One of Europe’s leading shell moulding foundries based in Northampton has invested £700,000 in a new machine thanks to support from Yorkshire Bank.
RSM Castings in North Portway Close on the Round Spinney Industrial Estate produces more than two million castings a year for the automotive, hydraulic and engineering industries for their customers in Germany, France, Slovakia, Hungary, Poland, USA, Brazil, China and India.
Now, the forward-thinking company, which employs 100 people, has spent six weeks installing a Thermal Reclamation and Resin Coating Plant inside two 11-metre high buildings.
The state-of-the-art machine was bought from Peterborough-based Omega Foundry Machinery with finance provided by Yorkshire Bank’s Business and Private Banking Centre in Gold Street, Northampton.
Barrie Jones, chairman and joint managing director of RSM Castings, said that previously once the sand had been used in the castings, it was not possible to re-use and had to be replaced. The resulting sand was sent for re-use in asphalt production or land fill.
“The sand-recycling plant has a low mass fluidized bed furnace which burns off the resin and a separate plant to re-coat the sand with a Novolac Resin for re-use in the moulding process, meaning 90 per cent of the sand can be re-used,” he said.
“The thermal reclamation process also improves the quality of the sand due to a change in the structure of the sand grain, giving higher strengths than conventional sands.
“This machine is currently producing 15 tonnes of coated sand every day and we are already seeing the benefits. In October it saved us £20,000 since we no longer have to import sand.
“There are also plenty of environmental benefits because we are taking less waste to landfill and are reducing our transport costs.
“The support from Yorkshire Bank has been crucial in buying the machine. We have been customers since 1999 and in these tough economic times, this kind of backing is more important than ever.”
Brian Colquhoun, regional director at Yorkshire Bank in the East Midlands, said RSM Castings is a leading company in its field not just in the UK but in Europe.
“The fact RSM’s customers are spread across Europe and further afield underlines the quality of its work,” he said.
“This new machine will prove beneficial in reducing its import costs as well as having the added bonus of being able to recycle the sand it uses in its wide variety of castings which are made to order.
“RSM has built a reputation since it was established in 1975 for providing high quality castings and I am sure the decision to invest £700,000 in a new machine will pay dividends in the months and years to come.”
