A consortium comprising specialist heat treatment company, ADI Treatments Ltd.,
Trenton Electroplating (Redditch) and led by Industrial Consultants E9 Limited
has secured funding from Advantage West Midlands' Innovation Networks programme
to produce and characterise a new metal alloy.
Recording
the material temperature
before casting. The material, a Carbidic Austempered Ductile Iron (CADI), promises properties
of extreme hardness and durability. This would make it especially suited to applications
where wear resistance and strength are important including engine parts, agricultural
and mining machinery
The project partners aim to understand the factors that influence the material
production, quality and reproducibility and to characterise the metallurgy as
a function of key production parameters. The optimum alloy composition, heat
treatment parameters and metal finishing will all be determined together with
metallurgical data necessary for industrial designers and materials specifiers
to identify suitable applications.
The material is expected to have weight and cost advantages in certain applications
where the wear resistant properties are key and components need to be formed
in complex shapes.
ADI Treatments Ltd. - based in Doranda Way, West Bromwich – provides much
of the technical driving force behind the project. Simon Day Managing Director
of ADI Treatments Ltd. said “CADI has shown good initial indications
and we want to explore these in applications. We are keen to work alongside
forward
thinking manufacturers in the UK to identify commercial applications for the
new material.”
Dr. Trainor, Managing Director of Coventry Based E9 Limited continued“Manufacturers
are under constant pressures to innovate and improve. Any change that improves
the quality, cost or performance of a component or it's manufacturing process,
can create a winning commercial edge. That is what Advantage West Midlands
plan to create.”
The consortium is seeking to make contact with companies who have ground engaging,
crushing, wear resistant and agricultural parts. Expressions of interest from
companies should be sent to Dr. John R. Trainor, at:
E9 Limited
The Technocentre
Coventry University Technology Park
Puma Way
Coventry, CV1 2TW
Telephone: 08456 444 660
Fax: 024 7669 3733
Notes:
The University
of Birmingham's Interdisciplinary Research Centre (IRC)
in Materials Processing is
undertaking the casting research for the consortium,
which involves
ADI Treatments Ltd, Trenton Electroplating (Redditch)
and E9 Limited.
Each company in the consortium
brings different skills and strengths to the project
team.
- Operating a world-class facility
for the specialist heat treatment of components in
molten salts (known as
austempering), ADI
Treatments Ltd. - based in Doranda Way, West
Bromwich – provides
much of the technical driving force behind the
project. The company fulfils a crucial technical
role in the project using their austempering, heat
treatment
expertise
to fine-tune the properties of the material and
hone each component for its application. It is
also responsible for ensuring product quality
and the
new material’s
reproducibility.
- Trenton
Electroplating,
a Redditch based
metal finishing company, provides expert sub-contract
services to meet a wide range of customer needs
and specifications.
The company specialise in Zinc Alloy coatings,
which extend both the lifetime and intrinsic
value of the component, providing
superior corrosion resistance and thereby enhancing
a product’s
quality and durability.
- Coventry based consultants
E9 limited provides management systems and co-ordination,
as well as handling marketing
and commercial aspects within the project.
Advantage
West Midlands' Innovation Networks programme provides
financialand strategic support to the region’s
SME base.
The £10,000
grants support innovation and promote technological and trading
co-operations between companies
working together to deliver new services and products
that have the potential to make a positive impact
on economic prosperity.
The scheme also sets out to facilitate and promote
the transfer of technology and knowledge from
the region's Universities, many of which are internationally
recognised
centres of R&D excellence.
