Manufacturers of die cast components worldwide are constantly seeking improvements in their processes, owing mainly to the intensity of global competition alongside the need to meet increasingly stringent operating requirements. Growing opportunities in sectors such as e-mobility are driving up standards in quality and repeatability, leading to a renewed focus on the die lubricants at the heart of operations.
Improvements in how die lubricants are managed can lead to reduced consumption, less scrap, longer tool life, and overall lower costs. These improvements ultimately increase the quality of die cast components and lead to better control over operations. To realise these benefits, it is essential to dial in the correct concentration and consumption of the lubricants.
Managing lubricants intelligently
For many manufacturers using water-based die lubricants, managing the dilution on site is often a manual process. Depending on factors such as production schedules and set-ups, most operations will require a dilution of between 0.5 and 3 percent, with manual testing carried out based on the needs of their facility and operations – typically once per hour, or once per shift as a minimum.
Should the concentration of die lubricant fall outside upper and lower control limits, manufacturers will either face a situation where there is insufficient lubricant on the dies, and therefore less protection of tooling, or where excessive lubricant is present, resulting in higher levels of consumption than necessary. When this happens, it is not uncommon for issues to go unnoticed, until the next manual check is scheduled, or when a decline in product quality is observed.
Proactively monitoring and controlling die lubricants during the production stage removes the potential for these negative outcomes, and with the right technology in place, teams can be alerted when concentration levels fall outside of certain parameters.
The benefits of utilizing automated technology to manage die lubricant concentration during production are far-reaching. For example, the ability to automatically and consistently maintain the right lubricant concentration leads to time savings from eliminating manual checks. More importantly, it leads to reducing unplanned downtime and minimizes the risk of catastrophic events occurring, such as stuck castings and tool damage, which can be costly to repair. These collective benefits lead to manufacturers having greater confidence in their die lubricants and the quality of their production.
When optimized lubricants are paired with reliable spray equipment, manufacturers can also benefit from stable pressure, ensuring consistent quantities of lubrication every spray cycle. This improves the consistency of atomization which impacts how well the lubricant spreads on the die face, efficiently managing the Leidenfrost barrier to improve the consistency and efficiency of lubrication by optimizing the die temperature, ultimately supporting the extension of tool life.
Achieving success through automation
Since not all die-casting processes are the same, and each manufacturer has different requirements, there are specific recommendations for automated control hardware and software to be paired with fluids to achieve a comprehensive solution. As a world-class leader in die lubricants and automation hardware and software for both single and centralized die casting systems, Quaker Houghton’s deep industry experience makes them well-suited to provide recommendations in the best interest of the manufacturer
For example, Quaker Houghton recently advised a European automotive supplier specializing in high-pressure die casting for e-mobility and industrial equipment. They were experiencing repeated failures due to their existing system spraying neat water onto the dies rather than the lubricant mixture. This resulted in inadequate lubrication during production, which led to stuck castings, tool damage and unscheduled stops in production for unplanned tool changes.
To address these challenges, the manufacturer adopted the QH FLUID INTELLIGENCE™ platform, which features Quaker Houghton’s top-tier die lubricants. This platform is enhanced by hardware and software that enable real-time monitoring and control of die lubricant performance. The QH FLUIDCONTROL™ DAS 180 hardware was chosen for its capability to integrate sensor and control technology, allowing for the mixing, storage, and continuous regulation of neat lubricant and water concentration with an accuracy of ±0.1%. This system is designed to centrally manage multiple die casting processes effectively.
The solution eliminated the many downsides of the previous manual management of die lubricants – including fluctuating concentration and therefore, inadequate lubricity or overconsumption; stuck castings; tooling damage; unplanned downtime and scrapped product.
For this leading Tier 1 supplier, moving to the QH FLUID INTELLIGENCE™ platform allowed their process conditions to be stabilized to consistently achieve higher output quality and reduce overall defect rates. This was achieved through a dedicated and alarmed pressure system that applied precise and consistent volume every cycle, ensuring uniform cooling and stable die temperature for predictable casting results. Alongside improvements in quality and decreased downtime, the ability to have accurate, continuous lubricant monitoring resulted in reducing consumption and saving 30% on die lubricant costs.
In another example where Quaker Houghton helped a manufacturer optimize their die casting process, significant cost savings and operational improvements were realized using QH FLUIDMONITORTM RM hardware. This solution enabled automated and proactive monitoring of the feed tank’s pre-determined ratio of die lubricant vs. water. The ability to have a dashboard of the data and alerts in real-time via QH FLUIDTRENDTM software allowed the team to proactively identify potential issues with concentration before downstream problems occurred. This led to annual cost savings of approximately $1 million from eliminating unplanned downtime and reducing lubricant consumption by 27% per unit.
Integrating intelligence
Onboarding new technology can be a daunting task for many die casters, particularly those who have yet to embrace digitalization and Industry 4.0. No matter where manufacturers are on their digitalization journey, Quaker Houghton can facilitate the integration of automation technology to improve the ability to measure, control and optimize essential lubricants. Our global team of die casting industry experts can also provide support in installing our proprietary hardware and spray equipment to each machine, even determining and setting upper and lower control limits for concentration and pressure, as well as determining optimal spray settings.
Beyond integration of automation hardware and software, Quaker Houghton also offers dedicated fluid management support, including required preventative maintenance. This reliable end-to-end support, combined with our deep industry knowledge, brings meaningful and viable solutions to die casting.
About Lee Shelton:
Lee Shelton has over 25 years of experience in industrial chemicals, currently serving as Global Industry Director for Die Casting and Impregnation at Quaker Houghton. He has worked in Asia for over a decade, including 6 years in Japan and 4 years in Hong Kong, before leading a new acquisition in the US. Now back in the UK, Lee is focused on driving Quaker Houghton’s global expansion in niche areas within the foundry sector.
