In early 2023, I received a call from a die casting plant in Shanghai. They were running two gas-fired reverberatory furnaces, each with a capacity of 3 tonnes. They melted around 18 tonnes per day of ADC12 alloy. Their energy bill had risen ...

The electric vehicle has changed the die casting furnace more in five years than the internal combustion engine did in fifty. That is not an exaggeration. When Tesla introduced the first “gigacast” rear underbody in 2019, it set off a chain reaction th...

China’s aerospace aluminium industry is at a crossroads. The demand has never been stronger. The technology has never been closer. But the gap between what China can produce and what its aerospace programmes actually need remains wider than most people...

China’s secondary aluminium industry is the largest in the world. It is also the most misunderstood. From the outside, it looks like a story of unstoppable growth. From the inside, it is a story of structural contradiction — rapid capacity ex...

Something has changed in Southeast Asia. Five years ago, most foundries in Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia, and Malaysia were running old gas-fired furnaces and patching them up. Today, they are investing in new equipment. Not because they want to. Becaus...

Twenty years ago, “Chinese furnace” meant cheap and basic. Ten years ago, it meant good value but questionable support. Today, it means something different. Chinese manufacturers are no longer just competing on price. They are competing on qu...

e biggest trend in 2026 is not a new furnace design. It is the pressure to cut energy, emissions, and metal loss at the same time. Buyers are no longer impressed by brochures. They want measured data. They want proof. I have spent 25 years selecting, ...

Troubleshoot why your aluminium furnace is using more gas than usual. Check burner, gas pressure, lining, and operation. 25 years of foundry experience. A sudden jump in gas consumption is almost never the gas meter’s fault. It is a signal t...

Step-by-step guide to fixing a gas furnace burner that won't ignite. Check gas supply, igniter, flame sensor, and safety interlocks. 25 years experience. A gas furnace burner that won’t ignite is usually caused by one of five things: no gas supply...

How to diagnose and repair refractory cracking in aluminum melting furnaces. Causes, inspection, repair methods, and prevention. 25 years of foundry experience。 Note: I use British spelling “aluminium” throughout, but “aluminum” appears where North Am...