08-07-2014, 10:20 AM
INTRODUCING CASTING SIMULATION IN INDUSTRY THE STEPS TOW RDS SUCCESS
INTRODUCING CASTING SIMULATION IN INDUSTRY THE STEPS TOW RDS SUCCESS.pdf (Size: 68.87 KB / Downloads: 11)
Introduction
The industrial world is moving towards the "digital factory" - a prototype-less automated
production environment based on virtual engineering. In terms of productivity, quality and
innovation, the expected benefits of this transition are spectacular. In this "digital factory",
manufacturers, their suppliers and partners simultaneously work on the same numerical
prototype (see Figure 1), allowing for continuous improvement in design and immediate
decision-making. This "extended enterprise" marks a revolutionary departure from the timeconsuming
and costly trial-and-error processes of physical prototyping. Casting simulation is
one small piece of that new technology. However, the introduction of a casting modeling
package in a foundry is not a simple task and often the result is mitigated by the challenges of
implementation. This paper will try to identify what are the key parameters ensuring success
when introducing a casting simulation software in a foundry and why more than 90% of casting
foundries are still not using simulation
software life cycle
Before considering introducing simulation software in a foundry, it is pertinent to think about
the main ingredients of a software life cycle as indicated in Figure 1. These steps will be
described below.
Development stage
At this stage, software does not exist yet under any form. Software development projects are
usually linked with a team of academic researchers expected to be creative and with a few
selected industrial partners who can be qualified as visionaries. Very often funding of these
projects is partially ensured by governmental institutions. In order to secure the industrial focus
of such projects, commitment from industry is needed along with the personnel from industrial
R&D centers who are normally included in the project team [1]. These R&D centers are usually
centralized units of big companies with employees which have a high degree of education and
with the same approach, language, understanding and mindset as academic researchers.
Software introduction at this level is easy because no discrepancy exits between reality and
expectations.
software capacities
Any software house is in some ways following the steps described above. As industries are
involved during the development and industrialization stages, one could imagine that the
resulting software will match the main needs of the market and as a consequence it should be
easy to sell it to the community. Or even better for a software house, the community is
anxiously expecting such a software.
The reality is different. A recent study [2] shows that less than 5% of castings produced today
have been the subject of a solidification simulation analysis. The reasons for this could be as
follows:
• The conversion of a provided geometry for analysis requires significant engineering time.
• The optimization of the casting process is not automated.
• The cost of software and hardware continues to be a concern for small foundries.
• Surface defects, leaking prediction, casting soundness as indicated by radiography, casting
service performance and many other practical issues are not simulated today.
Therefore, it is important to understand that a foundry buying a software will find a mismatch
between its need and the results that a software can provide. This explains the difficulty in
introducing software in foundries.
Ending casting simulation
When a company stops its modeling activities, the reasons are always to be found in a
mismatch between the resources allocated to casting simulation and the expected results, and
seldom in the intrinsic quality of the software. Specific reasons could be found among the
following:
• The software is implemented in the design department where no foundryman is available to
analyze the simulations and to bring the correct modifications to the casting design.
Possibly also, the software is implemented in the production unit itself where timing
problems do not allow for the use of the software. This means that the introduction of a
software in a company requires the creation of new communication chains in the company
itself.
• The software is not used by the right people and a problem of education and/or training is
not solved in due time.
• The software delivers information on physical entities while the foundryman needs
information on casting soundness and this discrepancy is not accepted and mastered.
conclusion
The computer revolution, which is sweeping the globe, brings inexorable changes to all
companies. Some of these changes are beneficial, some are questionable. It is up to every
company to embrace those changes, which can significantly improve certain aspects of their
business. Casting simulation is one small piece of that new technology which offers the
potential to drastically alter the way in which foundries deal with the design and the production
of cast parts to meet the demands of the global marketplace for quality, delivery and low cost.
When casting simulation is cleverly and timely introduced in a company, when its limitations
are understood and accepted, results can be really astounding on a technical and economical
level. One example of success of the same kind of technology is the CAD: how many
companies would seriously think about stopping CAD activities although tools are also
complex and their introduction in a foundry is never straightforward?