Better, More Innovative Metals Technology Applications

New ways of applying casting, forging and fabricating technologies contribute to the U.S. manufacturing viability for Defense and National Energy Policy. The SCRA Applied R&D award-winning metals technology consortia know how to link upfront research with manufacturing for sustained applied innovations.

Building Viable, Cost-Effective and Long-term Metalcasting Sources for The Department of Defense

The American Metalcasting Consortium (AMC) facilitates innovations in the casting supply chain to help the Defense Logistics Agency procure weapon systems parts. Aging systems like the U.S.S. Kitty Hawk and the B-1 Bomber remain important in current U.S. defense inventories, yet they suffer from long, resistant backorders for parts. In such backorder problems, the root cause is often an underlying metalcasting procurement problem masked by the procurement of a finished machined assembly. Often a low volume, high specification metalcasting procurement is not recognized in the solicitation and bidding process for the final assembly. AMC engages new metalcasting technology from its research portfolio with an emerging breed of innovative metalcasters to rebuild links in the supply chain for legacy weapon systems. It also provides an application engineering team to assist in the resolution of underlying casting procurements. The result is cost-effective, low-volume, high-specification components to sustain systems like the B-1 and the U.S.S. Kitty Hawk.

Reduced Leadtimes through the Clinkenbeard Process

Dramatically reduced leadtime for legacy weapon systems parts is the core of the Defense Logistic Agency partnership with the American Metalcasting Consortium. The innovative Clinkenbeard Process reduces the leadtime for military cast spare parts from 6 to 12 months to 6 to 12 days. When reworking technical data is required, including a solid model of the part, leadtimes could exceed a year. Even with a new solid model, the Clinkenbeard Process can supply a cast part in less than a month. The secret is computer generated molds with no tooling.

To learn more about AMC, go to: http://amc.ati.org.

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Shorter Lead Time, More Efficient Processing Methods for Defense Forgings

In the case of backordered forged components, parts production requirements are delayed by the inability of the supply chain to efficiently produce the low volumes typical of legacy weapon systems. Through the Forging Defense Manufacturing Consortium (FDMC), the most challenging forging procurement problems are being resolved by new short-run forging technologies and enterprise solutions. For example, members of the forging supply chain, capable of producing defense components, are using low-volume lean manufacturing technology. FDMC research at the Ohio State University is developing and rapidly disseminating forging shop floor process efficiencies and material flow simplification through Job Shop Lean. This program - with its on-going technology transfer seminars attended by the forging industry, DLA, and program office personnel - has received outstanding reviews.

To learn more about FDMC, go to: http://fdmc.scra.org.

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“Job Shop Lean works! The savings we are experiencing from the implementations are definite proof that this program works.” Mike Ulven, Ulven Forging, Inc.