Cast-Fab Technologies, located in Cincinnati, Ohio, is a unique metal casting foundry and metal fabrication job shop. The company is one of the largest job shops in the United States and specializes in the manufacture of engineered gray iron, ductile iron and green sand castings; heavy steel metal and sheet metal fabrications; precision CNC machining; and related value-added products.

Being a job shop, production is critical to Cast-Fab Technologies, as their customers are continuously defining and redefining production requirements. Scheduled downtime is rare, and when there is a need for it, it must be brief with the duration guaranteed.

In November 2006, 3-D Service sales engineer, Tony Humbert, visited Cast-Fab. Humbert had been informed they were planning the installation of a new outdoor substation and transformers to replace existing elevated unit substations. These substations had old transformers requiring decommissioning and proper disposal.

Several vendors had told Cast-Fab that removal of the old transformers and installation of replacement transformers into the existing substations could not be done during their several day outage due to process piping, building structure, and other obstacles blocking access. Cast-Fab was led to believe the only way to accomplish the decommissioning was to have alternative substations already in place, so a tie-in could be made during the next available holiday outage. Humbert believed the removal and replacement of the transformers could be accomplished during a short scheduled outage, and Cast-Fab granted 3-D Service the opportunity to present a project proposal.

Humbert, along with engineer Dan Teegarden, devised a turnkey project solution for replacement of the transformers without the necessity of building new substations and presented it to Cast-Fab. 3-D Service proposed to perform the following over a three day holiday weekend:

• Assume total project responsibility for planning, management, equipment and material procurement, subcontractors, and old transformer disposal.
• Rig, remove, transport, and properly dispose of one transformer in the center mezzanine substation and four transformers in the west mezzanine substation.
• Rig and install a replacement transformer into the center substation, and two replacement transformers into the west substation.
• Make all new high-voltage connections to the replacement transformers.
• Fabricate on-site new buss transitions to the low-voltage ( LV) switchgear from the new transformers.
• Modify the LV busway as required.
• Test and commission the new equipment.

Cast-Fab personnel studied the proposal and were ultimately convinced that 3-D Service offered them the best and most economical solution for their project. On Friday, May 25th at 6:00 PM, power was cut to the Cast-Fab facility, and the project progressed as planned. 3-D Service’s engineering, planning, and outstanding personnel allowed for the project to be completed and power restored by Sunday, May 27th at 12:00 PM, to the delight of Cast-Fab Technologies.