Case Study Large-Scale Centrifugal Castings Enable New Market Growth

Overview

A manufacturer of meter provers sought to expand the maximum size of its products to address growing industry demand for larger systems. Meter provers are critical to ensuring accurate measurement of oil and liquefied natural gas (LNG) during pipeline custody transfers, where even minor measurement errors can have significant financial implications.

Challenge

While the customer recognized an emerging market need for larger units, it lacked a manufacturing partner capable of producing centrifugal castings at the required scale. The challenge was not only the increased size, but also that the castings needed to maintain structural integrity and tight dimensional control to support precise flow measurement.

Solution

MetalTek’s Sandusky International Division provided design-for-manufacturability expertise to the customer’s engineering team while outlining its maximum centrifugal-casting dimensions of 60” OD x 432” length and a 125,000-lb. pour weight. This collaboration produced a casting that doubled the customer’s prior OD and increased the length by more than 50%. Sandusky comfortably supported the increased size, while its casting and machining practices delivered the precision and consistency required for the application.

Result

The customer successfully expanded its meter prover product family to larger units, enabling new opportunities in pipeline custody-transfer applications. The dimensional integrity of Sandusky International’s large centrifugal castings supports the highly accurate measurement of oil and LNG in transactions totaling hundreds of millions of dollars annually, helping ensure fairness for both sellers and buyers.

Contact Sandusky International to discuss large-scale centrifugal casting solutions for demanding applications.