High Value Manufacturing For The Mega-Shell Large Scale Ceramic Shell Investment Casting Facility At The Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre

MEGAshell is a ceramic shell moulding and casting process for very large precision castings. By investing in this capability, AMRC Castings will now be able to produce parts in moulds of up to two metres in diameter and 2.5 metres long, which could weigh more than 2.5 tonnes. The facility will be large enough to make moulds to produce the largest variants of aero engine intercases, up to 500kg, and structural aerospace components, with dimensional accuracy and surface finish comparable to investment casting. AMRC Castings is the only UK operation able to produce a ceramic shell of this size. It demonstrates the UK’s emergence into what has been a tightly controlled market and provides the opportunity to be competitive on a global stage. In addition to the benefit for the aerospace industry, there is also significant value for other industries. This has already been demonstrated in the nuclear sector, delivering significant cost reductions. By using its Replicast® and MEGAshell® technologies, AMRC Castings has been able to create a single ceramic mould to cast a highly dimensionally accurate, one piece stainless steel frame, with a superior surface finish, to fit on top of nuclear waste storage vessels. Currently, the frames are fabricated from 30 separate pieces of stainless steel – a costly and complex process, involving welding and detailed inspection of each joint. The project for Sellafield, aims to develop the UK’s civil nuclear manufacturing supply chain, and help UK companies win work in the industry at home and abroad: “We believe we can reduce the cost of the box by a sixth and, given the number of boxes, this could total up to £150m”, says Richard Gould, AMRC Castings’ Commercial Manager.