FEATURED NEWS

Atmosphere Engineering to Bolster UPC’s Expansion

/ FEATURED NEWS, HEAT TREAT NEWS INDUSTRIES

United Process Controls (UPC) announced the acquisition of Atmosphere Engineering Company (Atmosphere Engineering), a Wisconsin-based, family-owned and -operated business led by brothers Jason and Eric Jossart. Founded in 2002, Atmosphere Engineering designs and manufactures industrial flow control products, furnace control products, and data acquisition software for clients in North America, South America, and Europe.

Atmosphere Engineering will bolster UPC’s product offering and technical competencies. While the acquisition expands the company’s customer base, it will also provide a platform to expand into new markets and extend market penetration in the flow controls market.

Additionally, UPC has enhanced its organizational structure to align with the future direction of the company and its foundation for continued growth. As part of the new structure, Jason Jossart will serve as the company’s Vice President of Operations and report directly to UPC’s President, Paul Oleszkiewicz; Eric Jossart will join as Director of Sales, Heat Treat and report directly to Vice President of Sales and Marketing, Patrick Torok.

“Atmosphere Engineering represents a great fit with our flow and process controls business and is in line with UPC’s strategic direction to expand its repertoire of products and leadership in the industry,” commented UPC President Paul Oleszkiewicz. “Jason and Eric run an incredible business, and we are excited to welcome them and the entire Atmosphere Engineering team to the UPC family. This acquisition shows our ongoing commitment to provide customers worldwide with a comprehensive portfolio of process and flow control solutions that optimize the quality, safety, and control of heat treating operations.”

Jason Jossart, founder and President of Atmosphere Engineering commented, “We at Atmosphere Engineering are very pleased to join forces with UPC. My brother Eric and I have worked hard to build Atmosphere Engineering’s brand and reputation and are excited to see it grow further as part of UPC. Together we will emerge as a leader in flow and process controls to the heat treat industry and address new market challenges and opportunities for technical innovation and growth.”

Atmosphere Engineering to Bolster UPC’s Expansion Read More »

British Firms Explore Heat Treatment Regimens for Alloy in Additive Manufacturing

/ AEROSPACE HEAT TREAT, AEROSPACE HEAT TREAT NEWS, FEATURED NEWS

Two British firms recently announced a collaboration to establish process parameters for the use of aluminum alloy in additive manufacturing (AM), a project that will include the investigation of heat treatment regimens to deliver optimum properties in AM components for applications in multiple industries, including the aerospace sector.

Mike Bond, Aeromet

Renishaw, a global engineering technologies company based in Gloucestershire providing solutions and products for the aerospace, medical, energy and manufacturing sectors, and Worcestershire’s Aeromet International, a leading supplier of cast metal parts for the global aerospace and defense industries, recently debuted the highly refined alloy at the Paris Air Show in June. The two companies are working together to establish additive manufacturing process parameters and material properties for Aeromet’s A20X® aluminum alloy and to optimise the processing techniques for the alloy on Renishaw metal AM systems.  The results of these developments and the heat treatment research will be made available to Renishaw and Aeromet customers.

A family of high-strength aluminum alloy technologies developed and patented by Aeromet, A20X® includes the Metallic Materials Properties Development and Standardization (MMPDS) approved A205 casting alloy and AM205 powder for additive manufacturing.

Marc Saunders, Renishaw

“A20X is being rapidly adopted for additive manufacture of aero engine, airframe, space, defense and automotive parts.  It’s unique combination of high strength, high ductility and performance at high operating temperatures make it ideal for light-weight, stressed components.  We look forward to making processing techniques for this innovative alloy more widely available to accelerate its adoption,” said Mike Bond, Director of AMT a Division of Aeromet.

“Renishaw’s metal AM systems feature high-power lasers, an inert processing environment, and open parameters,” said Marc Saunders, Director of Global Solutions Centres at Renishaw, “making them ideal for supporting innovative new materials like A20X.  We are working closely with Aeromet to qualify this exciting new alloy on our machines. Through our network of AM Solutions Centres, we can help manufacturers to develop industrial AM processes using A20X.”

The two companies plan to release processing techniques and material properties information in the coming months.

Photo Credit: Aeromet/Monty Rakusen

British Firms Explore Heat Treatment Regimens for Alloy in Additive Manufacturing Read More »

Hoa Phat Orders 4 Blast Furnaces to Increase Production at Dung Quat Complex

/ FEATURED NEWS, MANUFACTURING HEAT TREAT, MANUFACTURING HEAT TREAT NEWS

Vietnamese steel producer Hoa Phat Steel has awarded a contract to an Italian steel production technology specialist for the design, supply, and supervision of four greenfield blast furnaces.

The project is part of the new Dung Quat iron and steel making complex committed to by Hoa Phat, which currently operates a 2 million metric ton per year (mtpy) iron and steel making plant in Hai Duong. The scope of the project also includes the hot blast mains, bustle mains, tuyere assemblies, level 2 automation systems and pulverized coal injection systems. The new plant will add 4 mtpy to Hoa Phat’s annual steelmaking capacity.

The four blast furnaces will have a 1080 m³ working volume and are designed for an annual production of 1 million tons of hot metal each. The furnaces will be supplied by Danieli Corus and equipped with the company’s high conductivity cooling and lining design based on copper plate coolers combined with graphite and silicon carbide refractories. The four furnaces will be completed and commissioned in sequence, with the fourth being scheduled for delivering the first hot metal in 2019.

Hoa Phat Orders 4 Blast Furnaces to Increase Production at Dung Quat Complex Read More »

Paulo Announces New Plant in Monterrey, Mexico

/ FEATURED NEWS, MANUFACTURING HEAT TREAT, MANUFACTURING HEAT TREAT NEWS

Heat treatment service provider Paulo has begun construction on a greenfield facility in Monterrey, Mexico.  The new plant will be completed in the fourth quarter of 2017 and processing of heat-treatment will begin in the first quarter of 2018.  Paulo will initially occupy 50,000 sqft with expansion up to 110,000 sqft.  Monterrey was chosen for its robust manufacturing community with close proximity to major providers of automotive, agriculture, aerospace and other industrial components.

Paulo will continue to add equipment throughout 2018.  Initially, the plant will serve the automotive industry, processing parts manufactured in Mexico. Paulo will also leverage automation with multiple robotic loading cells to improve safety in material handling while leaning production steps.

 

Paulo Announces New Plant in Monterrey, Mexico Read More »

Heat Treating Projects Part of Pratt & Whitney Expansion

/ AEROSPACE HEAT TREAT, AEROSPACE HEAT TREAT NEWS, FEATURED NEWS

Aircraft engine maker Pratt & Whitney Canada is expanding its production at facilities in Québec with two recently announced furnace projects, with equipment supplied by local machining manufacturer Pyradia Belfab. The first is a low-temperature conveyor drying oven for steel parts complying with AMS2750 standards, and the second is a bottom-loading type furnace to be used for the stress relief of combustion chambers of P&W Canada aero engines. The latter unit will be a high temperature (2000 F) retort furnace using argon/nitrogen and hydrogen equipped with state of the art batching monitoring/logging capabilities.

The projects figure into an expansion effort by Pratt & Whitney, which includes a recently commissioned new fan blade manufacturing facility at its AutoAir plant in Lansing, Michigan. The new 93,000 square-foot facility adds to an already existing GTF fan blade production line in Lansing and is one of thirty dedicated manufacturing, production or assembly locations across the globe performing work on various parts and components of the GTF engine program.

“We are pleased to be a part of this successful engine program,” said Conor Tracy, general manager, Pratt & Whitney AutoAir. “The expansion of the Lansing plant is an opportunity for our employees to contribute to the future of the company, but it is also an exciting opportunity for Lansing to continue to participate in the advanced manufacturing sector and the economic growth of the region.”

In addition to the manufacturing expansion, Pratt & Whitney has four maintenance and repair operations (MRO) facilities to repair and overhaul GTF engines, and additional facilities will be added moving forward.

 

 

Heat Treating Projects Part of Pratt & Whitney Expansion Read More »

Constellium to Probe U.S. Electric Vehicle Market

/ AUTOMOTIVE HEAT TREAT, AUTOMOTIVE HEAT TREAT NEWS, FEATURED NEWS

 

Jean-Marc Germain, CEO of Constellium

Source: Automotive News

Dutch aluminum producer Constellium NV, formerly Alcan, explores technological and manufacturing shifts in the electric vehicle industry as part of its rapidly forming network in North America.

“For vehicles to carry electric batteries,” says CEO Jean-Mark Germain, “they will be designed with aluminum structures to hold them. And those structures must do more than traditional metal body structures. They must provide thermal transfer capabilities to keep the battery cool or keep it warm in cold weather. So the structure actually becomes part of the power source.”

Read more here, “EV Bodies: ‘Part of the power source'”, about plans for Constellium’s new Georgia plant to supply engineered aluminum body structures to several automakers in the Southeast.

Constellium to Probe U.S. Electric Vehicle Market Read More »

Mobile Heat Treatment Launch Targets Aerospace, Motorsports Customers

/ AEROSPACE HEAT TREAT, AEROSPACE HEAT TREAT NEWS, FEATURED NEWS
Ian Perks, Sales Director, Alloy Heat Treatment

Alloy Heat Treatment (AHT), a specialist in the heat treatment of aluminum alloy, has developed and is set to launch an innovative mobile heat treatment service.

The Dudley-based (UK) firm, a member of the manufacturing alliance Made in the Midlands, is targeting the new service in support of the additive layer manufacturing market in the UK and Europe, especially in the aerospace and motorsport (F1 and MotoGP) sectors.

“The proposed service is currently being designed to be transported on the back of a fix-bed lorry,” said sales director Ian Perks. “We aim to fill a gap in the AM market, as we feel that this innovation will provide a great benefit to aerospace, F1 and Moto GP organisations; and with the global AM market predicted to be worth more than $6.6 billion by 2026, we are hopeful that the service will attract plenty of interest.”

AHT would load the service onto a truck and then drive to a customer’s designated location to enable them to offer rapid heat treatment processes within tight schedules.

 

Mobile Heat Treatment Launch Targets Aerospace, Motorsports Customers Read More »

VW to Revive the Microbus as an All-Electric Van

/ AUTOMOTIVE HEAT TREAT, AUTOMOTIVE HEAT TREAT NEWS, FEATURED NEWS

 

Source: Today’s Motor Vehicles

In a throwback to the 1960s, Volkswagen has announced plans to bring back a version of their iconic micro bus retrofitted as an I.D. electric van. In 2022, the I.D. Buzz concept vehicle will go into production, looking a bit like the ’60s vehicle favored by hippies and surfers, it will be built off of the same platform as the I.D. electric car, a four-door compact vehicle. The last time a VW van was on the market was in 2003.

Read more: “VW to resume Microbus production in 2022, as an all-electric car”

VW to Revive the Microbus as an All-Electric Van Read More »

SSAB Modernizes Hot-Dip Galvanizing Line No. 3 at Finnish Facility

/ FEATURED NEWS, MANUFACTURING HEAT TREAT, MANUFACTURING HEAT TREAT NEWS

Swedish specialty steel producer SSAB will modernize its continuous hot-dip galvanizing line No. 3 in Hämeenlinna, Finland. The upgrade essentially involves switching the old air-knife into a new air knife system from Duma-Bandzink with strip stabilization and the integration of an inductive booster in the furnace. The conversion measures will be implemented in cooperation with SMS group, Drever International and EMG Automation. The measures will be realized at the end of this year (2017).

The installation of a new Duma-Bandzink Jet-Pro air knife system with EMG eMASS® strip stabilization – in the so-called “Integrated Solution” – will help to save zinc and improve the quality of the coating. The line will be designed for strips between 0.4 to 3.0 millimeters thick and 650 to 1,550 millimeters wide. In the process section, the strips will be zinc-coated at speeds of up to 160 meters per minute. Inductive strip pre-heating to about 350 degrees Celsius will increase the capacity of the furnace.

SSAB Modernizes Hot-Dip Galvanizing Line No. 3 at Finnish Facility Read More »

Italian Manufacturers Order Annealing Furnaces from Austrian Heat Treatment Supplier

/ ANNEALING NEWS, FEATURED NEWS, MANUFACTURING HEAT TREAT, MANUFACTURING HEAT TREAT NEWS

Two major Italian manufacturers have ordered bell annealer furnaces to expand their existing lines.

Leading bolt manufacturer, Fontana Luigi S.p.A., based in Veduggio, has commissioned an expansion to an existing HICON/N2® bell annealer facility for heat treatment of non-pickled steel wire coils. Both phases will be nearly identical in design to ensure flexibility between the facility components to achieve maximum throughput capacity. The start of production is scheduled for July 2018 for the new phase.

Ori Martin S.p.A., an electric furnace steel mill facility in Brescia, purchased the supply and installation of an additional gas-fired HICON/N2® bell annealer facility to heat treat unpickled steel wire coils in a controlled nitrogen process atmosphere. The clear inside diameter of the new facility, which will go into operation May 2018, is 4,050 mm, with a stack height of 2,500 mm.

Austrian heat treatment supplier Ebner provided and installed the equipment for both companies.

Italian Manufacturers Order Annealing Furnaces from Austrian Heat Treatment Supplier Read More »

Skip to content