National Bronze & Metals, Inc.

The casting vote In need of greater capacity and the ability to manufacture special alloys, National Bronze & Metals elected to build a complete new foundry in Lorain, Ohio, president Michael Greathead explains to Ruari McCallion. National Bronze & Metals, Inc. (NBM) has been in the business of brass, bronze and copper alloys since 1983. Headquartered in Houston, NBM is not only a manufacturer, it is also a leading distributor of copper-based alloys to the service centers that serve as the supply chain to the energy, aerospace, automotive, plumbing and heating, construction and general engineering industries. In 2007 NBM added a $2 million, 52,000-square-foot warehouse in Houston. That capital commitment is dwarfed, however, by the $22 million investment in the foundry in Lorain, Ohio. NBM originally acquired the site and its foundry in 1997, but over time the company realized that it needed more.  ÔÇ£By 2004 it became clear that we couldnÔÇÖt compete for larger-volume business or manufacture certain niche alloys with the existing equipment,ÔÇØ says Michael Greathead, president of NBM. ÔÇ£We made the decision to change the facility, and after considering various options, we concluded it was in our best interests to build a whole new foundry.ÔÇØ NBM recognized the need to work closely with local authorities, both in its role as a corporate citizen and as a significant industrial resource and employer in the Cleveland area. After a series of discussions and presentations, support from Lorain County and the State of Ohio helped to move the proposal to reality; everything came together in late 2007 and ground was broken for the new foundry in February 2008. ÔÇ£The project has five different segments,ÔÇØ says Greathead. ÔÇ£New offices were completed in August 2008; the warehouse and finishing buildings followed in March 2009 and the foundry building itself was completed in October 2009. Installation of new horizontal continuous casting equipment took place over a five month period from July to November 2009, and by March 2010 all three casting lines will be operational. Vertical continuous casting equipment has been installed over the last four months and we will be firing up this equipment for vertical casting in early March. A major component of both types of equipment is the new state of the art furnaces and there are two channel furnaces serving one horizontal casting line and one vertical casting line that will contribute to the new manufacturing capacity at NBM.ÔÇØ The new foundry has been built on the site of the old one but NBM purchased a further 5.2 acres of land to bring the 140,000 square feet of foundry, warehouse and finishing space under one roof. The horizontal casting lines consist of one channel and two crucible furnaces while the vertical casting line will have a single channel and one crucible furnace. These two different casting lines will enable NBM to manufacture many alloys. ÔÇ£It depends on the alloy, the size of the item to be produced and its shape, as to whether it is sent through the vertical or horizontal casting lines,ÔÇØ Greathead explains. ÔÇ£The cooling technology is more advanced in the horizontal line than the vertical, which allows us to make more intricate alloys that require more complex cooling. ItÔÇÖs a function of the cooling system; different alloys cool at different rates.ÔÇØ Whichever process is used, the alloys will go through a state-of-the-art facility that is completely computer-controlled. Its capacity represents a tripling of that of the previous foundry, with a maximum capacity of more than 1.6 million pounds per month. With all the operations under one roof the new facility provides for a much improved process flow. ÔÇ£Scrap metal is our raw material, and it was previously delivered to one building, where a forklift would unload it. Once the scrap had been sorted it then had to be picked up and moved to a second or third building outside where the manufacturing facilities in the old foundry were located.ÔÇØ says Greathead. ÔÇ£Now the scrap is delivered directly into the main production area where it can be sorted, loaded in drums and be placed on the furnace deck via elevators (for the vertical casting lines) or via forklift, from where it progresses to a barrel dumper, and is then loaded into a metal vibrator, which feeds directly into the furnace. WeÔÇÖve eliminated triple handling, and the forklifts arenÔÇÖt skidding around on the ice and rain. We have a foundry with a roof height above 45 feet, fully equipped with overhead cranes, which we didnÔÇÖt have before. When the products go to finishing, they are transported as simply as if they were going into the next-door office. ItÔÇÖs a much better flow, with the same ground level, and itÔÇÖs all under one roof.ÔÇØ NBM has also invested heavily in air monitoring systems, not only to ensure that its foundry conforms to EPA air standards but to improve the overall working conditions for all of the employees. ÔÇ£We put a lot of effort into the bag house system to reduce emissions, and we comply with all EPA regulations on such emissions,ÔÇØ Greathead continues. ÔÇ£We have new locker rooms, which our workers access through an air blower that removes lead dust from their clothes.ÔÇØ The investment has already reaped a return, as blood lead levels have shown a marked reduction. Other advantages look set to follow soon. ItÔÇÖs a major improvement, and opportunities to improve quality processes and make the operation more efficient flow from it. While the company does not use lean techniques or six sigma ÔÇ£straight out of the rulebook,ÔÇØ it is adapting elements of them for its requirements. It has already achieved ISO 9001:2008 certification at both the Houston and Lorain locations. The driving force behind NBMÔÇÖs investment in the new foundry is primarily competitive. The company is seeking to capture certain niche markets and to enter markets for which it had not previously been able to manufacture. ÔÇ£Our additional capacity will be utilized to manufacture aircraft industry heat-treated grades of aluminum bronze and a variety of other specialty bronze alloys,ÔÇØ says Greathead. ÔÇ£WeÔÇÖre making silicon bronzes and manganese bronzes of various grades, and weÔÇÖre looking to produce a new alloy that will replace nickel aluminum bronze. In addition to the foundry production NBM has begun releasing samples of a new, patent-pending, lead-free brass, which we believe will reflect improved machinability, a problem when going with lead free brass. We believe that National Bronze & Metals has the solution.ÔÇØ