The Student Government Association (SGA) partnered with the American Foundry Society (AFS) to get more students involved in the foundry industry via a Pumpkin Pour on Oct. 21. Cody Garcia, SGA member, said, “This time we are having panelists show up to get people involved with the foundry industry.” Garcia added, “Hopefully we can do more stuff like this.” Before the panel, SGA fed everyone lemonade, sweet tea, chicken nuggets, sandwiches, and mac and cheese from Chick-fil-A.
After everyone ate, a representative from Mercury Casting, a branch of Mercury Marine, taught the group about foundry. Mercury Marine is a corporation that manufactures boat motors nationwide. The company explained how it makes its own tools and casts, how die casting works and how they use a foam cluster in ceramic sand to make molds of different things.
First, they coat the foam and then hang it out to dry. Then, after it is dry, the foam is placed into ceramic sand. The coating allows any gas from the foam melting to escape through the coating into the sand instead of coming out of the top. After the metal has cooled, they take it out of the mold and clean it up. Mercury Marine uses robots for most of the process. From dipping into the pool of molten metal to dipping the foam in the coating, everything is automated for efficiency and safety.
After the panel, the group walked to the Carruth parking lot, where the action was happening. The AFS used a Cupola furnace to melt the metal before pouring it on the pumpkins. Students gathered around the cones by the furnace to watch the magic happen. Many students were returning for their second year of the pumpkin pour.
Alayna Houston, one of the many attendees, said, “I came here once before, so I kind of knew what was going to happen. Just a lot of pumpkins burning.”
Another student, Seth Aguas, also commented, “I’m mildly interested in the foundry classes, so I figured this would be a good place to go.”
Houston and Aguas were able to carve pumpkins for the event, and students were also allowed to help pour the molten metal. Bri Beasley remarked on her experience, “I would say the iron shooting out was really exciting. For me, catching the iron was the most exciting part.” Beasley has been a researcher for AFS since she was a freshman.
The event was a great way for students to get more involved with the foundry process while getting into the Halloween spirit. More events hosted by SGA can be found on their Instagram @_gsusga.
