ARTICLE
G. Dixon (Dick) Chandley, age 90 passed away in his hometown of Lake Wales, FL, where he lived after his retirement from Hitchiner Manufacturing Co., Inc. in. 2000. Dick was very active in the investment casting field, being Chief Engineer at TRW Metals Division 1962-1967 and Vice President, Technology of Hitchiner 1967-2000. He not only published many papers in the ICI but authored many patents in wide use around the world. Probably the best known are directional solidfication of gas turbine engine blades and vanes and countergravity casting of all sorts of parts such as multipurpose tools, golf club heads, automotive parts, and large thin-walled jet engine parts. Many years ago, he was chairman of the ICI committee which issued the first Basic Metal Quality Standard for our industry to cover commercial quality castings. John H. Morison, III, Chairman & C.E.O. of Hitchiner Manufacturing Co., Inc. stated, “While Dick Chandley was best known at Hitchiner as the inventor of the Counter Gravity Investment Casting process, he developed many uniquely innovative processes for working metals during the 33 years that he headed the Company’s research and development efforts. In addition to the IC Counter Gravity process using ceramic shells, Dick led the development of counter gravity processes using resin shell and sand molds in air, as well as Counter Gravity processes for casting reactive alloys. Today, every casting produced at Hitchiner is made using a process that uses technology that was either invented by Dick or evolved from it, including the latest innovation, the Counter Gravity Single Chrystal Casting process that is in production in our DS/Single Chrystal facility.”