Through technology transfer and the diffusion of innovative technologies, the Metals Technology Laboratory (METL) will facilitate strategic projects that will contribute towards the growth of a sustainable South African and more closely the Western Cape foundry industry.
Launched recently at CPUT, the METL is a highly specialized unit that is based in the TIA Adaptronics Advanced Manufacturing Technology Laboratory. Its activities are aligned to the National Foundry Technology Network (NFTN), a key foundry industry support initiative, which is funded by the Department of Trade and Industry.
Spearheading activities at the METL is Llewellyn Cupido, who is part of the first cohort of South Africans who participated in the Research and Innovation in Foundry Technology scholarship programme, a Department of Science and Technology supported initiative aimed at developing high-end expertise to support the technology and innovation capabilities of the South African foundry industry.
Cupido says while South Africa has a struggling foundry industry, much more can be done to facilitate the development of a globally competitive industry and the potential is great.
“Technology and innovation in the South African industry is lacking. They are able to melt metal into shapes, but the question is how can they make better products using innovative technologies?” says Cupido.
“Internationally the industry has become innovative. We need to innovate to compete internationally.”
Cupido says the METL aims to expedite projects that will see the introduction of new technology into the South African foundry industry and will also provide general project assistance, in collaboration with its various partners.
Based on the Bellville Campus, the unit has access to a range of capabilities, which include state-of-the-art design and product performance simulation (virtual engineering), and casting simulation utilising the software MAGMASOFT. The unit also has the software Thermo-Calc, which is used for thermodynamic calculations such as phase diagrams and for the exploration of thermodynamic properties of chemical reactions.
The unit will also work closely with the Product Lifecycle Management Competency Centre, also based at the Bellville Campus. The centre, which is the only of its kind in Africa, focuses on product design, product lifecycle management and system engineering.
Cupido says MELT is currently also involved in several projects, which includes a collaboration with the China Academy of Machinery Science and Technology. The project is exploring the use of patternless casting technology to reduce production time and cost, as well as the improvement of dimensional accuracies by producing casting as close to the final product. Other projects involve the design and simulation of castings used on power plants and the investigation of the corrosivity of specialty steels used in nuclear structures.
Cupido will also participate in the upcoming BRICS Foundry Forum and visit China later this year.
- The Research and Innovation in Foundry Technology scholarship programme is a collaborative initiative between CPUT, the Faculty of Foundry Engineering at AGH University of Science and Technology and the Laboratory for Aerospace Materials of Rzeszow University of Technology in Poland. It is supported by the Department of Science and Technology,
Written by Candes Keating
Email:
Provides coverage for the Engineering and Applied Sciences Faculties; the Bellville and Wellington Campuses, and research and innovation news.