Precision Investment Casting Foundry for Complex Steel Components
Alloy steel components from 5g to 2kg with maximum dimensions of 300 mm. VDG P690 D1/D2 tolerances. EN 10204 3.1/3.2 traceability from melt to delivery. Plasma nitriding in-house. ISO 9001:2015.
The only Romanian manufacturer combining investment casting, plasma nitriding, and in-house material testing under a single quality management system.
Why Investment Casting?
Investment casting (lost wax technology) produces complex alloy steel geometries that machining from raw material cannot achieve economically — internal channels, undercuts, thin walls, and blind features — as a single near-net-shape component. Downstream machining is reduced by 30–40%.
Investment casting is the right process when:
- Component has internal channels, undercuts, or thin walls below 3–4mm
- Billet machining would waste 30–60% of input material
- Multiple machined sub-parts can be consolidated into one casting
- Series size: prototype through ~10,000 pieces
- Alloy steel, stainless steel, tool steel, or heat-resistant steel is specified
Investment casting is NOT suitable when:
- Simple geometry — cylinders, flat plates, or single-bore blocks are cheaper to machine
- Volume above ~100,000 pcs/year — die casting or forging is more economical
- Non-ferrous alloys — Plasmaterm processes steel grades only
- Parts exceeding 2kg or 300mm — outside the production envelope
- Single prototype with no planned series — tooling cost is difficult to justify
Tooling
One-time cost, designed and manufactured in-house. No external tooling supplier. DFM review before commitment. FAI available on new components.
Why Plasmaterm
Casting, plasma nitriding, machining, heat treatment, and material testing are performed in-house, under one ISO 9001:2015 QMS. One purchase order. One EN 10204 traceability chain from melt to delivery. No supplier handovers.
- No traceability gap — casting and surface treatment under the same quality record
- No incoming inspection overhead — no sub-supplier deliveries to check
- One audit covers all processes — not three separate supplier audits
- DFM review before tooling — castability issues resolved before cost is committed
- Prototype through ~10,000 pcs — built for engineering flexibility, not mass production
- EN 10204 types 2.1 / 2.2 / 3.1 / 3.2 — OES composition analysis per melt, in-house
- Founded 1965 as a plasma surface engineering research institute — 60 years of metallurgical depth
Capabilities
Investment Casting
- Process: Lost wax precision casting — alloy steels exclusively
- Weight: 5g–2kg | Optimum range: 15g–500g
- Max dimension: 300mm
- Surface finish as-cast: Ra 3.2–6.4 μm | After machining: Ra 0.8 μm
- Tolerances: VDG P690 D1/D2 — tables available on request
- Capacity: 4–5 tonnes/month
- Series: prototype through ~10,000 pcs
- Ceramic cores: in-house — internal channels, blind holes, bearing housings
- Reverse engineering: available from physical sample
Alloy Steel Portfolio — 50+ EN/DIN Grades
Steel alloys only. Four categories, 50+ EN/DIN grades processed. Full list in the Capability Statement.
Industries Served
- Defence — P690 D1/D2 castings; structural brackets, linkages, housings; EN 10204 3.1/3.2; AQAP 2110 in progress
- Oil & Gas — valve bodies, pump impellers, flow control; 316L and 1.4418; EN 10204 3.1/3.2
- Hydraulics & Valves — complex internal flow geometry cast directly; plasma nitriding for sliding contact surfaces
- Industrial Machinery — wear components, bearing housings, guide blocks; 42CrMo4 and tool steels
- Mining & Construction — Hadfield manganese (X120Mn12) and high-Cr tool steels; impact and abrasion
- Automotive — prototype and small series; Tier 1 supplier experience
- Railway — fatigue-critical fixings and internals; documented material certification
- Food Processing — stainless castings; no weld seams; hygienic geometry
- Textile Machinery — plasma nitriding extends service life 2–3x on guide components
- High-Security Locks — surface hardness, precision geometry, anti-tampering performance
- External Prosthetics — fatigue strength, EN 10204 3.1/3.2, cyclic loading
- Counter-Drone Systems — dynamic load resistance, field reliability
Typical Components
- Valve bodies and flow control housings — internal geometry, stainless steel
- Pump impellers and wear inserts — complex profiles, alloy steel
- Bearing housings — tight bore tolerance, plasma nitrided surfaces
- Actuator components and mechanical linkages — fatigue-critical alloy steel
- Defence structural brackets — P690 D1/D2, unbroken traceability
- Guide blocks and wear plates — tool steel, 900–1100 HV
- Locking mechanism parts — precision geometry, high surface hardness
How can I request a quotation?
Simply send us your:
2D drawing (PDF/DWG)
3D CAD model (STEP, IGES or Parasolid)
Material specification
Annual quantity
Machining requirements
Heat treatment or surface treatment requirements (if applicable)
Our engineering team will review your project and provide a technical evaluation together with a competitive quotation.
What is the maximum casting size?
Our investment casting process is optimized for components weighing between 5 g and 2 kg, with an optimum production range of 15–500 g and maximum dimensions of approximately 300 mm.
What dimensional tolerances can be achieved?
Our castings are manufactured according to VDG P690 D1/D2 dimensional tolerance standards, ensuring excellent repeatability and precision for demanding industrial applications.
What surface finish can investment castings achieve?
Typical surface roughness is:
Ra 3.2–6.4 μm (as cast)
Ra 0.8 μm after machining
This minimizes additional finishing operations while ensuring high-quality functional surfaces.
Can you produce prototypes?
Yes. We support projects from prototype development through low-volume and medium-volume serial production. Our engineering team works closely with customers to optimize designs before full-scale manufacturing.
Can you manufacture complex internal geometries?
Yes. Using ceramic core technology, we can produce castings with internal cavities, cooling channels, oil passages and other complex internal features that would be difficult or impossible to machine economically.