UK company specialises primarily in the area of metal filtration.

Specialist supplier of raw materials, consumables and crucibles to the South African molten metal industry including the foundry, aluminium smelter and steel manufacturing industries – Ceramic & Alloy Specialists – has announced that it has signed an agreement to distribute CAT International Ltd’s products in South Africa.

Ceramic innovation
CAT International Ltd was founded 25 years ago to commercialise the ideas of the R&D company Carbon Application Technology Ltd, primarily in the area of metal filtration, resulting in the development and production of the CERACAT range of filters for steel and iron.

“International sales of the CERACAT filter range continue to grow year on year and investment in our Staffordshire manufacturing facility has been matched to accommodate future expansion,” said Mike Leaney, one of two partners that own CAT International Ltd.

“This is why we have signed a strategic distributor partnership agreement with Ceramic & Alloy Specialists who have been distributing product to our primary target market since 1998.”

Ceramic & Alloy Specialists has signed an agreement with CAT International Ltd to distribute their filter products in South Africa

“We have never taken the easy path. Developing new unique materials and manufacturing processes has been a challenge we’ve not shied away from and this continues to be our focus for the future. In 2016 we set out on a programme of adapting our material technology to Additive Manufacturing, the results of which exceeded our expectations and drives a large part of our current activity. Additive Manufacturing / 3D Printing of ceramic parts is the present, not just the future… and CAT is at the heart of this revolution,” said CAT International Ltd partner Dr Kassim Juma.

“CERACAT is a ‘composite’ ceramic and it marries the positive properties of multiple materials and technologies to offset any negative aspects and give a very stable strong filter that can be manufactured at lower cost compared to zirconia but with much higher strength than carbon bonding alone,” explained Dr Juma.

How is this done?
“Foam filters are manufactured by taking a soft reticulated polyurethane foam and building up layers of ceramic slurry on the foam structure, drying and re applying layers until a sufficient layer is built up that when fired gives a ceramic foam structure that will withstand its intended use. CAT has developed a way of layering different ceramic materials within this structure. The base layer is ceramic giving good mechanical strength with a low material cost,” said Dr Juma.

“Subsequent layers are blends of high alumina and proprietary ingredients developed by CAT to ensure the ‘marriage’ of the dissimilar particles on firing. Carbon is also present within the structure but to a maximum of 10%,” explained Dr Juma.

“This ‘composite’ ceramic can be layered differently depending on application. This gives a material that is high in strength, thermally stable for steel and heavy iron application temperatures, high filtration affinity i.e. the surface will chemically attract, attach and retain oxide particles, lower relative manufacturing costs and the lack of shrinkage during the manufacturing process compared to zirconia enables the cost effective manufacture of very large filters.”

CAT International Ltd has been manufacturing technical ceramics in Staffordshire for over 20 years

CAT International Ltd has been manufacturing technical ceramics in Staffordshire for over 20 years. The Hixon facility has two buildings with one housing production of the CERACAT foam filter utilising technology developed in-house for combining carbon and ceramic. The CERACAT filter gives zirconia performance for steel and heavy iron applications but with a much lower energy input, significantly reducing manufacturing costs, enabling CAT to competitively export worldwide.

At the heart of the business are the two owners, Dr Kassim Juma and Mike Leaney. Kassim has spent 50 years in ceramic R&D and Mike 35 years in foundry and foundry supply.

“Today Ceramic & Alloy Specialists’ product portfolio is made up of Elkem foundry products, Mammut-Wetro crucibles, Hoesch Metallurgy GmbH grain refiners, modifiers, magnesium and fluxes, Becker insulation products, Selee Corporation filtration products, ICP ceramic gating components, Ceralcast industrial ceramic solutions, Remet investment casting products, Schafer Mettalurgie GmbH fluxes and de-gassing products for the non-ferrous industry, Ceranovis die casting coatings, Newform thermal foundry products, Orton cones and PCTR rings and Insertec induction furnace linings as well as tin, ferro molybdenum and ferro silicon,” said Wouter Retief, who took over the leadership of the company from his father Mike, the founder of the company, who recently passed.

“We had already been trading in and selling a range of raw materials and consumables to the South African molten metal industry. The range includes ferro alloys, cored wire, aluminium alloying additions, ceramic castings and filters, minor and special metals, minerals and foundry consumables and still does,” explained Retief.

“Adding the CAT International Ltd range to our product portfolio will certainly add value. We are working towards becoming a one-stop shop as a foundry supplier. We now regard ourselves as a specialist supplier to the molten metal industry rather than a bulk supplier,” explained Retief.

For further details contact Ceramic & Alloy Specialists on TEL: 011 894 3039 or visit www.ceramic-alloy.co.za