With Fall Comes a New Group of University of Michigan Engineers.....and the FEF

When I’m not growing the pie for Austempering at Applied Process Inc. or working on casting conversions here at Joyworks, I’m preparing to work with a new batch of University Michigan students.  In my role as Adjunct Professor with the Materials Science and Engineering Department, and Foundry Education Foundation Key Professor, I am pleased to share my passion for metal casting with a new group of MSE 350 students.  Each fall they return, like the swallows to Capistrano, for (generally) their first experience with metal casting.  Professor Wayne Jones has, over these past few years, integrated the casting of the students’ lost-foam 319 aluminum “works of art” with metallurgical examination of 319 aluminum microstructures and property analysis and application discussions.  Each year now we’re entertaining 50 to 60 students and the metal casting lab modules are some of the most popular that the students experience during their journey at UoM.  At Joyworks, we’re proud to be part of it.  Besides, each semester a few of them become hooked on metal castings.  It’s a hoot and, just perhaps, they will become future leaders in the metal casting industry.

Joyworks (in conjunction with Applied Process) recently hosted the Executive Committee of the Foundry Education Foundation.  The following photos show the FEF Executive Committee and AP’s Technical Director, Dr. Kathy Hayrynen, the President of FEF.  In the action shot you can see FEF’s own Pam Lechner transferring ductile iron from a treatment ladle to the pouring ladle while inoculant is added.  The cast product shown in-mold in the one photo are ductile iron AP Hostile Duck book ends, a pair of which were provided to each of the participants.

We’re not standing still.  We’ll soon be adding significant modeling and prototyping capabilities (including 3-D printing).  It will further enhance our ability to help designers switch from one material/process combination to a better, faster, cheaper one.  Stay tuned.

At Joyworks, the learning continues

Here at Joyworks we’re not ALL play.  In fact, lately, we’ve been all about learning.  Boy, are we developing respect for our industry friends who do lost-foam iron castings!  Over the years, through our affiliation with Applied Process, we’ve been involved in the Austempering of millions of ductile iron castings produced by the lost-foam method but, MAN, do we have a new appreciation for them now.  We’re learning (or re-learning) more about ferrostatic head, grain size, viscosity, vents and vibrators than we ever wanted to…..but we’re slowly inching towards an ADI game changer thanks to the persistence of Kathy, Meghan, Demetri and Ryan.  Here’s a shout out to Greg Miskinis, Larry Helm, Ray Monroe, Von Richards and a host of others who have given us sage advice.

There’s an old saying that everybody who’s ever eaten in a restaurant thinks they can run one.  That saying has taken on new meaning in the development of our lost-foam ADI breakthrough.  Heck, we’re just beginning to know what we don’t know on the project…and that’s what makes it so fun….and, no, I’m not going to tell you what it is…..yet.

Thanks also to ASM International’s Detroit Chapter for allowing Joyworks to be the official supplier again this year of the cast aluminum speakers awards.

It looks like Joyworks might just be involved in a project to re-create aluminum shoulder brackets for the University of Michigan’s Rifle Team.  The lightweight brackets are used to brace against the butt of the long-barrel .22 caliber target rifles used by the team in competition.  Team member (and Aerospace Engineering Senior) David Ameche, and the team are busily planning the project and it is hoped that the castings could be produced before the Seniors leave town.  The UoM 3-D lab may have a role in the project.  By the way……David Ameche will be joining our happy band of Joyworkers as a part-time assistant, on loan from Applied Process.  Welcome aboard, David!

As the Foundry Educational Foundation Key Professor at the University of Michigan I was pleased to see a record sign-up of students joining the student chapter of The American Foundry Society (AFS).  Leo Baran from AFS will address the students at the Michigan Materials Society (MMS) lunch on 09 March.  A sponsored lunch (read “free food”) and an interesting speaker always bring in a good crowd.  Thanks to Joyce Loh and the MMS officers for their contributions to the upcoming event.

 

We're now all clad in our purple "Joyworks: What a pour way to make a living" t-shirts as the result of a plan hatched by Dr. Kathy Hayrynen.  She was kind enough to provide me with a (unique) red one.....Thanks for that! 

 

Next stop….a bronze for our new grandson, Jules Henry Keough.  Let the play begin!

Joyworks: From Art to R&D

We’ve had a lot going on at Joyworks since I last posted on this blog.  A dash of alloy development, some lost-foam process development, a bit of Austemper alloy hardenability research, four University of Michigan MSE 350 labs, a day of bronzes and some family artwork.  All that is happening while I’m maintaining my “day job” as CEO and owner of Applied Process Inc……where we’re STILL world leaders in Austempering technology and development.

 

This fall we had a record crop of 62 University of Michigan Material Science and Engineering MSE 350 students participating in the casting lab at Joyworks.  The students created foam patterns which were invested in loose zircon sand and poured in 319 aluminum.  We also digitally plotted the cooling curve of a chilled test piece.  The curve clearly showed the inflection points where phase changes started and finished.  The students subsequently took their newly minted treasures home.  I have always said that these make and take projects will sit on their bookshelf for many years to come.  When you make something with your own hands you cannot forget its origin.  In follow-up labs with Prof. Wayne Jones the students have, and will, observe the microstructures of the 319 alloy both optically and with scanning electron microscopy.  Mechanical properties will be assessed and the students will use these events to gain a fuller understanding of the metal casting process, and its metallurgy.  A special thanks again this year to UoM lab assistant Justin Scanlon, UoM graduate student (and Joyworks assistant) Ryan Breneman, Joyworks assistant Demetri Golematis, and Applied Process Inc.’s Technical Director, Dr. Kathy Hayrynen and Principal Process Engineer, Chris Bixler and Regional Sales Engineer Justin Lefevre for their assistance in making the lab successful.   

 

I’d like to give a shout (again) to our friends at Buck Foundry for helping us to get some Mn Bronze.  The stuff really flares and smokes a lot at pouring temperature but it’s a beautiful rich yellow alloy that looks really nice as-cast.  It looks even better when you cast a University of Michigan seal out of it, paint it dark blue and then polish off the high surfaces exposing a handsome Maize and Blue seal.  UoM students Eric Hung, Melissa Wickman, Michael Baumhart, Kyle Doubrava, Kathleen Chou and Marissa Lafata came out to Joy Road for the first annual “Joyworks Casting Call”.  Their interest in metalcasting was piqued by the MSE 350 lab and they all went home with great looking UoM seals.

 

Joyworks welcomed the arrival of our new baby, a Tinker-Omega T-50 mixer just a short time ago.  The mixer allows us to mold chemically bonded sand molds efficiently and with good quality.  It sure beats the heck out of mixing 25-lb batches of sand in 5-gallon pails using a paddle bit and the drill press!  Will Tinker, thanks to you and your team at Tinker Omega for your guidance on the selection of the mixer and your support in commissioning it.

 

I’d love to tell you the specifics of our Applied Process Inc. research being conducted at Joyworks……but I can’t.  Suffice it to say that we’re never resting on what we know and always seeking to move beyond current technology.  Whether it’s developing new, cost-effective ferrous alloys or pushing in to Monster Parts™ applications, Joyworks remains a critical partner to AP in research and development.

 

As the Foundry Educational Foundation Key Professor at the University of Michigan….you know, the school that FINALLY beat the Ohio State University to cap a 10-win season…………I was proud to take a student to the FEF College Industry Conference in Chicago this month.  That student, Demetri Golematis, is a senior in Mechanical Engineering, and has been a lab assistant at Joyworks for the last two school years.  He has assisted on everything from metal casting projects to computer modeling of various parts, patterns and devices.  Along the way he’s developed hands on skills that compliment his educational experiences.  At the FEF CIC Demetri met with top personnel from companies in the metalcasting industry……all looking to recruit students with experience like Demetri.  Good luck Demetri!

 

Last, but not least, I was pleased to spend a day in the studio with my son-in-law Ensign Michael Brown, where we tested some new foam pattern material and he fashioned a few personalized pieces of lost foam work.  Michael will soon be commissioned as a Chaplain in the US Navy and we thank him for his service.  All that aside, he’s a great guy and I’m pleased to call him # 3 Son. 

Joyworks: From Art to R&D

We’ve had a lot going on at Joyworks since I last posted on this blog.  A dash of alloy development, some lost-foam process development, a bit of Austemper alloy hardenability research, four University of Michigan MSE 350 labs, a day of bronzes and some family artwork.  All that is happening while I’m maintaining my “day job” as CEO and owner of Applied Process Inc……where we’re STILL world leaders in Austempering technology and development.

 

This fall we had a record crop of 62 University of Michigan Material Science and Engineering MSE 350 students participating in the casting lab at Joyworks.  The students created foam patterns which were invested in loose zircon sand and poured in 319 aluminum.  We also digitally plotted the cooling curve of a chilled test piece.  The curve clearly showed the inflection points where phase changes started and finished.  The students subsequently took their newly minted treasures home.  I have always said that these make and take projects will sit on their bookshelf for many years to come.  When you make something with your own hands you cannot forget its origin.  In follow-up labs with Prof. Wayne Jones the students have, and will, observe the microstructures of the 319 alloy both optically and with scanning electron microscopy.  Mechanical properties will be assessed and the students will use these events to gain a fuller understanding of the metal casting process, and its metallurgy.  A special thanks again this year to UoM lab assistant Justin Scanlon, UoM graduate student (and Joyworks assistant) Ryan Breneman, Joyworks assistant Demetri Golematis, and Applied Process Inc.’s Technical Director, Dr. Kathy Hayrynen and Principal Process Engineer, Chris Bixler for their assistance in making the lab successful.   

 

I’d like to give a shout (again) to our friends at Buck Foundry for helping us to get some Mn Bronze.  The stuff really flares and smokes a lot at pouring temperature but it’s a beautiful rich yellow alloy that looks really nice as-cast.  It looks even better when you cast a University of Michigan seal out of it, paint it dark blue and then polish off the high surfaces exposing a handsome Maize and Blue seal.  UoM students Eric Hung, Melissa Wickman, Michael Baumhart, Kyle Doubrava, Kathleen Chou and Marissa Lafata came out to Joy Road for the first annual “Joyworks Casting Call”.  Their interest in metalcasting was piqued by the MSE 350 lab and they all went home with great looking UoM seals.

 

Joyworks welcomed the arrival of our new baby, a Tinker-Omega T-50 mixer just a short time ago.  The mixer allows us to mold chemically bonded sand molds efficiently and with good quality.  It sure beats the heck out of mixing 25-lb batches of sand in 5-gallon pails using a paddle bit and the drill press!  Will Tinker, thanks to you and your team at Tinker Omega for your guidance on the selection of the mixer and your support in commissioning it.

 

I’d love to tell you the specifics of our Applied Process Inc. research being conducted at Joyworks……but I can’t.  Suffice it to say that we’re never resting on what we know and always seeking to move beyond current technology.  Whether it’s developing new, cost-effective ferrous alloys or pushing in to Monster Parts™ applications, Joyworks remains a critical partner to AP in research and development.

 

As the Foundry Educational Foundation Key Professor at the University of Michigan….you know, the school that FINALLY beat the Ohio State University to cap a 10-win season…………I was proud to take a student to the FEF College Industry Conference in Chicago this month.  That student, Demetri Golematis, is a senior in Mechanical Engineering, and has been a lab assistant at Joyworks for the last two school years.  He has assisted on everything from metal casting projects to computer modeling of various parts, patterns and devices.  Along the way he’s developed hands on skills that compliment his educational experiences.  At the FEF CIC Demetri met with top personnel from companies in the metalcasting industry……all looking to recruit students with experience like Demetri.  Good luck Demetri!

 

Last, but not least, I was pleased to spend a day in the studio with my son-in-law Ensign Michael Brown, where we tested some new foam pattern material and he fashioned a few personalized pieces of lost foam work.  Michael will soon be commissioned as a Chaplain in the US Navy and we thank him for his service.  All that aside, he’s a great guy and I’m pleased to call him # 3 Son.   

 

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