The new DISA Match was designed as a robust and service-friendly machine requiring minimal maintenance. Fast plate changes provide foundries with a new level of flexibility and performance.
Since 2001 the DISA Match 130 matchplate molding machine has proved its worth for shorter runs with frequent pattern changes, at foundries in four continents. The major reasons for the immediate success of the patent-pending DISA Match was its robust design that ensured higher mold density, better accuracy with more production flexibility for lower costs, and higher earnings for the operators.
“With the DISA Match being an immediate success we spotted the potential to help foundries by offering a solution for matchplates larger than 20x24 inches,” said Kurt Larsen, general product manager at DISA Industries A/S.
The Benton Foundry in Benton, PA, was the first to purchase the original DISA Match. Benton President Jeff Hall said the 20x24 inch machine delivered superior mold quality with harder, firmer and more consistent molds. When Benton Foundry was looking for a larger matchplate option, they decided to wait for the introduction of the new larger DISA Match before placing an order, because of their experience with their first DISA Match. They received their new DISA Match 28/32 machine in August 2008.
When designing the new machine, the objective was to make a robust and service-friendly machine requiring minimum maintenance. “The most striking change is that there are now two main guide rods instead of the original four,” Kurt Larsen explained. “The symmetrical construction with centered guide rods without the need for pins and bushes between the cope and drag chamber provides the rigidity for exceptional mold accuracy giving a mismatch of less than 0.01 in/0.25 mm.”
Fast plate changes using the Quick Matchplate Changer, combined with speeds of up to 100 uncored molds and 80 cored molds per hour for the largest sizes (32x32 in.), provides foundries with a new level of flexibility and performance. Independent cope and drag height adjustment on each mold half enables optimization of the iron/sand ratio, as well as reduction of sand consumption.
Combined with the new state-of-the-art control system, these features enable foundries to produce large, high-quality castings of different types more consistently and more cost-effectively.
A large access door and a wide access area inside the machine with light-curtain safety protection provide fast service access to all components for easy maintenance. Another enhancement is replaceable wear plates that can be changed very quickly without disturbing other settings. In addition, an automatic system lubricates the bearings during each cycle, eliminating the need to stop the machine for manual lubrication, ensuring maximum uptime.
The new DISA Match is fully supported by DISA Customer Service worldwide and is available in two versions – Medium Platform with a chamber size of 24x28 inches, and Large Platform with chamber sizes of 28x32 inches and 32x32 inches. The DISA Match 130 (20x24 inches) is still available.