A rough aluminum casting shows some shiny machined surfaces as well as metal and red plastic inserts and attachments

Secondary Processing

After a casting is done, cleaned, heat treated and tested, there may be secondary processing needed to finish it for its application. Read about machining, assembling, and finishes that happen in the foundry or off-site to finalize the casting for use.

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Resin-coated sand cores with five columns on a formed handle and base are ready for iron casting.

Core-making in the Foundry

How does a foundry create chambers inside the body of a metal casting? Cores are the answer: densely packed sand that stays solid until shakeout. Great design is necessary to float the cores through the center of the mold. Learn more about core-making in the foundry.

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A pile of different sized green and yellow olivine crystals sits on a plain background

Foundry Sand

Molding sand is at the heart of the sand casting process. It must hold a shape well and capture the fine details of a casting, yet be permeable enough to allow gases to escape. Under the strain of having the molding pattern removed from it, or while it is filled, it cannot crumble or sink on itself. When it is turned upside down it must not lose its form: the parts of a mold have to stay true while clamped together.

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A man dressed in a silver protective suit pours red-hot metal into a mold

Sand Casting Your Product

Sand casting is the most common form of casting for ferrous metals (all metals that contain iron), with more than 70% of worldwide production of ferrous castings being made in foundry sand. Watch this basic process turn molten metals into everyday objects.

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A mold cavity for a complex casting is pressed into the grey color sand in the swing of a vertical mold

11 Metal Casting Methods

Metal casting is the process of pouring molten metal into a shaped space so that it will cool and harden in that form. For many items, this process can be less expensive than machining the part out of a piece of solid metal. Even though the idea behind it seems singular and simple, there are many ways foundries cast objects. How they make a metal casting mold will depend on the metals used, the size of the run, and the shape, symmetry, and complexity of the casting.

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Investment casting drawing with ruler and pencil lying on top

Rapid Prototyping and the Foundry

A designer, entrepreneur, or inventor gets an idea and begins the process to bring it to life. At first the idea is made of sketches and plans, research and design, but the designer’s focus is toward creating a physical object. There is no replacement for holding a mockup or prototype and seeing a vision come to life. Prototyping allows the designer to have confidence in their idea, work out production flaws, and woo investors or clients.

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