Chat with us, powered by LiveChat

We use cookies to give you the best experience on our website. If you continue without changing your settings we will assume you are happy to receive all cookies

Atik's pioneering foundry blasts double with Wheelabrator

Maximum flexibility thanks to a dual-chamber design

Atik Metal has been writing foundry history in Turkey for more than 70 years. Established in 1954, the family business is now run by the second generation, with the third generation already actively involved in the foundry's management.

Long-term thinking and agility are part of the company’s recipe for success – as well as a preference to always be ahead of its time: Induction melting was introduced in the 1960s; a dedicated machining facility built during the same period; a “dual” vocational training system was imported from Germany early on to develop technically skilled, homegrown young talent.

The new, state-of-the-art foundry, designed for an annual capacity of 120,000 tons, which Atik has built just north of Izmir, is testament to this future-focused philosophy. Since 2023, a new continuous shot blasting system with dual-chamber design has been working seamlessly as part of the first of two new molding lines at the site.

Mehmet Atik, owner and managing director, explains: "We’ve built our dream foundry. Our guiding principle was: We want the best technology with maximum flexibility. As an owner-run business, we can invest in quality that pays off in the long term. This is particularly important for the shot blasting machine. It has to be able to keep up with the production pace of the molding line, but at the same time it has to be robust and low-maintenance. That's why we chose the Wheelabrator machine. It has been running exactly as we envisaged for more than a year now. We have set our sights on the same machine concept for our second molding line, but are currently still validating the dimensions."

Simply shift up a gear

As a jobbing foundry producing gray and ductile iron castings for agricultural machinery, pumps, and industrial robots, Atik Metal values flexibility—both in casting variety and capacity.

Its Wheelabrator continuous overhead monorail machine moves clustered castings through oscillating cycles for uniform blasting. The standout feature is a dual-chamber design with independent abrasive circuits, allowing production to scale up or down with demand. This adaptability gives Atik a competitive edge on the global stage.

Mr. Atik continues: "Being able to respond quickly to customer needs is vital for us. In order to use our three plants flexibly and responsively, all machines must be precisely orchestrated. Only then can we shift up a gear, take our foot of the gas, adapt. The shot blast machines have to keep pace with that. Robustness is just as important as flexibility. Shot-blast machines self-destruct by nature. It is the decades of experience of the blast machine manufacturers that counter this tendency and ensure the machine is be designed for a long service life. Wheelabrator provides us with this robustness, both in the machine’s build quality and in its spare parts."


Planning ahead: low-maintenance, low-wear shot blasting

The blast machine currently runs six days a week in two-shift operation. To ensure that clearly defined, scheduled maintenance breaks are adhered to, the machine and its blast wheels are designed for ease of maintenance and to withstand wear. An inner lining made of manganese steel protects the machine from itself, while the housings of the ten blast wheels are also made of manganese steel. Wear parts are designed for long service lives and can be replaced quickly by just one person.

The facility is large. Including the entry and exit gates, the post-blast chamber, and the area for the lined-up workpiece clusters, it covers around 3,600 square meters. The second molding line is designed for even larger castings, which will impact the dimensionioning of the second shot blast machine. It’s what the Atik team is currently working on.

Mr. Atik concludes: "I set a simple goal for my employees: To be the best. We want to invest in robust, state-of-the-art machines, and we don't want to save money in the wrong places. It’s an approach that’s been paying off for 70 years."