2013

Manufacturing Processes MEFB213

Ku Puteri Fatimah Zaharah Ku Mahazir Atiqah Atifah Abdul Aziz Kavenesh Sevandran Jude Benedict Alex Kathirasan Chandran ME090174 ME090135 ME090172 ME090166 ME090170

[ROYAL SELANGOR SITE VISIT REPORT]

Contents

Contents ................................................................... 2 Introduction ............................................................. 3 Company Profile ..................................................... 3 Process Flow............................................................. 6 Flow Chart .............................................................. 6 Explanation ............................................................ 7 Casting .................................................................. 7 Machine Polish ..................................................... 8 Sand Blasting and Filing ....................................... 9 Hammering ........................................................ 10 Soldering ............................................................ 10 Discussion............................................................... 11 Conclusion .............................................................. 12 Appendix ................................................................ 13

Introduction
Company Profile

The Royal Selangor Company or formally known as Malaya Pewter was founded in 1885 by Yong Koon and is a family running business until today which is also the largest pewter maker today. The discovery of tin in Malaya had lured Yong Koon and thousands of other Chinese to the fledgling tin-mining town, where he joined his brothers who had established themselves as tinsmiths. Yong Koon enjoyed brisk business making simple household items of tin, operating from his shop at No. 23 Cross Street.

Mr. Yong Koon (Founder of Royal Selangor)

He later made pewter incense burners, joss stick holders and candle stands for the altars of Chinese temples. Employing a few other craftsmen, he was among the first pewter-smiths in Kuala Lumpur.

Just as silver products are hallmarked, Yong Koon stamped each of his products with the mark "Yu He Zu Xi", where "Yu He" or Jade Peace was the name of the shop, and "Zu Xi" or pure tin reflected the high quality of the material used.

In the 1930s, when demand for traditional ceremonial pewter ware was on a decline, Yong Koon and his sons started making European-style products for the British and other expatriates. This was an important turning point for the business. The 70s was an exciting period for the company as it started exporting to Singapore, Hong Kong, Germany, Denmark, Japan, Australia and the UK. It also diversified its business to the design, manufacture and marketing of precious jewellery under the Selberan brand name. Later in 1993, the company acquired Comyns, one of the oldest and most prestigious silversmiths in the world. Both companies continue to be a part of the Royal Selangor group.

In 1979, the company received a royal warrant from the Sultan of Selangor at that time, Almarhum Sultan Salahuddin Abdul Aziz Shah and in 1992, changed its name to Royal Selangor. Today, the third and fourth generations of the Yong family work with a passionate team of managers to build Royal Selangor into a truly global brand.

With a workforce of more than 250 craftspeople, the pewter factory based in Setapak is now part of an award-winning Visitor Centre, which attracts over 200,000 visitors a year from all over the world. It is here that today's generation of consumers learns about Royal Selangor's humble beginnings and how pewter continues to be very much a handcrafted industry.

Today, the brand has grown from a cottage industry to a global brand. This fourth-generation family business has employees spanning the globe, from Kuala Lumpur and Singapore to Shanghai, London, Toronto, Melbourne, Hong Kong and Tokyo.

With over 250 skilled craftspeople and a 40-strong in-house design team, we have expanded the uses of pewter, exploring its many possibilities from children's gifts and wine accessories to personal accessories such as cufflinks and flash drives. Since 1885, our designers and craftsmen have expressed their love and understanding of the material by continuously pushing the envelope in pewter design while staying true to our heritage of craftsmanship. Our collection is further augmented by special designs by international designers such as Erik Magnussen from Denmark and Freeman Lau from Hong Kong.

Royal Selangor is also recognised for creating customised designs. Leading luxury company LVMH commissioned Royal Selangor to produce champagne accessories for brands such as Veuve Clicquot Ponsardin, Dom Perignon and Krug. In the sports arena, we are proud to have created spectacular trophies for the Formula One races in Malaysia, Singapore

and China, Shanghai ATP 1000 Masters and the Sime Darby LPGA Malaysia Golf Tournament.

Today, the Royal Selangor group is a diversified enterprise. Complementing its pewter brand are two luxury names - fine jewellery brand, Selberan, and 350-year-old sterling silver brand, Comyns.

Process Flow
Flow Chart

Casting

Machine polish

Sand blasting & Filing

Hammering (design)

Soldering (connecting parts)

Explanation
Casting

The mold is made of aluminum which also consists of a cope and drag. The cope and drag is padded with powder to avoid the molten pewter to stick on it. The molten pewter is scooped using a ladle from an auxiliary furnace and poured into the mold. After a few seconds, the cope and drag is separated and the pewter piece is taken out.

Machine Polish

The pewter pieces are then polished using a machine polish. The pewter piece is places on a pewter spinner and a sharp tool is used to trim the surface of the piece.

The excess shavings are collected to be melted again. Therefore there is no pewter wasted.

Sand Blasting and Filing

A flat file is used to smoothen the rough edges of the piece first. Later, the piece gets a better surface finish with a sandblaster.

Hammering

A worker then uses a hammer to make designs on the pewter piece. Each worker produces a unique design. The worker must have a steady hand in achieving a good design because they have to hammer at the same spot twice.

Soldering

Some pewter parts, for example tea pots and their handles are soldered together using a soldering iron. The parts are all made separately and combined together using the soldering iron.

Discussion
Throughout this site visit process, we have learned the process of making pewter at Royal Selangor. Pewter consists of tin, antimony and copper. The process involved are casting, filing, polishing, soldering and hammering. The first step is casting, a process where tin, antimony and copper are melted at 250 degrees Celsius to make molten pewter. After it is poured into the mould, the molten will solidified, the mould will dismantled and the casting is removed. It is design in different shapes and sizes and with motifs is polished in a different manner. Rough edges will be removed using small hacksaw blades and filling tools. Fine paper is also used to remove the yellow patina. The hammering process is a traditional pewter decoration made by a steel hammer. A steady hand, precision and consistent strength is needed to create a neat and even line of dimpled patterns.

Before pewter is made using casting, the pewter is made using the old Chinese way. It is a longer process compare with the technology we used now. The Royal Selangor founded in 1885 , when a young pewter smith, Yong Koon sailed from Santou , China to Malaya to start his own pewter business. The Royal Selangor museum features old tin currency, pewter artifacts and Yong Koons original pewter tools and personal effects. The museum also houses of Melon Pot, one of Yong Koons original pewter pieces.

Conclusion
From this visit, we have achieved to observe and learn more about metal casting, specifically pewter. The process may seem easy but you must have the patience and steady hands while doing the process. Metal casting is widely used in the pewter industry and the mold is specifically made from aluminum to withstand the heat from the melted pewter. The finishing processes such as machine polish, metal finishing and sand blasting are used to obtain a shiny and smooth surface. However, there are more complicated shapes that need the soldering process to achieve the desired design or even the hammering process to achieve a unique and one of a kind piece.

Appendix

Picture 1: Group photo at Royal Selangor

Attached on the next page is the approved letter for the visit.