Simple Solutions That Work! Issue 11

MAKING YOUR INSTALLATION ASUCCESS Simple, you contact your ladle supplier and ask for either a direct replacement for what you’ve already got or, if you need a different capacity, one that is the same but with the capacity required. This is a good time to actually stop, take a step back and a look at the whole working process that involves the ladle; not just the metal transfer and pouring but also the re-lining of the ladle along with general maintenance requirements. Yeah, but this is a ladle we’re talking about, not something as exotic as a new molding system or a robotic cell, and you’ve been STEVE HARKER Technical Director ACETARC ENGINEERING CO. Ltd ARTICLE TAKEAWAYS: • Reducing time to re-line your ladles • Customize your ladles for a longer life ACHIEVING BETTER INTEGRATION OF A NEW LADLE INTO AN EXISTING FOUNDRY Continued on next page using a ladle for this purpose for years. True, but it will still prove to be a worthwhile exercise. After all, anything that can minimize the time that the ladle is not ready for use has to be a good thing. The ladle you are replacing is likely to be several years old and the decisions that determined that design might not be still valid now. Take the time to review how the current ladle performs, ask the operators their opinions of the ladle performance, and determine what, if anything needs to be changed. All of this will help determine what kind of new ladle you need to both improve Y ou’ve got a requirement for a new ladle, either to replace an existing one that is no longer productive or because requirements have changed, such as the need to pour larger castings. performance and safety. It’s not the big things, which are typically addressed in the basic design, but the little details that often get overlooked. We’ve found that it’s not uncommon to supply a relatively standard ladle, often a repeat of one that had been supplied several years previously, only to find that the foundry modifies the ladle to suit their requirements before the ladle gets put into service. In many cases these are small additions such as a spout extension or a handle on the sidearm that foundries like to include. These are details that make the ladle easier and better suited for use for that particular foundry but wouldn’t have a purpose at another foundry. We don’t visit all our customers as much as we’d like to, especially those in other countries, so sometimes we don’t pick up on these modifications. However when we do our response is “why don’t you tell us and we’ll build them in from the start?” Likewise, tell us if you need a bigger than standard lifting hook or if the gearbox hand wheel needs to be a different size or if you need longer sidearms to give better clearance when filling the ladle. We appreciate hearing about any details that can improve the performance of the ladle. If we think that it won’t cause a safety issue then we’ll be happy to 25