(Premium Grade) Investment Casting

Capabilities

The premium grade casting (also known as the lost wax casting process) allows the production of components with high accuracy, repeatability, versatility and cast integrity in a wide variety of metals and high-performance alloys.

Investment casting allows the production of components with high accuracy, repeatability, versatility and cast integrity in a wide variety of metals and high-performance alloys.

It can produce complicated shapes that would be difficult or impossible to produce using other methods and often requires little surface finishing and only minor machining.

One of the oldest casting processes dating back nearly 5,000 years to the production of ornaments, statues and jewellery using natural beeswax, nowadays investment casting is used in many commercial and industrial applications that require complex metal parts.

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Process

Investment casting (or lost wax) process is labour intensive and requires extensive technical knowledge and experience at each stage of the process to ensure the quality and excellent integrity of the parts.

We always encourage potential customers to visit our UK investment casting foundry. We provide detailed tours which involve all the stages of investment casting process as explained above. Please contact us if you would like to arrange a visit or discuss the process in more detail.

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An aluminium tool is cut directly from the 3D CAD data

Wax replicas are produced from the tooling

Waxes assembled onto runner system – “tree”

A ceramic shell is built around the assembly using a dipping and drying process (investment)

The shell is dewaxed with high pressure steam

The shell is fired in an oven

The molten metal is poured into the shell

Ceramic is broken off once the metal has cooled

Parts are cut off the “tree”

Ingate (feed positions) are ground off

Finishing and machining if required

Necessary inspection

Advantages

High accuracy and integrity: production of near net shapes

Precision: details such as holes, lettering, threads, serrations can be cast

Consistency and repeatability: virtually no tool wear

Wide choice of alloys: ferrous, non-ferrous, exotic incl. materials that are difficult to machine

Material flexibility: multiple metal options from the same tooling

Production flexibility: accommodating both high and low volume

Reduced production costs: minimal material wastage, machining can often be eliminated and labour costs reduced

Reduced assembly work: several parts can be combined into a single casting

Low initial tooling costs

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Materials

The investment casting process can be used with virtually any material from light or strong alloys to exotic and rare materials.

Stainless steels & heat resistant alloys

Carbon steels

Nickel & cobalt alloys

Zinc alloys

More detailed material information and specifications here.

Contact Dean Group for Your Investment Casting Quote

To find out more about our investment casting, or to get a quote for your project, please get in touch with us on 0161 775 1633 or submit your enquiry online.

Accreditations & Memberships