Foundry forges ahead with £1 million upgrade

A Black Country manufacturing firm is stepping up its innovation drive after a major investment to boost its casting capabilities.

Alucast, based in Wednesbury, has invested £1 million in new machinery and research to develop a lightweight alloy for the rail, aerospace and defence sectors. 

Bosses at the foundry, which employs more than 100 people, say they are now targeting multi-million-pound opportunities in low-pressure die casting, helping customers cut weight from parts while maintaining strength and integrity.

Its latest addition, an HDTD low-pressure die casting machine, allows for faster production of larger components. 

Engineers at Alucast have also created a new alloy for the Very Light Rail sector, supported by a £50,000 grant.

Building on the success of its ALU-HPI material, the team refined the metal flow and heat treatment process to produce an alloy one third lighter than SG Iron 420:10 while retaining high levels of strength and performance.

Tony Sartorius, chairman of Alucast, said: “We’ve already created sand-cast parts using this alloy for military vehicles and knew there was the opportunity to adapt it to low-pressure.

“This could be a massive gamechanger for every sector that is looking to secure weight savings without risking performance. 

“Our metallurgists have already achieved UTS targets of 420 MPa and further heat treatment modifications will allow us to achieve the ten per cent elongation goal.”

Tony added: “The combination of our dedicated low-pressure casting facility and the new ALU-HP1 material means we are now in a perfect place to offer a new solution for clients looking for lighter parts in aerospace, rail and, with an increase in Government spending, defence.

“There’s no reason why we can’t secure more than £1.5 million of new work over the next twelve months and this will certainly help create jobs.”

Alucast is unique in the UK in that it has the four main casting processes – sand, gravity, high-pressure and low-pressure casting – on one site, strengthening its position as a key supplier to advanced engineering industries.

John Swift, chief executive of Alucast, added: “In essence, the metallurgical advantages of low-pressure die casting stems from its ability to control the filling process, reduce oxidation, minimise porosity, and promote uniform solidification, resulting in higher-quality, high integrity castings.

“These attributes are extremely important when casting the ALU-HP1 alloy as porosity and oxides must be eliminated to achieve the high UTS and elongation figures achieved with this alloy.

“There’s a real opportunity for the UK to lead the way when it comes to lightweighting and we’re keen to bring as much manufacturing back home as possible.”

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