Mercury Marine Debuts Pressurized Lost Foam Casting in New Wisconsin Foundry.

Proclaiming its commitment to lost foam technology for both in-house and customer casting needs, Mercury Marine's Mercury Castings Div., Fond du Lac, Wisconsin, christened its new 10.7 million, 20,000-sq-ft aluminum lost foam facility in May (also see "'Core Competency' Includes Lost Foam at Mercury Marine," modern casting, May 2001). In a ceremony attended by the Wisconsin Governor Scott McCallum, officials from the U.S. Dept. of Energy, leaders from all segments of the foundry industry and representatives from all levels and disciplines of Mercury Marine manufacturing, the lost foam facility ran through production cycles to showcase the first North American installation and start-up of pressurized lost foam casting.

"The facility features a state-of-the-art pressurized technology that will serve as a benchmark for the casting industry," said Pat Mackey, president of Mercury Marine. "Unlike earlier foam processes, we apply 150 psi of pressure to the molten aluminum during the solidification process for the production of high quality, complex aluminum castings."

The pressurized lost foam process provides the following advantages:

* lowers the casting porosity level to near undetectable levels;

* increases the cycle fatigue strength by 50%;

* extends the life of the casting by up to 200%;

* allows the production of hypereutectic (high-silicon) aluminum components.

This lost foam facility will replace Mercury's existing lost foam line, which started as an R&D facility in the early '90s. Mercury will be focusing on soliciting commercial business from small engine manufacturers such as Polaris and Harley-Davidson looking for a supplier of complex cast components.

"OEMs are looking for lost foam casters with our expertise in design and casting of complex small engine components," said Dave Dickirson, director of Mercury Castings. "We now have the capability to fill this niche."