What's in a name?

Investment casting has been around for thousands of years and essentially, the technique is still the same today. A mould is produced in wax and this is "invested" into ceramic. Once the ceramic shell has been formed the wax is removed, usually with high pressure steam and this is where the term lost wax casting comes from. The process is then completed by firing the shell and pouring in the required material, removing the shell by vibration and shot blasting and applying any additional processes such as heat treatment, machining, plating or painting.