Model-based cost estimates for selecting a die casting process

Semisolid die casting (SSDC) is a newly developed technology to improve the quality of products and to reduce the costs of liquid die casting process. We assessed the gas-induced semisolid process (GISS), which generates a semisolid metal for die casting, in this comparison of the costs per unit between a traditional liquid die casting process and the semisolid die casting process. A process-based costing model (PBCM) was created to estimate the production costs. In principle, the PBCM consists of three submodels: process model, operation model, and financial model. This study indicates that three main factors, namely cycle time, rate of waste, and die life, affected the unit production costs. The production cost estimates decreased by approximately 13% when the process was switched from a liquid to a semisolid one.