Document x5K7D5gQoL6VeRqe53ynbE3R0

MEMORANDUM SUBJECT: CLEAN AIR ACT INSPECTION REPORT Dart Casting, Alsip, Illinois FROM: Natalie Topinka, Environmental Scientist AECAB (IL/IN) THRU: Nathan Frank, Section Supervisor AECAB (IL/IN) TO: File BASIC INFORMATION Facility Name: Dart Casting Facility Location: 12400 S. Lombard Lane, Alsip, Illinois Date of Inspection: May 29, 2025 EPA Inspector(s): 1. Natalie Topinka, Environmental Scientist Other Attendees: 1. Harold Helinski, Maintenance Supervisor, Dart Casting Contact Email Address: harold@dartcasting.com Purpose of Inspection: assess applicability of secondary aluminum and IL SIP particulate matter regulations Facility Type: Die Casting Regulations Central to Inspection: IL SIP Arrival Time: 10:30 am Departure Time: 11:35 am Facility Name: Dart Casting Facility Location: 12400 S. Lombard Lane, Alsip, Illinois Date of Inspection: May 29, 2025 Inspection Type: Unannounced Inspection Announced Inspection OPENING CONFERENCE Presented Credentials Stated authority and purpose of inspection Provided Small Business Resource Information Sheet - emailed after inspection Provided CBI warning to facility Was any information collected during the inspection claimed as CBI? Yes No. The following information was obtained verbally from Harold Helenski unless otherwise noted. Process Description: Dart Casting performs aluminum die casting. In the past they have used zinc alloys but do so now infrequently. The hydraulic die casting machines use natural gas to heat and melt aluminum alloy ingots to approximately 1200-1250F and then the molten aluminum is poured into dies which are put under high pressure. Before the molten aluminum is poured, the dies are sprayed with a release agent. After the finished part is removed from the die it is cooled, trimmed, detailed and/or sand blasted. Chilled water is used to cool the die. The water is chilled either by a passive evaporative cooling tower or by chillers that use R-410a as a refrigerant. Each piece takes approximately 30 seconds to two minutes to be cast. Staff Interview: Dart Casting has roughly 100 employees and operates 24 hours a day, 5 days a week. It has operated at this location for at least the past 22 years. There is no specific employee dedicated to Environmental/Health/Safety issues. Four main different standard alloys of aluminum are used at Dart Casting: A380, A413, A360 and A383. Each incoming shipment of aluminum alloy ingots is accompanied by results of metallurgical testing but Dart Casting also conducts its own testing on every batch to confirm the alloy's composition. Each pallet of ingots is spray-painted a different color to quickly identify the alloy. No fluxing, skimming or dross removal is performed. Excess release agent is captured beneath each machine and pumped into large totes for disposal. The facility is separated into three buildings. The main building has the majority of die casting machines (10), plus detailing areas and shipping. The second building houses the CNC room and storage. The third building was acquired three years ago and has additional die casting machines (at least 4) and trimming areas. The size of the die casting machines is measured by hydraulic capacity, ranging from 400 tons to 1200 tons. A crucible can hold up to 4000 pounds of aluminum. There are no air pollution control devices on the die casting machines or the building itself aside from a dust/debris collector at a finishing workstation. Ambient air inside the facility is vented through Page 2 of 5 Facility Name: Dart Casting Facility Location: 12400 S. Lombard Lane, Alsip, Illinois Date of Inspection: May 29, 2025 exhaust fans directly to the roof or through loading doors which are kept open when weather permits. The facilities are in a primarily industrial area although there are residences approximately 0.1 miles away. Mr. Helinski was not aware of any odor or nuisance complaint TOUR INFORMATION EPA Toured the Facility: Yes Data Collected and Observations: We toured the main building's shipping and receiving area first, then observed grinding and finishing. In the die room of the main building, the ambient air was very hazy and induced coughing by the EPA inspector. In the second building, we viewed the tool room, CNC area, die storage, and finishing. We viewed the die casting machines in the third building. The ambient air in this building was also very hazy. The large loading doors were open. Photos: were taken during the inspection and are listed in Appendix A. Field Measurements: were not taken during this inspection. CLOSING CONFERENCE Provided U.S. EPA point of contact to the facility Requested documents: 1. SDS for the release agent applied to the dies 2. Spec sheets for each of the aluminum alloys used Concerns: There were significant particulate matter emissions coming off the die casting machines. There is no emissions capture on the building and there have not been any tests or calculations to quantify the emissions. DIGITAL SIGNATURES NATALIE Digitally signed by NATALIE TOPINKA Report Author: _T_O__P_IN__K_A_____1_2_:53_:0_0_-0_5'0_0_' ____________ Date: 2025.06.09 Section Supervisor: Frank, Digitally signed by Frank, Nathan _N_a_t_h_a_n_______1_1:_37_:2_5_-0_5'0_0_' _____________ Date: 2025.06.17 Page 3 of 5 Facility Name: Dart Casting Facility Location: 12400 S. Lombard Lane, Alsip, Illinois Date of Inspection: May 29, 2025 APPENDICES 1. Appendix A: Digital Image Log and Digital Video Log Page 4 of 5 Facility Name: Dart Casting Facility Location: 12400 S. Lombard Lane, Alsip, Illinois Date of Inspection: May 29, 2025 APPENDIX A: DIGITAL IMAGE LOG AND DIGITAL VIDEO LOG Inspector Name: Natalie Topinka Archival Record Location: inspection photos Image Number 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 File Name IMG_0933.JPG IMG_0934.JPG IMG_0935.JPG IMG_0936.JPG IMG_0937.JPG IMG_0938.JPG IMG_0939.JPG IMG_0940.JPG IMG_0941.JPG IMG_0942.JPG IMG_0943.JPG IMG_0944.JPG IMG_0945.JPG IMG_0946.JPG IMG_0947.JPG IMG_0948.JPG IMG_0949.JPG IMG_0950.JPG Date and Time (CST) 5/29/2025 10:57 5/29/2025 10:58 5/29/2025 10:59 5/29/2025 10:59 5/29/2025 10:59 5/29/2025 11:00 5/29/2025 11:00 5/29/2025 11:02 5/29/2025 11:04 5/29/2025 11:04 5/29/2025 11:07 5/29/2025 11:10 5/29/2025 11:19 5/29/2025 11:19 5/29/2025 11:21 5/29/2025 11:24 5/29/2025 11:26 5/29/2025 11:27 Description of Image finished parts die casting machine die casting machine and open bay door crucible of molten aluminum alloy aluminum ingots marked with alloy type, die casting machines aluminum and zinc alloy types and color codes particulate matter emissions in the air from die casting machines aluminum ingots spray painted with alloy type robot arm which retrieves die from the machine, particulate matter emissions robot arm which retrieves die from the machine, particulate matter emissions cold crucible water cooling tower die casting machines and particulate matter in the facility die casting machines and particulate matter in the facility robot arm on die casting machine robot ladling molten aluminum to be poured into the die R-410a label on chiller dust/debris collector adjacent to a finishing work station Page 5 of 5