Mr Chen. “You can clearly see the improvement in our products. The results are highly visible and extremely satisfactory.”
The DISA MATCH 24/28’s pattern plate size was just right for Weide’s castings and its molding output now easily exploits the available pouring capacity. DISA’s reputation for quality and reliability may also help the foundry win new business.
“We are planning to start supplying the automotive industry where some of the customers specifically request DISA molding lines,” says Mr Chen. “No DISA line—no deal!”
Modern equipment for modern foundries
As well as reducing labor costs through automation and high casting quality, DISA MATCH features like the in-chamber parting spray and fully-enclosed operation minimize spilled sand, dust and noise. That creates safer, quieter working conditions and, along with easily accessible internal components and a simple, robust design, means fewer part replacements and lower maintenance downtime.
“Nowadays, people's living conditions are getting better and better,” says Mr Chen. “They are no longer willing to take on hard, tiring and dirty jobs. We must prioritize a people-oriented future and build the foundry workplace to match.”
“Without investment in modern equipment, there is no future,” concludes Mr Chen. “We seized this opportunity to strengthen ourselves and we can meet future challenges through our advanced equipment. Now, our future looks bright.”
DISA’s portfolio of high-quality molding lines is designed to offer foundries of all shapes and sizes a path to ever more advanced molding technology. Exceptional uptime, high speeds and long equipment lives ensure fast paybacks and a low total cost of ownership, quickly generating the extra cash needed to fund the next technology investment.
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