Teksid, the Fiat Chrysler Automobiles subsidiary that operates a series of iron and aluminum casting operations in Europe, Latin America, and China, has ordered its second SinterCast process control system for compacted graphite iron product development at its Teksid Funfrap foundry in Aveiro, Portugal.
"The installation of the SinterCast technology in our Funfrap foundry marks another important step for the Teksid group as a leading provider of technology, components and solutions to the passenger vehicle, commercial vehicle and industrial power industries," stated Dr. Riccardo Tarantini, Teksid SpA president and CEO.
SinterCast is the world’s largest supplier of the control technology used by foundries to produce CGI, a lightweight alternative to gray iron and aluminum for automotive components. SinterCast licenses the most widely used process for commercial CGI production. That technology is under license to numerous foundries worldwide and used in series production of cast parts for gas and diesel engine cylinder blocks, for cars and SUVs; automotive exhaust components; medium-duty and heavy-duty cylinder blocks and heads for commercial vehicles; and industrial power engine parts for marine, rail, off-road and stationary engine applications.
SinterCast and Teksid have had a “technical agreement” for more than a decade, including a 2013 installation of a production-scale SinterCast System 3000 at the Teksid foundry in Monclova, Mexico.
At the Portuguese foundry, SinterCast will install its Mini-System 3000 process control system during the third quarter of this year, for use in an ongoing product development program for automotive cylinder blocks and other engine components.
Anticipating series production of CGI parts in the future, Teksid will install a “CGI infrastructure” and develop the process flow that will be compatible with a future upgrade to a fully automated, System 3000 Plus installation.
The Teksid Funfrap foundry’s products include bed plates, crankshafts, turbine housings, manifolds and turbo-manifolds, and differential housings in various ferrous alloys, including Ni-resistant and silicon-molybdenum grades. Its customers include Fiat, General Motors, and Renault.
"As the global CGI market continues to grow, we are pleased to invest in the latest CGI process control advances to provide our customers with class-leading CGI capability,” according to Tarantini.
He also restated Teksid’s commitment to CGI for automotive products, worldwide.
The announcement follows a series of positive developments this year for Stockholm-based SinterCast, including an order for a System 3000 Plus installation for automotive engine blocks and heads at China’s ASIMCO International Casting Co.; a Mini System 3000 for product development at an unnamed Japanese foundry; a Mini System 3000 at South Korea’s Doosan Infracore diesel engine foundry; and Mini System 3000 at China’s Dongfeng Commercial Vehicle Co. Ltd.
"SinterCast is pleased to have supported Teksid since 2002, conducting product development trials in Europe, North America and South America, and installing our automated System 3000 technology at the Teksid Hierro foundry in Mexico,” the group’s president and CEO Dr. Steve Dawson commented. “It is rewarding that this support has provided the confidence for Teksid to extend its SinterCast-CGI installation base to include the Funfrap foundry in Portugal."