High-precision aluminium castings for the defence sector

Published - 9th Jun 2020

Whether for land, sea or air, military equipment operates in some of the harshest environments on the planet. Quality, integrity and reliability are critically important and components need to meet the highest engineering standards.

Haworth Castings has a long history of producing aluminium castings for customers in the defence sector. With best-in-class facilities and renowned expertise, we produce precision-engineered castings that meet the stringent requirements of the sector.

In this article, we look at how our unique capabilities are helping to deliver the competitive advantage in this arena.

Meeting our customers’ exacting requirements

At Haworth Castings, we take pride in finding solutions to the most complex engineering challenges for airborne, terrestrial and marine defence applications.

Our castings are used in a wide variety of applications in the sector, including:

• Flame and blast-proof enclosures

• Heat sinks

• Engine parts for unmanned vehicles

• Handling and transportation systems

• Critical mechanical components

With a highly successful track record in the defence sector, we are experienced in handling the rigorous controls, complex contractual arrangements and strict confidentiality agreements associated with the sector and have robust quality management procedures in place.

Quality, precision and consistency are our watchwords. This explains why Haworth Castings is the first port of call for many defence manufacturers.

Selecting the right material and process for the job

The aluminium alloys used for our castings are specially selected depending on the application and need to meet certain criteria around mechanical properties such as:

• excellent strength-to-weight ratio

• resistance to corrosion, heat and stress

• good machinability

Alloys such as L99, L169 and LM25 are used for a number of our defence jobs because they have good fluidity, meaning thin-walled sections can be cast with ease, good machinability once heat treated, making them good choices where intricate features need to be added, as well as excellent tensile strength. L99 and L169 alloys have high levels of purity and produce components of superior quality.

Both aluminium sand casting and gravity-die casting are used in our defence-related projects. The choice depends on our customer requirements in terms of volume, surface finish and other specifications of the end application.

We work closely with our customers to determine the best casting technique and alloy for each individual job.

From prototype to fully finished part

Castings for the defence industry need to meet stringent quality requirements and Haworth Casting offers a complete turnkey solution, assisting with design for manufacture (DfM) and managing the entire production process, from prototyping through to manufacturing, finishing and NDT testing.

Our highly-skilled engineers use casting simulation software as a tool in the early design phases to ensure high-integrity castings with the best dimensional accuracy and surface finish. Thanks to our in-house machining capabilities, we can produce fully-finished, machined castings with tolerances as tight as +/-5 microns.

We also have comprehensive UKAS-accredited testing and verification capabilities, encompassing X-ray, crack detection, ultrasonic testing and chemical/mechanical analysis.

However complex the challenge, our team at Haworth Castings can find the right solution. To get in touch please contact us on 01794 512685 or email sales@haworthcastings.co.uk.