Engineering Commons^™

Automated Casting Cleaning, Chris Anderson

Graduate Research Papers

The dilemma facing all foundries today is finding a cost effective, efficient, and safe manner in which to clean castings. At the same time produce a cleaned casting that meets consistent quality and delivery expectations. Today nearly 90% of all casting produced are cleaned by the use of manual labor via chipping an grinding. This manual method has proved to be very labor intensive, costly, lacking consistent quality, and carry high rates of injuries. The use of automation to clean castings is in its embryo stage in the foundry industry. The use of automation in the foundry industry, products currently …

Riser Design For Green Sand And Ductile Iron Castings, K. Michael Kuebler

Graduate Research Papers

Shrinkage defects in ductile iron riser contacts has long been one of the most frustrating defects to eliminate for the foundry engineer. While process variation can definitively contribute to the occurrence of these defects most can be prevented if the risers are properly designed and/or applied to the castings to be fed. There are several proven methods for the designing risers some of which go back over 40 years ago. There are also new methods available today with the advancements of simulation software. Four of these riser design methods were evaluated for their ability to produce an internally sound casting …

Comparison Study Of Cooling Fins And Chills Effectiveness In Aluminum Sand Mold Casting, Vladimir E. Kouznetsov

Graduate Research Papers

Besides proper design of gating and risering systems, there are several methods used to control and modify solidification behavior of cast alloys. Within these methods, the most widely used are local cooling aids employing cooling fins (thin segments attached to problematic areas of casting) or external chills (metal inserts placed into mold walls to accelerate heat withdrawing from potential hot spot). The later helps to promote directional solidification when traditional methods are not possible to use due to limitations related to the casting design. Despite relatively wide application in aluminum foundries, there are no specific recommendations on cooling aids parameters …

The Type And Nature Of Ergonomic Programs In Iowa Manufacturing, Gary Holland

Graduate Research Papers

The first known study of the effects of poorly designed work conditions were chronicled by B. Ramazzini, around 1700, he wrote: "Manifold is the harvest of diseases reaped by craftsman...As the...cause of assign certain violent and irregular motions and unnatural postures.. by which the natural structure of the living machine is so impaired that serious diseases gradually develop." Because laborers where considered expendable and dismissal was the reward for occupational dysfunction, there was little interest in overcoming these work conditions (Tichauer, 1978).

The term ergonomic is derived from Greek ergon (work) and nomos (laws, literally "the rules of work" (MacLeod, …

A Market Profile Of Epc Foundries In North America, Jennifer D. Ballacchino

Graduate Research Papers

The expendable pattern casting (EPC) process was patented on April 15, 1958 by H. F. Shroyer. Shroyer's casting process required cutting a foam pattern out of a block pf expanded polystyrene and placing the foam pattern in bonded sand before metal pouring. This process became known as the full mold process. Later, in 1962, M.C. Flemmings is credited with using unbonded sand with the foam patterns (Monroe 1992). The use of unbonded sand is the process that we now refer to as expendable pattern casting. The process is a metal casting procedure that uses a polystyrene pattern instead of a …

An Investigation Of Performance Appraisal With Recommendations For White Collar And Blue Collar Workers, Mark W. Alberts

Graduate Research Papers

The accurate evaluation of an employee's performance, whether it be a salary or wage worker, is one of the most challenging problems confronting any organization. According to Lazer (1977), which is still true today, performance appraisal is absolutely necessary if an organization is to prosper in the highly competitive world of modern business.

Regardless of all that has been written about the how and why of performance appraisal, there still seems to be constant problems and areas of clear disagreement. Published writings about performance appraisal cover approximately the past 30 years and deal mostly with private corporations. Before that, performance …

An Assessment Of Just-In-Time Manufacturing, Ronald E. O'Meara

Graduate Research Papers

Manufacturing of materials into useable products has changed dramatically since the Industrial Revolution. The United States dominated the manufacturing arena until the early 190s. After that period, efforts of global competitors in such areas as quality control and productivity, started to surpass the efforts made by the United Stated in these same areas. For the first time, U.S. manufacturers started sensing the pressure of competition. The United Stated is using its competitive advantage over other nations in the manufacturing segment. Part of this loss is a result of the way the U.S. manufacturers are conducting their business. A larger part …

Photo And Magnetic Gated Bi-Directional Counter, Charles Burdette Kraemer

Graduate Research Papers

The purpose of this study is to investigate digital counter circuitry, digital logic, and some special applications of digital display systems. The technical data and information ascertained from the research will be used to design and develop a four-digital counter with photo and magnetic gated inputs.

Electrostatic Fluidized Bed Plastic Powder Coating Process, Richard H. Florer

Graduate Research Papers

The plastics industry is the most rapidly expanding industry in the United Stated today. By 1983, the total weight of plastics produced in one year will exceed that of steel/ Since Industrial Arts is a general education curriculum which supposedly include the study of all significant industrial tools, materials, and processes, they study of the plastics industry should definitely be included.

One of the fastest growing segments of the plastics industry is the application of dry plastic powder coatings, such as vinyl, for protection and beautification of metallic objects. This change is prompted in part by the limitations and/or disadvantages …

A Study Of Dr. Donald Maley's Theory -- "Research And Experimentation In Industrial Arts", John Edward Ferree

Graduate Research Papers

The problem of this study is to make a thorough examination of Dr. Donald Maley's theory -- "Research and Experimentation in Industrial Arts in the Junior or Senior High School."

Perhaps now in 1968, more than ever, concern for what is in store for industrial arts is, or should be, considered more "grave" than expressed in the above quote of Dr. Maley in 1959. Certainly now it could generally be agreed that all theories concerning the future path of industrial arts, of which Dr. Maley's Research and Experimentation theory is one, deserve a full measure of study and evaluation by …