The ZA-12 casting process is ideal for the manufacture of high-precision components for medical equipment. The Graphicast process, which uses permanent graphite molds to produce parts from ZA-12—a zinc-aluminum alloy—is an economical alternative to die casting, investment casting, sand casting with machining, and CNC machining of complete parts for production quantities from 300 to 30,000 parts per year. Graphicast's single-source production capabilities include in-house design, plaster model rapid prototyping, tooling and mold production, casting, and, if required, secondary machining. Typical turnaround time from finished CAD design to first article samples is 4-6 weeks.