Enclosures and housings
Die-cast boxes and housings with bosses, ribs and gasket grooves cast in.
For junction boxes, drives and control gear
Aluminium die-cast parts, machined to your drawing.
High-pressure and gravity die-cast aluminium housings, covers and brackets, machined and finished as one part. Manufactured in India, inspected for porosity against your drawing, and delivered to your Incoterm.
- Pressure or gravity cast
- Porosity checked
- Measured records
Housing, AlSi9Cu3, powder coatedDWG REV. B
- Material
- EN AC-46000, AlSi9Cu3
- Finish
- Powder coated, RAL 7035
- Critical dimension
- Bore Ø52.000 +0.030 mm
- Inspection
- Porosity checked before machining
What we make
Covers and end shields
Covers, lids and motor end shields with machined bearing seats.
For motors, generators and enclosures
Housings with cast fins
Housings with cooling fins cast in, so the enclosure is the heat sink.
For drives, chargers and LED drivers
Brackets and frames
Cast brackets, frames and mounting parts, lighter than steel fabrications.
For mounting gear inside enclosures
Busduct and switchgear castings
Joint covers, end boxes, tap-off housings and terminal covers.
For busduct and switchgear makers
Machined castings
Castings delivered machined, tapped, impregnated and leak tested.
For parts with bores, seals and threads
Choosing a casting
Volume and wall thickness decide the process. Porosity decides what can be machined and sealed.
Process for the volume and wall
- High-pressure die casting HPDC
- Thin walls, fine detail and a fast cycle.Watch for: Trapped gas porosity; parts usually cannot be heat treated or welded.
- Gravity die casting
- Denser metal and thicker walls, and it can be heat treated.Watch for: Slower cycle and thicker minimum walls.
- Sand casting
- No steel die, for low volumes and large parts.Watch for: Rougher surface and wider tolerances.
Machining and sealing for the bores and seals
- Machining stock
- The extra metal left on faces to be machined.Watch for: Too much cuts through the dense skin into porosity below.
- Impregnation
- Vacuum resin seals porosity, for parts that must be leak tight or hold an IP rating.Watch for: Name it on the drawing when the part holds pressure or a seal.
- Leak testing
- Pressure decay testing on every part where specified.Watch for: Give the test pressure and the leak rate limit.
Finish for the surface
- Powder coating
- A durable coat in any RAL colour.Watch for: Mask threads, bores and earthing points.
- Conversion coating
- Keeps the surface conductive and makes a base for paint.Watch for: Specify trivalent; hexavalent chromium is restricted under RoHS.
- Anodising
- Possible on low-silicon alloys.Watch for: High-silicon die-cast alloys anodise grey and patchy.
Specifications
- Types
- Enclosures and housings, covers and end shields, housings with cast fins, brackets and frames, busduct and switchgear castings, machined castings
- Alloys
- EN AC-46000 (AlSi9Cu3); EN AC-44300 (AlSi12); EN AC-42000 (AlSi7Mg); ADC12; LM6 and LM25
- Processes
- High-pressure die casting, gravity die casting, sand casting, CNC machining, impregnation
- Part weight
- 0.05–15 kg standard
- Wall thickness
- From 1.5 mm pressure die cast; from 3 mm gravity cast
- Finishes
- Powder coating, trivalent conversion coating, shot blasting, wet paint
- Checks
- Porosity by X-ray or sectioning where specified; machined dimensions; coating thickness; leak test where specified
- Standards
- Alloys to EN 1706; casting tolerances to ISO 8062; porosity acceptance to your standard
- Quantities
- Prototype builds to mass production
Pressure or gravity
Pressure die casting is faster and thinner. Gravity casting is denser and stronger.
High-pressure die casting
Metal is injected into a steel die at high speed and pressure. Thin walls, fine detail and a fast cycle.
Choose it for housings and covers at volume, with walls from about 1.5 mm.
Gravity die casting
Metal is poured into the die under gravity. Denser, can be heat treated, with thicker walls and a slower cycle.
Choose it for parts that must be strong, pressure tight or heat treated.
- Porosity
- Higher in pressure die casting, where gas is trapped as the die fills fast.
- Heat treatment and welding
- Gravity castings can be heat treated and welded. Pressure die castings usually cannot.
- Volume
- Pressure die casting at volume; gravity at medium volume; sand casting for low volume and large parts.
Questions buyers ask
What causes porosity, and how do you check it?+
Gas trapped as the metal fills the die, and shrinkage as it cools. We check it by X-ray or by sectioning sample parts before machining, so a hidden void does not become a leak after machining.
Can a die-cast part be anodised?+
Most die-cast alloys contain a lot of silicon and anodise grey and patchy. Powder coating or conversion coating is the usual finish. Where anodising is needed, the alloy is chosen for it.
How do you make a casting leak tight?+
Vacuum impregnation fills porosity with resin. Parts are then pressure tested where specified, to the leak rate on your drawing.
Why do castings and machining go together?+
The casting is only as good as the second operation. Controlling both means machining stock, datums and porosity are planned together, not argued over between two suppliers.
Can you match an existing casting from another supplier?+
Yes. Send the drawing, and a sample if the drawing is incomplete. We tell you what can be held before we quote, then make samples for your approval.
Can you take a small order?+
Yes. Small, engineering-heavy batches are work we take, from prototype quantities upwards.
Send the drawing
Email us your enquiry at contact@qumek.com. We respond within 12 hrs.
Your enquiries are confidential with us and we proceed with manufacturing only after signing a NDA.
Need a DFM review, a prototype or a test plan before production? See the services.