Case Study · Automotive Parts Manufacturing, Henan
Automatic Static Pressure Molding Line — Henan Auto Parts Manufacturer
This line was engineered for a large automotive parts manufacturer in Henan Province for clay-sand (green sand) molding of gray iron, malleable iron, ductile iron and cast steel castings in continuous batch production.
It covers the full process from sand filling and compaction through box handling, coring, pouring, cooling and shakeout — configured to the client's part geometry, batch size and layout.
120 / 110 /hr
Design / actual output
1000×1000mm
Flask size (380/320mm)
±0.15mm
Mold closing accuracy
21
Pouring stations
Process Flow
Molding Line Sequence
1
Sand Fill
2
Compaction
3
Stripping
4
Flip / Gate Mill
5
Manual Coring
6
Mold Closing
7
Auto Pouring
8
Cooling 90min
9
Shakeout
Main Technical Parameters
Key Line Parameters
1. Flask size1000×1000×380(cope)/320(drag) mm
2. Pallet car pitch1285 mm
3. Flask pitch1280 mm
4. Design output120 molds/hr (110/hr actual)
5. Cooling time90 min (3-lane cooling track)
6. Mold closing accuracy±0.15 mm
7. Sand mold hardness85–92° (GF hardness tester)
8. Coring stations6 manual stations
9. Pouring stations21
10. Power supply380V/50Hz, ~350kW installed
11. Hydraulic pressure12–16 MPa
12. Pneumatic pressure0.5–0.7 MPa
Molding-machine sub-parameters: stripping stroke 500mm · pattern-frame height 250/350mm · cycle time 32–36s/mold · compaction force up to 150t (adjustable) · max specific pressure 1.0–1.5MPa · multi-touch heads 36–64 (300mm stroke) · min. draft angle ≥0.5°. Sand quality: green compression strength ≥15N/cm² · permeability >80 · compactability 38–42% · active clay 8–10% · moisture 3.8–4.2%. Final figures confirmed at detailed design stage.
Configuration Detail
Core Component Brands
| # | Component | Origin | Brand |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | PLC & fieldbus (S7-1500) | Germany | Siemens |
| 2 | Programming / monitoring / network software | Germany | Siemens |
| 3 | AC vector inverters | Japan | Mitsubishi |
| 4 | HMI 9" | Germany | Siemens |
| 5 | HMI 7" | Germany | Siemens |
| 6 | Main electrical components | France | Schneider |
| 7 | Proximity switches | Germany / Japan | SICK* / Omron |
| 8 | Displacement sensors | Germany | Balluff / Novotechnik |
| 9 | Pull-wire displacement sensors | Germany | Balluff / Novotechnik |
| 10 | Safety relays | France | Schneider |
| 11 | Servo controllers | Germany | Siemens |
| 12 | Built-in proportional amplifiers | Germany | Rexroth |
| 13 | Terminal blocks | Germany | WAGO |
| 14 | Weighing system | Germany | HBM |
| 15 | Control cabinet body | Qingdao | Rittal-style enclosure |
| 16 | Pneumatic cylinders & components | Japan | SMC |
| 17 | Hydraulic cylinders | USA | Parker |
| 18 | Solenoid / hydraulic valves | Germany | Rexroth |
| 19 | Cartridge valves | USA | SUN |
| 20 | Shock absorbers / buffers | USA | ACE |
| 21 | Proportional directional valves | Germany | Rexroth |
| 22 | Hydraulic pumps (variable, constant-power piston) | Germany / USA | Rexroth / Parker |
| 23 | Pressure / level / temperature sensors | Germany | HYDAC |
| 24 | Accumulators | China | Fenghua Chaori |
| 25 | Servo motors | Germany | SEW |
| 26 | Geared motors | Germany | SEW |
| 27 | Main slewing bearing | Sweden | SKF |
| 28 | Auxiliary bearings | China | Local supply |
| 29 | Rubber elastic components | Switzerland | ROSTA |
*Proximity switches are sourced from SICK (Germany) and Omron (Japan).
Scope of Supply
Equipment List
Unless noted otherwise, proportional valves are Rexroth (Germany), directional valves Rexroth, hydraulic cylinders Parker (USA), guide rods induction-hardened with auto-lubrication, and position sensors Omron / SICK.
| # | Equipment / Sub-component | Key Specification | Qty |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Static Pressure Molding Machine | 1 | |
| Lift table | Rexroth proportional valve drive w/ position feedback; HWS (Japan) single-cylinder 4-post structure | 1 | |
| Multi-touch compaction unit | 64 heads, ⌀50mm; max force 150t; proportional pressure-reducing valve; max specific pressure 1.0MPa | 1 | |
| Louvre weigh-batching hopper | HBM load-cell weighing; stainless/PTFE-lined interior; dual-deck 8-gate louvre; cylinder-driven multi-link sync | 1 | |
| Upper sand chute | Dual-deck 4-gate, multi-angle adjustable | 1 | |
| In/out box roller rail | Hardened, induction-blackened rollers | 1 | |
| Box positioning device | 90° self-aligning head, induction-hardened | 2 pairs | |
| Pattern-plate rotary turntable | Imported buffers & bearings | 1 | |
| Pattern-plate cleaning device | Multi-nozzle, fast-response air-blast valve | 1 | |
| Upper-frame traverse unit | Imported buffers, proportional hydraulic drive | 1 | |
| Frame & welded structure | Heavy-current welded, stress-relief annealed | 1 | |
| On-machine piping | Argon-arc welded, passivated, 4-layer wire-braided hose | 1 | |
| 2 | Quick pattern-change device — SEW inverter control | 1 | |
| 3 | Compaction (air-set) pattern frames — Ductile iron, copper vent plugs QT500-7, PU cushion, post-cast annealed | 5 sets (5 cope + 5 drag) | |
| 4 | Box-opening hook device — Hydraulic clamp + synchronized opening hooks | 2 | |
| 5 | Box-Splitting Machine — Split & lift | 1 | |
| Lift manipulator | Mechanical self-locking | 1 | |
| Box-clamp device | Hydraulic hook-release | 1 | |
| Lift unit | Proportional valve + displacement-sensor positioning | 1 | |
| Frame & guarding / piping | — | 1 | |
| 6 | Splitting Transfer Car | 1 | |
| Car body | Dual guide-wheel steering | — | |
| Rail system + drive | SEW servo, rack & pinion, S=3000mm, 3kW | — | |
| 7 | Flask interior cleaning device — Swiss ROSTA spring-scraper, hydraulic lift | 1 | |
| 8 | Cope/Drag Flipping Machine — VFD 2.2kW, chain/sprocket reducer, cast-steel wheel rims ×2 | 1 | |
| 9 | Molding-Section Push Roller Rail | 1 | |
| Roller conveyor | B=1200mm, +1200mm above flask top | 1 | |
| Push device | Proportional valve, S=1490mm | 1 | |
| Positioning device | 90° self-aligning, induction-hardened | 2 pairs | |
| Upper/lower box-face cleaners | ROSTA spring-scraper | 1 each | |
| 10 | Cope/Drag Distributing Machine — Transfer, lift, scrape | 1 | |
| Lift manipulator | Mechanical self-lock | 1 | |
| Traverse device | VFD, S=2500mm, 4kW | 1 | |
| Lift unit | Proportional valve + sensor positioning | 1 | |
| Sand-scraper | Carbide blade | 1 | |
| 11 | Distributing Transfer Car — Same structure as #6 | 1 | |
| 12 | Coring-Section Roller Rail | 1 | |
| Roller conveyor | B=1200mm, +1000mm above flask top | 1 | |
| Positioning devices | — | 2 | |
| Guard plate | ~10m | 1 | |
| 13 | Automatic Gate-Milling Machine | 1 | |
| Milling head | 1.5kW/1300rpm, wear-resistant alloy cutter | 1 | |
| X / Y axis | SEW servo, rack & pinion | 1 each | |
| Hydraulic lift | Dual guide-post, solenoid valve control | 1 | |
| 14 | Automatic Vent-Hole Drilling Machine | 2 | |
| Servo traverse | 10 holes, ⌀10–30mm | 1 | |
| X / Y axis | SEW servo, rack & pinion | 1 each | |
| Hydraulic lift | Rexroth proportional valve control | 1 | |
| 15 | Cope Flipping Machine — VFD 2.2kW, Mitsubishi inverter, chain/sprocket reducer, cast-steel wheel rims ×2 | 1 | |
| 16 | Box-Closing Machine — Lower & close | 1 | |
| Closing manipulator | Open/close mechanism | 1 | |
| Lift unit | Proportional valve + sensor positioning | 1 | |
| 17 | Closing Transfer Car — Same structure as #6 | 1 | |
| 18 | Box-clamp tightening device — Pneumatic, synchronized | 2 | |
| 19 | Automatic Mold Conveying System — 23 sub-systems, 3-stage back-pressure buffering | 1 | |
| Cooling-section transfer cars A/B (w/ buffering) | Rexroth heavy cylinder buffer, servo/VFD rack-pinion, 3kW | 2 | |
| End transfer cars A/B | Servo rack-pinion, 3kW | 2 | |
| Transfer car rail systems | Induction-hardened rack & pinion | 2 | |
| End lift-and-carry machines | Proportional valve control | 2 | |
| Fixed push devices (return/molding/coring/cope sections) | B=1600mm, proportional valve, Parker cylinder buffer | 4 | |
| Fixed buffer devices (return/molding/coring/cope sections) | B=1600mm, Rexroth valve, Parker cylinder buffer | 4 | |
| Pouring-section servo push device | B=1600mm, SEW servo geared motor | 1 | |
| End transfer car fixed buffer device | B=1600mm | 1 | |
| Bi-directional positioning devices | — | 8 | |
| Non-return devices | — | 6 | |
| Hydraulic bi-directional positioning (box clamp) | — | 1 | |
| Pouring/cooling line rail system | 4-row rail, sleepers & rail clips | 1 | |
| On-machine piping | 4-layer wire-braided hose | 2 | |
| Cable-chain systems | — | 4 | |
| 20 | Shakeout (Knockout) Machine — 25t push-out force | 1 | |
| Traverse device | VFD rack-pinion, 2×3kW | 1 | |
| Lift device | 4-guide-rod, double-tier fixed frame | 1 | |
| Knockout device | Bottom mold-breaking mechanism (breaks sand lump before knockout) | 1 | |
| Travel limit devices | Dual-face 4-point adjustment | 4 | |
| Car cleaning device | Rubber-spring scraper | 1 | |
| 22 | Trolley / car cleaner — Reducer-driven, ROSTA scraper, 3-stage stainless wire-brush | 1 | |
| 23 | Full-Line Pneumatic System (SMC) | 1 | |
| End transfer car positioning | — | 8 | |
| Pouring/cooling line return positioning | — | 4 | |
| Box-closing / splitting system | — | 2 | |
| 24 | On-Machine Hydraulic Control System — Rexroth valve groups, 15 stations (molding, roller-rail, splitting/closing, gate-mill, drilling, push, cleaning, knockout, positioning, control) | 1 set | |
| 25 | Hydraulic Power Station | 1 | |
| Tank | 8,000L | 1 | |
| Pump sets | 11MPa, Rexroth + Parker pumps | 4 | |
| Cooling pump / oil heater | — | 1 each | |
| Filters | 800 L/min | 5 | |
| Pressure sensor | Imported German brand | 1 | |
| 26 | Accumulator Bank — 64L effective capacity | 1 | |
| 40L bladder accumulators | — | 20 | |
| 27 | Electrical Control System | 1 | |
| PLC / fieldbus | Siemens S7-1500 + Ethernet modules | 6 sets | |
| Vector inverters | Mitsubishi (Japan) | 8 | |
| HV/LV cabinets | Rittal-style enclosure | 4 sets | |
| Main console / local cabinets | 10" HMI / 6" HMI | 1 / 4 | |
| Proximity & HV switches | Omron / SICK* | ~200 | |
| Proportional valve controllers | Rexroth | 9 | |
| 28 | Safety Devices — Alarm siren, guarding for molding machine, transfer cars, flipping machines, closing machine | 1 set | |
| 29 | Field installation materials — Cables, cable trays, supports, piping, fittings, fasteners | lot | |
| 30 | Full-line lubrication system | 1 | |
| 31 | Sand flasks — 1000×1000×380/320mm, HT250, pitch 1280mm, ~1.05t each | 221 + 4 spare sets | |
| 32 | Pallet cars — HT250, pitch 1285mm | 225 + 4 spare sets | |
| Included spares: cylinder seal kits ×5 sets · flask pins ×20 sets · trolley wheels ×10 sets · Omron/SICK proximity switches ×20 · cylinder magnetic switches ×10 · Schneider relays ×20. | |||
Technology & Automation
Engineering Highlights
Multi-touch compaction
Minimizes hardness variance across the mold; deviation ≤8° (GF).
Siemens S7-1500 + Profinet
Full-line networked control, manual/automatic dual-mode with interlocks.
>95% stripping yield, ≤85dB
High pattern-release rate with low-noise, vibration-free operation.
~200 position sensors
Closed-loop feedback with real-time fault diagnostics and remote monitoring.