Public survey on European foundries producing Aluminium alloy castings

StaCast Project has been aimed at individuating by means of properly elaborated questionnaires and of dedicated surveys the specific standardization needs for what concerns Al alloys castings. This activity is the direct consequence of the StaCast Project motivation, which is based on four key-issues. 1. The vast potential of Aluminium Alloys EU Foundry Industry strongly needs a coordinated set of Support Actions, in which a central role MUST be played by the elaboration of new and advanced Standards, particularly in the fields of Defects classification and Mechanical Design, which are mutually inter-related. 2. The use of a new EU Standard for the Classification of Casting Defects, which will help EU Aluminium alloys foundries at promptly performing corrective actions to reduce/eliminate defects, is becoming strategic. Such Standard will be also a useful “communication tool” among all the actors of the design and manufacturing chain. 3. The development of a new Standard on mechanical properties is strongly needed too, in order to correctly evaluate the effective mechanical potential of Al foundry alloys. 4. The design and manufacturing of Al alloys cast components NEED the availability of dedicated rules and guidelines, in order to correctly make use of the two new standards deriving from issues 2) and 3). The four issues above need, first of all, to be confirmed by a dedicated survey to be carried out on an EU basis. This is the background which led to the set up of the Questionnaire, and to the answers elaboration which are described in the present Chapter.