How to break through the situation and break through the encirclement of the casting industry under the pressure of transformation
How to break through the situation and break through the encirclement of the casting industry under the pressure of transformation
Foundry is the foundation of the manufacturing industry, and the development of the foundry industry is a key link in the national strategy of building a strong country. The country attaches great importance to the development and layout of the casting industry. The 14th Five Year Plan clearly defines the goal of Digital transformation: by 2025, more than 500000 tons of castings will be produced by 3D printing technology; Demonstration application of green molding materials such as inorganic binders; The recycling and utilization of foundry waste sand reaches over 8 million tons; Cultivate over 200 green casting factories. In April this year, the joint document of the three ministries also proposed to promote the industrial application of advanced process technologies such as integrated die-casting forming, dieless casting, and sand 3D printing.
As the world's largest foundry country, China's foundry industry has a market size of around 400 billion yuan, accounting for 45% of the global market; There are over 24000 foundries, with a total casting output of 51.7 million tons in 2022, maintaining a steady growth. But at the same time, there are also problems such as overcapacity, high energy consumption, high pollution, low strength, and low precision, high pressure on energy conservation and emission reduction, shortage of skilled workers, weak independent innovation ability, and severe homogeneous competition. According to statistics, there are over a thousand casting enterprises with an annual output of over 10000 tons and nearly 200 enterprises with an annual output of over 50000 tons in China. The casting production of over 2000 top companies accounts for over 55% of the total production capacity in China. However, leading enterprises lack customization or small-scale trial production capabilities, resulting in slow development speed and high costs of new products; Long tail enterprises have low capacity utilization rates and are mostly eliminated; Only the top enterprises in the "long tail" can survive by relying on 3D printing and increased automation rates, and may have several times the space for concentration improvement.
Under the multi wheel drive of policies, markets, technology, etc., 3DP sand printing technology has emerged. 3DP sand mold printing technology is a digital green manufacturing technology that is based on digital model files and uses adhesive materials such as powder metal or non-metal to construct objects through layer by layer printing. Compared to traditional sand casting, 3DP sand printing technology does not require molds and directly prints sand molds. Its design is flexible, and it can complete new product development and small and medium-sized batch product delivery with low cost and efficiency, quickly responding to market demand. In terms of quality, the 3DP sand mold is not limited by the mold sanding process, and has micrometer level high precision, complex structure integrated free forming. The casting surface accuracy of some aluminum castings can be comparable to precision casting, while also reducing the scrap rate caused by assembly errors and reducing worker labor.
The "14th Five Year Plan" is an important stage for China's Economic restructuring, industrial transformation and upgrading, and also an important period for China's foundry industry to accelerate its development. Some casting companies are still struggling with issues such as high energy consumption, high pollution, product accuracy not meeting requirements, and difficulty in hiring, trapped in a cycle of funds, technology, and orders, and feeling lost and confused. It is suggested that these business operators should break out of their inherent thinking as soon as possible, and on the basis of a deep understanding and understanding of the national policies, actively seek change, change their thinking and development methods. Through the transformation and upgrading of technology and processes, they can take the path of sustainable development that is green, intelligent, and high-end, in order to seize opportunities and break through in difficulties.
