Advantage
PDC (Pressure Die Casting) is a viable economical solution which offers product developers a broad range of options when manufacturing metal parts as Prototypes or Short Run Productions.
With recent demands in Low Volume Custom Manufacturing, Pressure Die Casting is becoming an increasingly popular choice to make alloyed parts in Aluminum, Magnesium, Brass, and Zinc.
Pressure Die Casting is a mass production process commonly used to produce components in the Aerospace, Automotive, Military, Medical, Appliance, Industrial, and Sports Equipment sectors.
With Pressure Die Casting, designers and engineers can manufacture metal components with complex shapes and structural integrity that would otherwise be too impractical or impossible.
Process
Pressure Die Casting is a production process where molten metal is injected into a die (steel tool), under immense pressure ranging from 400 psi to 4000 psi, to manufacture metal shapes (parts).
Within the internal structure of the die is empty space (the negative shape of the part) known as the Mold Cavity, in which molten metal flows through, fills, and cools to become a solidified form.
After solidification, the die is opened and Ejector Pins push the part out of the die, the die is then coated with Release Agent and closed, and finally automation initiates a new Production Cycle.
After parts are de-gated, de-burred, and de-flashed, the final stage is Finishing where parts are machined, stone tumbled, sand blasted, polished, painted, anodized, plated, or powder coated.
Equipment
Pressure Die Casting machine sizes are rated or referred to as Tonnages, which are equal to the amount of forces that are exerted on the dies, which typically range from 400 tons to 4000 tons.
Speed
Pressure Die Casting production cycle times can be effected by different factors which include: material volume and flow, mold size and mold design, material type and material temperature.
* PCTs for parts weighing several ounces can take several seconds
* PCTs for parts weighing several pounds can take several minutes