A die casting process uses information derived from analysis of a prior casting to modify the process producing a subsequent casting. An aluminum alloy casting is manufactured at a first location. During the manufacture thereof, plural physical parameters are measured and recorded in an entry in memory. Further during the manufacture thereof, the casting is marked with a unique identifier which is stored, with the plural physical parameters, in the entry. The castings are then shipped to a second location, remotely located relative to the first location, for chrome plating. The chrome plated castings are examined for defects and, using the unique identifier on the casting, the casting is associated with the entry containing the physical parameters under which it was manufactured. The physical parameters may then be adjusted so that the subsequent castings are manufactured under conditions less likely to produce defects.