Die Casting and Overmolding Make Strong Case for Tester
The process was used by Chi-cago White Metal Casting Inc. to make the housing for a new fiber optic analyzer designed by Tektronix (Beaverton, OR). The materials marriage provides better impact strength and dent resistance than plastic without a large increase in weight.
According to Jim McGrath, a senior manufacturing engineer at Tektronix, magnesium beat out thermoplastics on four crucial counts. First, it provides ruggedness for the analyzer to survive a battery of tough physical tests, including a 48-inch drop to concrete. "Many of the plastics used for such housings would disintegrate," he says.