A Swedish supplier of rolled aluminum products that has operations in Sweden, China, and the U.S. recently announced an expansion project that will incorporate investment in heat treat equipment, including annealing furnaces.
Johan Menckel, Gränges CEO
Gränges of Stockholm, Sweden, will invest $110 million (U.S.) to increase the capacity of its aluminum rolling operation in Huntingdon, Tennessee, from 160K tons to nearly 200K tons per year, creating 85 permanent full-time jobs and servicing its North American market with light gauge foil, automotive heat exchanger materials, and heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) applications. This is the company’s second major investment in Huntingdon since 2000.
“The expansion in Huntingdon marks the next step in our strategic growth plan for the North American market. Gränges has built a strong reputation in the aluminum rolling industry, and this expansion allows us to further support our customers’ growth”, says Gränges CEO Johan Menckel. Other expansion projects will include buildings, casters, cold rolling mills, and
slitters.
Patrick Lawlor, Gränges Americas President
“The investment represents a long-term commitment to our customers, employees, and shareholders as we grow in support of our strategic markets”, says Gränges Americas President, Patrick Lawlor.
The expansion was supported by Tennessee (TN) Governor Bill Haslam, the TN Department of Economic and Community Development, Tennessee Valley Authority, and local Huntingdon Officials.
“In TN, we take pride in the fact that our hardworking residents still make things,” said Tennessee Governor Bill Haslam. “The Gränges facility is a vital part of the Carroll County community and I’d like to thank Gränges for committing to create new jobs in Huntingdon and bringing us closer to making TN the No. 1 location in the Southeast for high-quality jobs.”
Innovative product carrier concepts can save light metal foundries millions by massively reducing alignment work and energy costs while increasing throughput and process reliability.
Furnace builders often see product carriers as a necessary evil which is why the savings that can be achieved by using optimized carrier concepts are often underestimated. In contrast, StrikoWestofen, located in Gummersbach, Germany, pursues a holistic, process-oriented heat treatment approach in which the interplay of furnace system, quenching unit, and product carrier is fine-tuned.
Rudi Reidel, General Manager, StrikoWestofen
Heat treatment is a complex multi-layered process in the manufacture of light metal castings and forgings. Its importance has increased in the past few years, particularly in the automotive industry. Today, heat treatment is applied not only to heavily stressed components such as engine parts or wheel rims, but also to safety-critical structural components found in body and chassis. Heat treatment aims to optimize material properties such as ductility, hardness, and tensile strength, as well as eliminating residual stresses. The process is carried out in three stages: solution annealing, quenching, and aging. Throughout all three stages, the treated parts are mounted on product carriers.
Product carriers are considered to be the starting point for the development of a heat treatment system at StrikoWestofen. Looking at the system holistically, they are at the very heart of any heat treatment process. “[O]ur team has completely redesigned the product carrier, built countless prototypes and carried out a large number of tests. The outcome is very promising,” said Rudi Riedel, manager of StrikoWestofen. The resulting modern product carriers are designed to realize considerable savings compared to conventional models. These savings result from reduced alignment work, increased throughput, improved process reliability and a remarkably low energy consumption.
StrikoWestofen (Gummersbach) was able to reduce the weight of product carrier mountings from 4 kg to ca. 2.5 kg.
Reduced alignment work
Heat treatment releases residual stresses which often lead to distortion of components. In order to match the tolerances specified by the end customer, any distortions must be reduced through manual or mechanical alignment work. The cost arising from this alignment work can be considerable, but it can be reduced by using optimized product carriers. The special design of the frame mountings ensures an even transfer of the heat to the component and its uniform cooling using water, air, or a mixture of air and water. Simulation, meticulous measuring, and sophisticated heat treatment tests help to ensure consistent quality and precise design of the product carriers.
Repeatable processes and increased plant capacity
Packing density and therefore throughput of the heat treatment system can be increased through fewer profiles and fixtures, which are also tailored to the component they are supporting. Modern additive manufacturing processes and precision measuring of each individual product carrier prior to delivery guarantee repeatability and stability of the heat treatment process. Instead of heavy frame profiles, StrikoWestofen relies on weight-reduced frames for its product carriers. This means less mass overall needs to be heated up and cooled down again, thus saving energy as well as dramatically reducing solution annealing and quenching times. Finally, the carriers are made from stainless steel instead of normal steel, preventing corrosion and surface rust and thereby increasing durability.
“Product carriers are an often underestimated but essential component of the heat treatment process. Innovative developments in this field make an important contribution to the reduction of the costs per casting and help our customers to maintain their competitive advantage in dynamic global markets,” noted Reidel.
A Korean automotive parts manufacturer recently had an NX-1230 potential-controlled nitriding system installed for processing automotive springs.
Previously directing its nitriding processes to outside suppliers, Daewon, Corp., commissioned the system from Nitrex Metal, recognizing that its interests would be better served by performing the nitriding in-house. Daewon supplies automotive parts to Hyundai, Kia Motors, GM, Chrysler, Volkswagen, and other global automakers.
Nitreg® nitriding of springs allows fatigue resistance for longer service life in automotive use. The technology also maintains tight dimensional tolerances (no distortion), uniformity from part to part, and repeatability between production runs. The system is capable of processing a load capacity up to 11,570-pound (5250-kg) and complies with the nitriding requirements laid out by AMS2759/10A.
A new aluminum rolling entity located in the industrial hub of Ulsan, South Korea, is the result of a global joint venture project designed to support the increasing demand for high-strength and lightweight aluminum for automotive and specialty products including electronics and building materials in Asia. This comes four years after a major expansion at the site that included a new three-stand hot finishing mill, as well as a pusher furnace and annealing furnaces.
Ulsan Aluminum Ltd. was formed by Novelis, the world leader in aluminum rolling and recycling, selling to Kobe Steel, a producer of aluminum rolled products in Japan, its ownership interest in its Ulsan, South Korea, facility for $315 million. Novelis and Kobe Steel together own the Ulsan Aluminum Ltd. facility, with each company remaining responsible for its own metal supply and commercial relationships.
All 600 employees at the plant are now employed by Ulsan Aluminum. Novelis’ interest in Ulsan Aluminum will remain a key part of its Asian manufacturing interests, which also includes the Yeongju facility in South Korea and the Changzhou facility in China.
“This strategic partnership further supports Novelis’ continued commitment to growth in the Asian automotive industry and creates new capabilities to meet the increasing demand for aluminum sheet,” said Sachin Satpute, President of Novelis Asia. “Through an increase in operational efficiencies and process enhancements, this partnership will provide our global customers greater access to the numerous benefits of aluminum.”
Ulsan facility officials at groundbreaking of furnace expansion, 2013.
“Ulsan Aluminum is committed to providing first-class rolled aluminum products and services to benefit our customers in the region. We will continue to operate with a high-quality and safety-first mentality, and will support the local market with innovative aluminum products,” said Jerry Quick, President and CEO of Ulsan Aluminum Ltd.
A Japanese aluminum manufacturer and a rolled aluminum supplier for heat exchangers headquartered in Stockholm, Sweden, have recently signed a letter of intent as the first step in forming the joint establishment of a new production facility for sheet materials of automotive heat exchangers in North America.
Mitsubishi Aluminum Co, based in Tokyo, and Granges are negotiating the final terms of an agreement in response to a growing demand for advanced aluminum materials for brazed automotive heat exchangers in North America. Lighter-weight aluminum is becoming more popular for automotive body structures, particularly in the U.S., in order to meet stricter emissions standards. In addition, there is a demand by manufacturers of automotive heat exchangers in North America for a local supply of clad materials, i.e., composites of two or more dissimilar metal materials.
Gränges operates facilities in the U.S., China, and Sweden and holds the world’s top market share in sheet materials for automotive heat exchangers (estimated at 20%). In addition to co-founding the base in North America with Gränges, the Japanese group will consider establishing an extensive range of business partner relationships with Gränges.
“The agreement with Mitsubishi Aluminum marks a start for a long-term partnership in North America. We will leverage our strengths and together capture opportunities in the market for advanced aluminum products to mainly the automotive industry, for brazed heat exchangers but also for other products,” said Gränges CEO Johan Menckel.
“We remain focused on growing our presence in automotive heat exchanger materials in North America. We see many synergies with Gränges, most importantly, absolute focus on research and innovation to meet the growing demands of our automotive customers. We are excited and look forward to a long-term partnership with Gränges,” said Akio Hamaji, President and CEO of Mitsubishi Aluminum Co.
A global automotive supplier recently announced an expansion of its operations at its Kamtek facility in Birmingham, Alabama.
Magna International reported that its new facility will feature a manufacturing process–high-pressure aluminum casting–that further enables the supplier to provide vehicle lightweighting and part-reduction solutions for customers. The new capabilities improve upon traditional steel multi-piece welded assemblies, which can take upwards of 12 stampings to produce one structural component. High-pressure aluminum casting allows production of full structures in one piece, reducing vehicle mass without compromising performance, structural integrity or safety.
Magna invested approximately $60 million to add the 150,000-square-foot facility. The Kamtek facility employs approximately 850 people and produces structural components for various customers including Mercedes-Benz, Volkswagen and Nissan. The new facility will initially produce lightweight aluminum front shock towers for a major global automaker, with additional customers and programs expected in the future. At full capacity, the expansion has the potential to generate more than 100 jobs.
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.
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.
A global automotive corporation’s American-based bearing division placed an order for a mesh belt furnace system for heat treating thrust races, retainer/cages, and washers. The new, CQI-9 compliant production line features built-in flexibility that allows for both neutral hardening and carburizing. Included with the system are an atmosphere controlled hardening furnace, salt quench, two-stage post-quench washing system, salt reclamation unit, temper furnace salt holding tank, and Level 2 SCADA system. The electrically heated system utilizes loading combinations on its belt to meet production requirements while achieving the customer’s required low residence times for the system’s hardener and quench.
Can-Eng Furnaces’ continuous mesh belt heat treatment systems are capable of treating three separate part types, multiple heat treating processes, unique temperature operating ranges, and diverse residence times for each piece of equipment
