A Proven Manufacturing Process with Modern Industrial Impact
Investment casting, also known as the lost wax process, has been used for centuries and continues to play a critical role in modern manufacturing. Originally developed to produce detailed works of art, the process evolved rapidly with the advancement of aerospace and turbine technologies and is now widely used across demanding industrial sectors.
Today, investment casting supports industries such as aerospace and defense, power generation, automotive, oil and gas, medical and orthopedic devices, agriculture, construction, and commercial products where precision, repeatability, and material performance are essential.
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High dimensional accuracy with repeatable results
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Ability to produce complex geometries and fine details
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Wide alloy selection tailored to application requirements
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Excellent surface finish with minimal secondary processing
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Reduced or eliminated machining requirements
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Lighter component weights without sacrificing strength
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Lower tooling and overall manufacturing costs
Benefits of GLIS Investment Casting
Choosing GLIS investment casting provides a combination of precision, flexibility, and cost efficiency. Our lost wax casting process enables the production of complex components with tight tolerances and consistent material properties.
GLIS Investment Casting Manufacturing Process
Drawings and Mold Tooling
The investment casting process begins with tooling design developed by the GLIS engineering team to meet each customer’s specific requirements. We create detailed 3D part drawings along with mold designs, gating systems, and shrinkage analysis to ensure dimensional accuracy and optimal metal flow.
After customer approval, injection tooling is manufactured in our in-house tool shop using state-of-the-art equipment. Sample wax patterns are produced and carefully inspected to validate the tooling before moving into full production, ensuring consistency, precision, and cost efficiency.
Wax Injection and Shell Coating
During the injection stage, molten wax is injected into the tooling to produce precise wax patterns with tight tolerances and smooth surface finishes. After deburring, individual wax patterns are assembled onto a central feed system, commonly referred to as a tree or cluster.
The assembled wax clusters are then cleaned and prepared for shell building. Refractory coatings composed of materials such as silica, zircon, and chamotte are applied in controlled, climate-regulated environments. Each layer is carefully dried and balanced to form a durable ceramic shell capable of withstanding the thermal and mechanical stresses of the casting process.
Dewaxing and Shell Calcination
After the ceramic shells have fully dried, the assembled clusters are sent through the dewaxing process. In this stage, the wax is melted and removed in an autoclave, leaving a hollow ceramic mold that precisely reflects the final component geometry.
The shells are then transferred to high-temperature furnaces, where they are heated between 950°C and 1050°C. This calcination step strengthens the ceramic shell and prepares it to withstand molten metal during casting.
Metal Melting and Pouring
After calcination, the heated ceramic shell assemblies are positioned on a sand bed and prepared for metal pouring. Molten metal is introduced into the molds under controlled conditions to ensure proper filling and solidification.
Alloy preparation is performed according to strict metallurgical and chemical specifications, ensuring consistent material properties, structural integrity, and performance in the final cast components.
Desmolding
Once the metal has fully cooled and solidified, the ceramic shells are carefully removed. The cast components are separated from the shells and prepared for the subsequent finishing processes.
Finishing
After deshelling, the cast components undergo a steel shot blasting process to remove residual ceramic material and surface impurities. The parts are then separated from the cluster and individually processed.
Each component is carefully sanded and blasted to achieve the desired surface finish and prepare it for the final inspection stage, ensuring quality and consistency across all parts.
Final Inspection
Each cast component undergoes a thorough final inspection by our quality control team. Inspectors examine the parts in detail to ensure they meet all dimensional, material, and surface quality standards required by the customer.
This rigorous inspection guarantees that every component leaving GLIS conforms to specifications and is ready for delivery or assembly.
Software Simulation
At GLIS, we utilize advanced casting simulation software, PROCAST® from ESI, to optimize and validate our processes. The software provides detailed results on mold filling speed, solidification, porosity prediction, turbulence, and air escape, enabling precise control over component quality.
Based on the finite element method, PROCAST® ensures maximum accuracy in simulating a wide range of casting processes, including shell, centrifugal, sand, and lost wax (investment) casting. This technology allows us to anticipate potential defects and optimize each casting before production begins.
GLIS Microfusion Tolerance Tables
Tabela 2 — Espessuras minimas de paredes
Dirnensoesem milimetros
| Liga metálica | Área pequena | Normal |
|---|---|---|
| Aços inoxidáveis série 300 | 1,0 mm | 1,2 mm |
| Ligas à base de cobalto | 1,15 mm | 1,2 mm |
| Aços inoxidáveis série 400 | 1,15 mm | 1,5 mm |
| Aços-carbono | 1,25 mm | 1,5 mm |
Tabela 3 - Tolerâncias de planicidade e forma
Dirnensoesem milimetros
| Faixa nominal de dimensões | D1 | D2 | D3 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Até 6 | 0,20 | 0,15 | 0,12 |
| 6 - 10 | 0,25 | 0,20 | 0,15 |
| 10 - 18 | 0,40 | 0,30 | 0,20 |
| 18 - 30 | 0,50 | 0,40 | 0,30 |
| 30 - 50 | 0,60 | 0,50 | 0,40 |
| 50 - 80 | 0,80 | 0,65 | 0,50 |
| 80 - 120 | 1,00 | 0,80 | 0,65 |
| 120 - 180 | 1,30 | 1,10 | 0,85 |
Tabela 4 - Tolerâncias de retilineidade
Dirnensoesem milimetros
| dimensões | D1 | D2 | D3 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Até 6 | 0,15 | 0,12 | 0,10 |
| 6 - 10 | 0,18 | 0,14 | 0,12 |
| 10 - 18 | 0,25 | 0,20 | 0,15 |
| 18 - 30 | 0,30 | 0,25 | 0,20 |
| 30 - 50 | 0,40 | 0,35 | 0,25 |
| 50 - 80 | 0,60 | 0,45 | 0,30 |
| 80 - 120 | 0,80 | 0,60 | 0,45 |
| 120 - 180 | 1,10 | 0,80 | 0,60 |
| 180-250 | 1,50 | 1,15 | 0,90 |
Tabela 5 - Tolerâncias de coaxialidade
Dirnensoesem milimetros
| dimensões | D1 | D2 | D3 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Até 6 | 0,30 | 0,25 | 0,20 |
| 6 - 10 | 0,35 | 0,30 | 0,25 |
| 10 - 18 | 0,50 | 0,40 | 0,30 |
| 18 - 30 | 0,60 | 0,50 | 0,40 |
| 30 - 50 | 0,80 | 0,60 | 0,50 |
| 50 - 80 | 1,10 | 0,80 | 0,60 |
| 80 - 120 | 1,30 | 1,00 | 0,80 |
| 120 - 180 | 1,80 | 1,40 | 1,10 |
| 180-250 | 2,40 | 1,90 | 1,60 |
Tabela 6 - Tabela de limites para profundidade de furos e fendas
Dirnensoesem milimetros
| Diâmetro do furo ou largura da fenda: x | Furos (Passante) | Furos (Cego) | Fendas (Passante) | Fendas (Cego) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 - 4 | 1 x | 0,6 x | 1 x | 1 x |
| 4 - 6 | 2 x | 1 x | 2 x | 1 x |
| 6 - 10 | 3x | 1.6 x | 3 x | 1,6 x |
| > 10 | 4 x | 2 x | 4 x | 2 x |
In-House Tooling
GLIS MB Group has its own Tooling sector. In our plant we have Machining Centers, CNC Lathes, Conventional Lathes, Universal Milling Machines, manual grinding machines and measuring equipment to guarantee the quality and precision of the molds.
Advantages of Own Tooling
- Development of molds for a wide range of products.
- Guarantee of quality, effectiveness and efficiency because we take the entire production process into account.
- Low burr rate for increased productivity.
- Frequent maintenance through polishing.
- Pieces with practically no closing line.
- Internal expertise that allows mold adjustments in less time due to history and previous design studies.
- Cost benefit
Manufacturing Process
After receiving the customer's drawings, our engineering sector begins studies to create and manufacture the mold. For this purpose, information is considered that covers the entire manufacturing process, such as: order volume to define the number of cavities, delivery times to verify the need for molds with drawers and/or extraction plates (automatic molds), part geometry for best solution in case of product complexity, need to use soluble wax, etc.
After carrying out the studies and defining the processes, the tools are modeled in specialized software and, with technical approval, the creation of the Machining program begins.
Our molds are manufactured with extremely high quality materials, such as aeronautical aluminum sheets (7,000 line) as they offer numerous benefits such as:
Mechanical resistance
Excellent Surface Finish
Durability
Elasticity
As soon as we receive the inputs, machining is carried out. And, after completion, the molds are sent for adjustments and closing.
For validation and approval, we perform a test injection to extract the wax parts and carefully check the dimensions using our quality process.