Conceived in the USA by Meehan and Smalley in the early 1920's

Meehanite originated the very revolutionary concept that cast iron would be treated as a quality material manufactured to precise specifications

Previously grey cast iron with its coarse graphite structure and phosphide eutectic had been regarded as unreliable by designers

The change in outlook was brought about by the fact that the structure of iron, especially the graphite form, could be controlled - Meehanite Metallurgy

This process became known as inoculation and produced not only high strength irons, but ones which were less sensitive to variations in casting thickness

The effect of inoculation is easily measured before pouring any castings

Wedge testing, for process control, was originally developed by Meehanite

The test indicates the tendency of the metal to chill and is directly related to ruling casting section

Meehanite foundries make particular use of the information gained from the wedge test with regard to the constitution of the metal before and after inoculation

Process advanced through the development of a range of Meehanite metal types with analytical compositions which correlate to the castings being made

Control was extended to cover all foundry process parameters and developed as an inseparable extension to Meehanite metallurgy

The Meehanite Process employed in 1945 was the earliest form of foundry statistical process control

More stringent control was exercised through the implementation of standardised Meehanite gating and feeding practices

The Process incorporates a continuous system of inspection of all process parameters recording and recognising deviations and acting upon such events in time resulting in a practical quality assurance system In the interests of casting quality recommendations on the manufacturing equipment suited to the production of the foundry's casting range are made during the introduction of the Process

A structured programme of audit (service) visits are applied to assess a foundry's quality level and reports detailing practical remedial actions are provided

A scrap control system is introduced and monitored during audit visits

Metallurgical principles developed in the production of Meehanite flake irons were extended enabling the manufacture of nodular irons even from the cupola

Many patented procedures were developed to overcome magnesium recovery and fade

Ultrasonic determination of nodular iron structures was pioneered as a control tool

Meehanite metallurgy was further expanded to create a family of irons to withstand heat, wear and corrosion service conditions

More recently the Process has advanced to cover the manufacture of high strength austenitic ductile irons - Meehanite ADI

Following a number of years development 1996 saw the introduction of the first Meehanite realtime Casting Solidification Simulation and mould filling software, providing:

• Mould filling sequences (single & multiple cavity)
• Casting solidification (time elapsed tomography)
• Defect risk analysis
• Nodularity evaluation
• Hardness profiles