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There are many factors that go into being able to produce top-quality, reliable, cost-effective parts, but none are more important than investment casting experience. PPCP has a long and rich heritage of more than 75 years in the investment casting industry. Four...

An important factor in ensuring high-quality, on-spec parts is investment casting testing. There are a variety of testing procedures to evaluate different aspects and characteristics of a casting. PPCP utilizes more than a dozen tests ranging from Spectrographic...

When steel with specialized properties is needed, low-alloy steel investment castings may be the best production option. Low-alloy steel is made by enhancing the steel with precise amounts of various ingredients, such as molybdenum for strength, silicon and manganese...

Stainless steel investment castings offer manufacturers multiple high-value benefits. It is often ideal for specialized applications requiring robust corrosion-resistant characteristics, which enable it to retain its integrity in even the harshest conditions....

In investment casting, the process of turning slurry-covered wax patterns into hardened molds is called investment casting firing. The patterns are placed in high-temperature ovens that heat to approximately 1,800º F. This is hot enough to solidify and harden the...

Some people are unfamiliar with the term “investment cast sprue,” but it is a very important part of the precision casting process. A sprue is a hollow structure that allows multiple parts to be cast at one time. It connects two to several individual wax patterns,...

Investment casting tooling is an extremely important part of the production process. It is referring to the design and production of the metal form that is used to inject the wax patterns of the desired parts. These precise, high-quality tools can be used for a very...

When quality and precision are of the highest priorities, manufacturers should consider utilizing investment casting photomicrographic analysis. This testing and evaluation process is used to identify an array of casting characteristics, including defects,...

Manufacturers who must have parts that reliably meet specifications often opt for investment casting consistency. Investment casting’s near-net-shape process produces part after part and run after run that are nearly identical. The quality and precision of the tooling...

For many applications, measuring the surface roughness of investment castings is a critical success factor. Surface roughness can be measured utilizing the Ra – Roughness Average – or the RMS – Root Mean Square. Under high magnification, microscopic peaks and valleys...

If you are designing a new part or are reviewing your current production process, you should consider adding PPCP to your team for project planning with investment casting. Bringing in PPCP’s seasoned, expert foundry professionals early in the process adds an...

Utilizing investment casting for food and beverages is an excellent choice because of its many benefits and advantages. The process is ideal for producing the stainless-steel parts that are needed in the food industry for sanitation and reliability. The range of...

For many manufacturers, utilizing investment casting with aluminum alloys offers significant benefits over other metals. One of the biggest potential benefits is that aluminum is about one-third the weight of steel. It is also completely impermeable to odor and ...

Centrifugal and investment casting are two different processes utilized for making near-net-shape, high-quality components. The key difference is that investment casting relies on gravity to flow the molten alloy throughout the mold, while centrifugal casting employs...

When choosing a process for producing your parts, keep in mind that the casting size matters; particularly die casting. Die casting certainly has some features that could be appealing for certain applications, however, it is typically more limited by the casting size...

Specialized alloys offer invaluable benefits in many cases, but it is important to choose your foundry carefully for aluminum castings. That is because utilizing aluminum requires extensive expertise, capabilities and experience. Consider the following:   Molten...

A frequently asked question is what is the tooling cost for investment casting? There is no question that investment casting requires a significant tooling cost at startup. But that cost brings benefits that more than compensate for the initial outlay of capital. For...