“Never Compromise Quality.”

As the booklet notes, “VS Techno Cast has built its reputation on quality. The company produces its goods and services to always exceed customer-contracted standards and specifications.”

As the renowend supplier of commercial investment castings, VS Techno Cast, with its ISO 9002/
QS-9000 certified facilities. Beyond its role as a commercial supplier, however, VS Techno Cast also supplies castings to the military, aeronautical, nuclear and automotive industries. The relatively higher performance targets required by these applications call for correspondingly more stringent specifications. These higher standards are imposed by the industries themselves and, in some cases, other standard-setting organizations such as the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) and the ASME. VS Techno Cast’s lowcost processes provide some offset for the added cost of these internal controls and procedures. If you have a part that may need somewhat better controls, but not the full control of a more demanding specification , then you might want to take advantage of this better quality control.

Here are the important ways in which VS Techno Cast deals with quality assurance:

1. VS Techno Cast establishes visual and soundness requirements to meet each customer’s needs.

2. In setting up the casting practice, all castings are subject to radiographic (x-ray), and magnetic particle inspection or fluorescent penetrant inspections, even if the customer does not require them. This often results in more gating and thus higher cost to achieve VS Techno Cast’s minimum quality level.

3. VS Techno Cast uses chemical control ranges that are narrower than those in the ISO and ASME standard and have lower impurity levels. All raw materials are purchased to written specifications and checked to assure they meet those specifications prior to use.

4. VS Techno Cast chemically analyzes every metal melt before and during casting to assure all castings meet the specified chemistry. Castings are not processed until all chemistries have been evaluated, preventing any offchemistry parts from ever getting to the finishing department.

5. All heat treatment equipment is controlled and operated to the requirements of SAE AMS H 6875. This specification requires routine furnace probing to assure uniformity, metallographic evaluation after heat treatment as appropriate to the alloy and recording of each lot of heat-treated parts. All carbon and low alloy steels are carbon restored if that is suitable for the alloy. Many stainless steels are vacuum heat treated for the utmost in corrosion resistance.

6. In-process welding is done to a procedure that meets all requirements of SAE AMS STD 1595 and AMS 2694. Welders are also certified in accordance with these specifications.

7. Stainless steels are pickled and passivated to assure the best corrosion resistance for the alloy (VS Techno Cast Technical Update 2D4). There are many other process controls and inspections in the patternmaking, moldmaking and finishing areas of the plants. These controls contribute significantly to the consistently high quality of surface finish and dimensions. While all of this is costly, it is required to meet VS Techno Cast’s Code of Conduct statement and provide the highest quality commercial castings.