To Munich and Beyond with 第三级 MAGMA Certification
詹妮尔贝利 | Waupaca铸造员工焦点:Alan Crawford
Waupaca铸造 Tooling Engineer Alan Crawford earned his 第三级 MAGMASOFT® certification in 2022—one of only approximately 50 in the United States. His recent presentation at the MAGMA North American User Group meeting in Chicago, 伊利诺斯州, 9月7日至9日, 2022, 产生了重大影响. 事实上, the certification panel asked Crawford to share his capstone project again at the MAGMA International User Group event in Munich, 德国, 10月19日至21日, 2022.
Crawford has been using MAGMASOFT® since 2013. 第三级 certification requires successful demonstration and use of the software’s advanced features, primarily its ability to conduct simulations and through the completion of a capstone project self-chosen by the user seeking certification. Crawford asserts: “The simulations are a big deal, as this saves time in sampling and time and money with any foreseeable issues or concerns. It brings to the customer experience a demonstration that they can give a newer design and show them features that can be tweaked slightly and with foresight into those results.”
.jpg "2022-Alan-Crawford-Earns-Level-3-MAGMA-certification-(2).jpg")
Simulations with MAGMASOFT® in an automated virtual test plan allows engineers to pursue different quality and cost objectives simultaneously. While there is other software that functions similarly, MAGMA is an industry standard and has 16 users across Waupaca铸造. Crawford is the fourth to attain 第三级 certification at the Foundry. Levels I and II of MAGMASOFT® training through MAGMAacademy primarily develop the basics of how to use the software. 第三级, 然而, is a culmination of Levels I and II and is project-based, requiring the engineer seeking certification to show proficient use of the software and its advanced features.
Crawford’s project centers on research and design with a brake rotor using the “Stress Module” of the software. The project took nearly a year to complete. “它有起有落, but it has been incredibly fun and interesting overall…and very enjoyable,克劳福德说。. “Going out on the floor and watching the results of what I did and the changes we made—especially in the core making process—because watching the solution work was quite enjoyable.克劳福德报告道.
没有有限元分析工具, the expense of trial and error and experimentation of such changes in a production environment would be cost-prohibitive. With MAGMASOFT® and Crawford’s capstone project that led to his 第三级 certification, work toward optimizing brake rotor manufacturing at Waupaca铸造 will continue as he explores further opportunities.
Waupaca铸造 has a rich reputation supplying iron castings for brake systems—both for the automotive and commercial vehicle markets. The software enables Crawford to continuously improve and optimize brake production manufacturing. “客户可以给我们一个新的设计理念, and we can work through some of its aspects in the software and show, 通过模拟, how things could be changed slightly this way or that to optimize the design.”
.jpg "2022-Alan-Crawford-presents-MAGNAsoft-project-(1).jpg")
瓦帕卡铸造厂模具总监 & 流程制造业, 大卫·斯科特, 克劳福德解释说, “married the different aspects of the software so that we could predict what the dimensional effects would be on the casting in addition to manufacturing this very specialized core for the rotor and putting that all together in the mold,” leading to discovery and insights that truly change how rotors can and will be manufactured at Waupaca铸造. “Alan is helping Waupaca铸造 revolutionize the way that we make and manufacture rotors, continuing with Waupaca铸造’s legacy of continuous improvement and keeping us competitive in the marketplace,斯科特补充道。.
Among the benefits of 第三级 MAGMASOFT® certification is benchmarking other projects. While at the International User Group in Munich, Crawford learned from other MAGMASoft users and returned with new ideas for continuous improvement on his initial project. He will continue to make adjustments and progress toward even greater gains and brake rotor manufacturing optimization.
Crawford manages tooling design and build at Waupaca铸造 headquarters, where he is primarily responsible for tooling used for horizontally-parted castings. Prior to joining Waupaca铸造 in 2020, Crawford had previously worked elsewhere in the industry after earning his Mechanical Engineering degree from Michigan Technological University in 2006.
