Cast, not stirred

The stunt team in the new James Bond film “No Time to Die” tested the limits of the Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) Defender. Riding shotgun was the magnesium beam produced by GF Casting Solutions. The die-casting tools for this part are subjected to more frequent maintenance than those for concealed components, ensuring that the beam has a smooth surface finish free from any thermal fatigue cracking or impurities.

GF Casting Solutions selected the light metal magnesium for several parts of the Defender – the supporting beam as well as three other components. This material is more than one-third (37 percent) lighter than aluminum. The beam weighs only 1.1 kilograms, meaning the vehicle consumes less fuel overall (although it may not have been the deciding factor in choosing the Defender for the Bond movie).

The structural magnesium beam bearing the Defender name is produced in less than five minutes. Casting takes only 1.25 minutes while grinding takes 1.6 minutes, and 1.6 minutes are allotted for final inspection. The GF facility in Altenmarkt (Austria) manufactures more than 1’000 such components in just one week. The plan is to produce 400’000 beams by 2026.

Connection points to other parts of the cab, such as airbags, navigation systemdisplay, and glove compartment, are integrated in the cast components. That way, JLR does not have to include additional connection parts in the final assembly. This technique ultimately saves on time, materials, labor, and energy for the installation.