Heat TreatToday is privileged to oversee the 40 Under 40 recognition awards, highlighting a group of young, up-and-coming talent in the North American heat treat industry every year. This year’s Class of 2019 is no disappointment, a group of industry elite, significant contributors to the heat treat market.
Every couple of weeks we highlight two of the current class of recipients. This week we introduce Sergio Gallegas Cantu of Quaker Houghton and Matt Clinite of Ipsen USA.
Name: Sergio Gallegas Cantu
Company: Quaker Houghton
Position: Technical Service Manager & Heat Treatment Specialist
Sergio graduated from Universidad Autonoma de Nuevo Leon with Bachelors and Masters Degrees in Materials Engineering. He is currently the heat treatment specialist and technical service manager for Quaker Houghton (formerly Houghton International) in Mexico. In his role, he interacts extensively with our local team and customer base. He previously worked as senior metallurgist in product development at FRISA in the design of forging process and heat treatments for superalloys, titanium alloys, and stainless steel. He has experience in material specifications for the aerospace industry including mechanical properties, failure analysis, microstructure, and grain size control for near shape forgings.
Nominated by: Quaker Houghton
Name: Matt Clinite
Company: Ipsen USA
Position: Ipsen Customer Service Sales Manager
Matt is very passionate about supporting his customers, being the first to dive in and help customers get their equipment running in peak performance. Even though he is in sales, he loves jumping in to help a customer with maintenance and repairs such as hot zone rebuilds. As customer service sales manager, Matt manages a team of 6 regional sales engineers and is a member of the leadership team at Ipsen. He is a 2018 YES graduate, active in MTI, and serves as an Ipsen U instructor in the company’s 3-day vacuum furnace training program. Matt has been involved in selling some of the most complex and technologically advanced furnace installations in North America, including what is believed to be the largest vacuum furnace in the world (over 10,000 cu.ft.).
Nominated by: Ipsen
Read more about the feature at Heat Treat Today’s 40 Under 40 resource page and find out more about each of this year’s winners by clicking on their image. To nominate someone for the Class of 2020 40 Under 40, please click here.
Heat TreatTodayoffers News Chatter, a feature highlighting representative moves, transactions, and kudos from around the industry.
Personnel & Company Chatter
Bharat Forge America Inc. will build an aluminum forging plant to manufacture automobile components in Sanford, North Carolina.
Ipsen USA recently announced the completion of an initiative to expand aftermarket services across the United States and Canada. Five regional sales engineers (RSEs) were hired over the last six months to assist customers with replacement parts, retrofits, upgrades, service, and technical support for any brand of atmosphere or vacuum heat-treating system.
An industrial heating technology company, Kanthal, recently launched an additive manufacturing service that will produce heating elements and components, as well as developing a new iron-chromium-aluminum alloy called Kanthal AM100.
GKN Aerospace has been selected as a key supplier on the new Gulfstream G700 business jet. The company is using its expertise in the design and manufacture of business jet empennages and thermoplastic components on the advanced aircraft. The rudder and elevators that are part of the empennage, as well as the floorboards, feature the latest thermoplastic technology. GKN Aerospace also produces the bonded fuselage panels for the new fuselage.
A ribbon-cutting ceremony recently marked the opening the new corporate headquarters and manufacturing facility of Process Cooling Systems, Inc. in Massachusetts.
Gasbarre Thermal Processing Systems recently partnered with Humberto Bastidas from Thermal Technic Furnace Solutions. Gasbarre will be working with Humberto and his team to launch a Spanish version of Gasbarre.com in the coming weeks and will assist with other marketing efforts in that region.
Equipment Chatter
A manufacturer of products from carbon recently provided large, custom Sigrabond Performance CFC fixtures to a North American aerospace company. By replacing the current alloy fixture with the new CFC fixtures from SGL Carbon, the customer increased part/fixture weight ratio from 62/38 to 87/13.
Two electrically heated multi-zone curing ovens were recently shipped to the composites industry by Wisconsin Oven for the purpose of curing carbon fiber threads.
A Model FB1046 floor-standing box furnace has been shipped by L&L Special Furnace Co, Inc., to a worldwide leader of high tech aerospace and associated components located in the Southeastern United States. The furnace will be used for processing aerospace parts and various thermal applications.
Danieli Olivotto Ferrè recently started up a tube roller hearth annealing furnace at Tenaris Tamsa, in Veracruz, part of one of the world’s largest manufacturers of steel pipe for the energy and automotive industries. The furnace is designed to treat steel tubes coming from cold or hot processing with a maximum throughput of 5 tons/h. The flexible furnace is able to perform different heat-treatment cycles, including normalizing, annealing, tempering and stress relieving. In addition, Danieli has been selected to supply the new electric arc furnace (EAF) melt shop and plate-/steckel-mill, as well as an electrical and automation package provided by Danieli Automation, for Nucor Corporation and its new greenfield plate steel mill complex in Brandenburg, Kentucky.
Dana Incorporated announced the expansion of a joint engineering agreement with Fendt, a worldwide brand of AGCO. Over the past three years, the companies have co-developed advanced Spicer® 980 independent suspended axles for the new Fendt 900 Vario series of large tractors.
Allegheny Technologies Incorporated announced it signed another 1-year agreement to extend and expand carbon steel hot-rolling conversion services for NLMK USA at its world-class hot rolling and processing facility, or HRPF, located in Brackenridge, Pennsylvania.
A global leading stainless steel manufacturer with headquarters in Spain, Acerinox, S.A., has reached an agreement for the acquisition from Lindsay Goldberg Vogel GmbH and Falcon Metals BV. of VDM Metals Holding GmbH, with headquarters in Germany and leading producer of specialty alloys.
A vacuum furnace for processing additive manufactured parts has been shipped to a large science and technology laboratory by Solar Manufacturing. The lab requires the furnace to further research and development work.
Through its subsidiary, Tenova Goodfellow Inc., Canada, Tenova installed and commissioned a peak shaver at VINA Kyoei Steel, Vietnam, providing continuous improvement for melt shop operations.
Kudos Chatter
A Ph.D. student at the University of Strathclyde in Glasgow, Scotland, Lewis Print is the inaugural winner of an international student award in industrial heating, the Kanthal® Student Award, presented by industrial heating technology company Kanthal. The award has been made for his work on the development of new technology for the production of silicon carbide (SiC) heating elements used in high-temperature industrial processes operating in the range 2012°F-2912°F (1100°C-1600°C).
At the October fall meeting in Vancouver, Canada, the Metal Treating Institute (MTI) recognized Mary Springer from Thermtech in Waukesha, Wisconsin, with the Heritage Award. The Heritage Award is MTI’s most prestigious award.
The Center for Materials Processing Data (CMPD) recently announced three organizations have committed to the Center’s inaugural Industry Member class: Pratt & Whitney (a founding industry member), MTS Systems Corporation, and Weber Metals. This commitment, operating to solidify its formation, has allowed CMPD to greenlight a pilot project focused on the material flow behavior as a function of temperature, strain rate, composition, and prior microstructure processing.
Pelican Wire was named the winner of the 25th annual Southwest Florida Blue Chip Community BusinessAward at this year’s luncheon and awards ceremony. Chosen by an independent panel of judges, the criteria are centered around overcoming adversity to achieve success.
ASB Industries, Barberton, Ohio, announced that Charles Kay, ASB vice president, was recognized as an ASM Fellow at the annual ASM Awards Banquet in October. The award citation states, “For global technical leadership in innovative thermal spray technologies, mentoring thermal spray practitioners, and sustained dedicated volunteer service to the thermal spray community.”
Heat TreatTodayis pleased to join in the announcements of growth and achievement throughout the industry by highlighting them here on our News Chatter page. Please send any information you feel may be of interest to manufacturers with in-house heat treat departments especially in the aerospace, automotive, medical, and energy sectors to editor@heattreattoday.com
The Class of 2019 40 Under 40, revealed online on October 4, was featured at the Heat TreatTodaybooth at the Heat Treat Show in Detroit, Michigan. Here is a group photo of most of those still present on the last day:
Matt Watts (Ultra Electronics Energy), Mike Harrison (Gasbarre), Ben Gasbarre (Gasbarre), Tom Zimmerman (ATP), Chris Davidson (SSi), Neal Conway (Delta H), Brandon Sheldon (Plibrico), Kyle Hummel (Contour), Sergio Cantu (Quaker Houghton), Uwe Rahn (Rubig), Justin Dzik (Fives)
Heat Treat 2019 is coming, and one of the great benefits of gathering with a community of heat treaters is the opportunity to challenge old habits and look at new ways of doing things. Heat Treat Today’s101 Heat TreatTips is another opportunity to learn the tips, tricks, and hacks shared by some of the industry’s foremost experts.
Today’s Technical Tuesday features 10 Tips from a variety of categories, including SCR Power Controls (56), Cooling Systems (64), Combustion (66, 101), Induction Heat Treating (71), Thermocouples (79), AMS2750 (86), Vacuum Furnaces (92), and Miscellaneous (41, 87). These tips come from the 2018 list of 101 Heat TreatTips published in the FNA 2018 Special Print Edition. This special edition is available in a digital format here.
If you have a heat treat-related tip that would benefit your industry colleagues, you can submit your tip(s) to doug@heattreattoday.com or editor@heattreattoday.com—or stop by to see us at Booth #2123 in Detroit!
Heat TreatTip #41
Discolored Part—Who’s to Blame?
If your parts are coming out of the quench oil with discoloration and you are unsure if it is from the prewash, furnace, or oil quench, you can rule out the quench if the discoloration cannot be rubbed off. Check this before the part is post-washed and tempered.
Other possible causes:
Can be burnt oils as parts go through the quench door flame screen
Poor prewash
Furnace atmosphere inlet (particularly if it is drip methanol)
When we buy a pint of beer we don’t expect the head (or foam) to be ½ the glass. We can get this situation when we pay for our plant’s electricity; we pay for both the working power that drives the process (analogy: beer) and reactive power that doesn’t directly drive the process (analogy: foam/head). The lower the Power Factor the worse this situation. The latest SCR devices can help combat this while maintaining precise control and reducing overall peak load demands (using flexible firing methods).
Plan for future growth. It is more cost-effective to provide additional capacity while equipment is being installed. Simple planning for the addition of future pumps (e.g. providing extra valved ports on tanks) and space for heat transfer equipment (e.g. pouring a larger pad or adding extra piers) can save considerable money down the road with little upfront expenditure. Consider installing one size larger piping for the main distribution supply and return. If this is not possible make sure you can add an additional piping run on the hangers you will install now.
Above all, be sure to include all necessary drains, vents, isolation valves, and plenty of instrumentation. These items are critical aids in maintenance and troubleshooting and future system expansion.
Don’t neglect burner tuning—a 1% reduction in excess O2 in the flue products can save you $1,000.00/year on your IQ batch or $2,000.00/year on a 2000-pound/hour continuous furnace—not to mention consistent temp uniformity, better heat-up rates. Pretty good payback for a couple of hours’ work.
Tube & Pipe Heat Treatment Is Different Than Solid Cylinder Heat Treating
Induction heating of tubes and pipes is somewhat different from the heating of solid cylinders. There is a difference in the frequency selection that would maximize energy efficiency for heating tubular products as compared to solid cylinders. In tube and pipe heating, the frequency, which corresponds to maximum coil efficiency, is typically shifted toward lower frequencies providing larger current penetration depth than the tube wall thickness (except for heating of tubes with electromagnetically small diameters). This condition can produce an improvement in electrical efficiency of 10–16 % and even higher. One simplified formula that is used in industry for rough estimate of the electrically efficient frequency is shown in the image, where:
ρ – electrical resistivity of heated metal (Ω*m)
Am = average diameter; Am = (Tube O.D. – h) (m)
h = wall thickness (m)
In cases when induction heaters cannot be considered to be electromagnetically long coils, the values of the optimum frequency will be higher than the values suggested according to formula, and computer modeling can help determining its exact value.
Place a yearly blanket order for your SAT probes and ask that they are made from the same coil. This will give you the same correction factors and temperature tolerances.
This standard is gold and unfortunately has a bad rap today because companies feel it’s just added cost into the process. Today’s technology means you can afford AMS2750E compliant controllers and digital recorders for only a few hundred dollars above a standard offer. This investment will be paid back many times over due to the longer lifetime expected with a quality instrument as well as the quality benefits from better drift performance between calibration intervals, redundant recording (in case of record loss), and overall accurate temperature control, leading to less rejects and reduced rework.
When trying to determine a materials response to heat treatment, it is important to understand its form (e.g., bar, plate, wire, forging, etc.), prior treatments (e.g. mill anneal, mill normalize), chemical composition, grain size, hardenability, and perhaps even the mechanical properties of the heat of steel from which production parts will be manufactured. The material certification sheet supplies this basic information, and it is important to know what these documents are and how to interpret them.
Certain alloying elements have a strong influence on both the response to heat treatment and the ability of the product to perform its intended function. For example, boron in a composition range of 0.0005% to 0.003% is a common addition to fastener steels. It is extremely effective as a hardening agent and impacts hardenability. It does not adversely affect the formability or machinability. Boron permits the use of lower carbon content steels with improved formability and machinability.
During the steelmaking process, failure to tie up the free nitrogen results in the formation of boron nitrides that will prevent the boron from being available for hardening. Titanium and/or aluminum are added for this purpose. It is important, therefore, that the mill carefully controls the titanium/nitrogen ratio. Both titanium and aluminum tend to reduce machinability of the steel, however, the formability typically improves. Boron content in excess of 0.003% has a detrimental effect on impact strength due to grain boundary precipitation.
Since the material certification sheets are based on the entire heat of steel, it is always useful to have an outside laboratory do a full material chemistry (including trace elements) on your incoming raw material. For example, certain trace elements (e.g. titanium, niobium, and aluminum) may retard carburization. In addition, mount and look at the microstructure of the incoming raw material as an indicator of potential heat treat problems.
When loading parts, carefully place the workload on the center of the hearth (front-to-back and side-to-side). Make sure it is stable and no part of the load is close to or touching the heating elements. This can create arcing and damage your parts. Tip: Once the load is in place, mark the hearth posts with a hacksaw to quickly find the front and back measurements each time.
Perfect combustion is based upon the concept of neither excess oxygen or a deficiency of oxygen in the combustion process. This is known as stoichiometric or theoretical combustion. Why is this considered as theoretical and not possible under normal field conditions? Consider the factors that can affect your combustion process: temperature of air or gas, pressure fluctuations, gas composition or supply changes, operating conditions, etc. Therefore theoretical combustion is just that: perfect combustion is only possible in a lab setting. Burner adjustment and calibration normally maintains a minimum of 10% excess air to compensate for these variables and avoid operating gas-rich with high levels of CO in the combustion process.
A Baker’s Dozen Quick Heat TreatNewsItems to Keep You Current
Heat TreatTodayoffers News Chatter, a feature highlighting representative moves, transactions, and kudos from around the industry.
Personnel and Company Chatter
GE Additive has announced the opening of its Arcam EBM Center of Excellence in Gothenburg, Sweden. The new 15,000 square meter facility triples the floor space of Arcam EBM’s previous site in Mölndal with production, R&D, training facilities, and support functions all housed under one roof.
Northern Minerals Ltd., Australia, has signed a rare earths supply agreement with Germany’s Thyssenkrupp Materials Trading for 100% offtake from the Western Australia Browns Range pilot plant, which has already begun producing heavy rare earth carbonates. Under the terms of the agreement, Thyssenkrupp will purchase all heavy rare earth carbonates from the pilot plant and will serve as the exclusive sales partner of Northern Minerals. The two companies will jointly work on the implementation of separating technologies and future expansion of the Browns Range project.
Fluxtrol Inc. presented at the 2019 National Induction Heat Treatment Technology Seminar & Mr. Shen Qingtong Career 67th Anniversary Event in Luoyang City, Henan Province, China. The presentation was titled, “What is Happening When We Induction Scan Harden an Axle?”
Equipment Chatter
An international aerospace firm based in the southeastern United States recently purchased spray/dunk washers manufactured and shipped by Premier/BeaverMatic.
A universal oven (No. 841) was recently put to use heat treating at a customer’s facility, provided by Grieve Corporation.
The production facilities of China-based stainless steel producer Fuxin Special Steel Co Ltd, a part of Formosa Plastics Corporation, in Zhangzhou city in Fujian Province of China, were expanded by a new hot rolling mill as well as cold rolling mills including continuous annealing line and numerous finishing lines. The supply contract for coil transport logistics between the individual plants was awarded to AMOVA GmbH, a company of SMS group.
A hot stamping company in Grand Rapids, Michigan, recently purchased an integrated three-chamber furnace from Lindberg/MPH. A recent video of the installed furnace (at Lindberg/MPH’s website) shows the integration with a robotic transfer system and a hydraulic press.
A rapid heating furnace was recently purchased by a research organization to be used for lightweight hot stamping & formed aluminum automotive component product development. Can-Eng Furnaces International Limited was awarded the contract for the equipment which will integrate the aluminum sheet heating furnace with existing equipment to support both automotive manufacturers and Tier 1 suppliers throughout North America for the development of new safety-critical, lightweight structural components.
A company from within the pharmaceutical industry purchased a Gruenberg steam-heated granulation dryer from Thermal Product Solutions.
Kudos Chatter
Ipsen USA announces its next Corporate Academy class for training Field Service Engineers, part of a fast-track development strategy to continue increasing technical
service capacity in the field. Participants get 26 weeks of comprehensive classroom knowledge, hands-on troubleshooting experience, and on-the-job field training. expertise in servicing and maintaining furnace equipment.
The Cleveland Chapter of ASM International will be hosting its Season Kick-off Event on Friday, September 13, 2019, raising money for the Annual Scholarship Fund. The event will be a luncheon, followed by an 18-hole, shot-gun start golf tournament and ending with dinner and awards, at Briarwood Golf Course in Broadview Hgts, Ohio. For more information, contact Rosanne Brunello, incoming chair, at ASMInternational.org/cleveland. Non-golfers welcome to cheer and/or help.
Novelis and Georgia Institute of Technology recently established the Novelis Innovation Hub at Georgia Tech Company, committing $2.5 million to initiate transformational innovation through sponsored research.
On August 12, 2019, Parker Hannifin and ASM International officially dedicated two new laboratories located at ASM’s headquarters in Materials Park, Ohio. The Powder Characterization Lab and the Computed Tomography Lab were established due in large part to the partnership that Parker Hannifin formed with ASM, allowing key equipment to be acquired for use in the evaluation of additive manufactured metal parts. The Powder Characterization Lab focuses on the size, flow, and shape characteristics of metal powders. The laboratory utilizes a Freeman Powder Rheometer FT4, Horiba Partica LA-960, and a Retsch Technology Camsizer X2, in a total cleanroom environment. The Computed Tomography Lab focuses on non-destructive analysis of metallic parts by way of a Nikon XT H 225 ST CT scanner and an Olympus LEXT OLS5000 laser confocal microscope.
Heat TreatTodayis pleased to join in the announcements of growth and achievement throughout the industry by highlighting them here on our News Chatter page. Please send any information you feel may be of interest to manufacturers with in-house heat treat departments especially in the aerospace, automotive, medical, and energy sectors to the editor at editor@heattreattoday.com
During the day-to-day operation of heat treat departments, many habits are formed and procedures followed that sometimes are done simply because that’s the way they’ve always been done. One of the great benefits of having a community of heat treaters is to challenge those habits and look at new ways of doing things. Heat TreatToday’s101 Heat TreatTips, tips and tricks that come from some of the industry’s foremost experts, were initially published in the FNA 2018 Special Print Edition, as a way to make the benefits of that community available to as many people as possible. This special edition is available in a digital format here.
Today we continue an intermittent series of posts drawn from the 101 tips. The tips for this post can be found in the FNA edition under Vacuum Furnaces, Radiant Tubes, Combustion, and Thermocouples.
Heat TreatTip #15
Shut the Door, PLEASE.
Minimize the threat of water vapor by keeping the vacuum furnace door closed in between cycles (especially if it’s wet or humid outside) and keeping the furnace under vacuum between cycles.
Although silicon carbide radiant tubes crank out twice the heat flux of radiant tubes and last decades longer than many alloy tubes, there are SOME places where these tubes should not be used. If any of the following apply to your heat treat situation, you should avoid these tubes; if not, you might want to put them to the test. Don’t use a silicon carbide radiant tube if . . .
1. Whenever there is a high probability that the tubes will be bumped either by the load or loading mechanism.
2. Whenever there is a high probability that parts will fall on the tube you will either have to shield the tube or avoid them altogether.
We all know that today’s plan is only current at the time it was made. Our industry dictates constant change and adapting to a new plan. And what is the first change in plan? Often this involves a delay or change in your maintenance schedule. Customer orders and Production needs can dictate plans or changes to your maintenance team. Very often it is canceled maintenance schedules or planned shutdowns that can be a quick solution for production needs. However, has your production team considered the real effect of changes to your maintenance planning? Unscheduled shutdowns compared to a planned maintenance program can influence production in numerous ways: equipment reliability, customer response & equipment audits, production capacity & planning, downtime, efficiency and availability. Preventative maintenance planning and coordinated support between maintenance & production will typically result in meeting production goals while maximizing equipment reliability and efficiency.
Try not to use insulated thermocouple wire if you snag the insulation off the outerjacket along the length of the wire. This may cause the inner insulation to fail andcause low temperature readings.
Heat Treat Today is compiling the 2019 101 Heat Treat Tips list for the fall issue to be distributed at Heat Treat 2019, the biennial show from the ASM Heat Treating Society to be held in Detroit, Michigan, October 14-17, 2019. If you have a heat treat-related tip that would benefit your industry colleagues, you can submit your tip(s) to doug@heattreattoday.com or editor@heattreattoday.com.
A Dozen Quick Heat TreatNews Items to Keep You Current
Heat TreatToday offers News Chatter, a feature highlighting representative moves, transactions, and kudos from around the industry.
Personnel and Company Chatter
Joyce Paliganoff (Midwest RSE), Patrick Heiser (Southeast RSE), and Larry Gomez (West/Northwest RSE) were recently hired by Ipsen USA as part of an initiative to double the number of Regional Sales Engineers (RSEs) by year-end.
A $9M investment provides needed space for capacity increases for Mercury Marine, which recently opened its 23,500 square foot expansion to its diecasting facility, where the company will manufacture complex blocks, driveshafts, and gearcases for Mercury outboards. In addition, Mercury will add another 4,500-ton die-cast machine giving the company two of the largest of its kind in North America.
SPIROL employees, company executives, board members, state representatives, and other honored guests gathered to celebrate the completion of the major expansion to SPIROL’s world headquarters and largest global manufacturing facility located in Northeastern Connecticut.
Digital manufacturing company, Protolabs has launched production capabilities for its metal 3D printing service. The new capabilities use secondary processes to improve the strength, dimensional accuracy, and cosmetic appearance of metal parts.
Equipment Chatter
A manufacturer in the automotive industry recently purchased an electrically heated enhanced duty walk-in series oven from Wisconsin Oven Corporation. The batch oven will be used for pre-heating racks of plastic parts prior to painting.
A leading supplier of high-quality automotive parts commissioned a Brinell hardness testing specialist for a second bespoke system for the intricate inspection of automotive suspension components. The challenge that Foundrax faced was that the hardness test location as specified by the car manufacturer was in an extremely tight space, hemmed in on three sides by vertical sections and almost no test area to work with. As many of these parts are hollow, there is no other position which would be strong enough to allow for a reliable test.
A retort box furnace was shipped and installed at the facility of an aerospace components manufacturer based in the southern U.S by L&L Special Furnace Co., Inc. The furnace is used to de-binder ceramic matrix composite components deployed in the aircraft industry. The main function of the furnace is to remove all organics and other materials used in the product prior to placing it in a high-fire vacuum chamber. This de-bindering process is extremely important and allows for a finished product that is not only very strong but also lightweight.
No. 824 is a 500°F (260°C), modified universal oven from Grieve, currently used for housing a vertical conveyor system at the customer’s facility. Grieve also shipped No. 797, a 260°F (127°C), clean room cabinet oven, to be used for drying coating on printed circuit boards at the customer’s facility.
Qinghai Zhuofeng New Material Co., Ltd, based in China, recently received shipment of two continuous annealing and processing lines, each with an annual capacity of 110,000 tons, from technology Group ANDRITZ.
Kudos Chatter
In 1986, Dave Strand was hired by Wisconsin Oven Corporation as a shop worker. In 2019, he retires as President & CEO of Thermal Product Solutions, LLC, the parent company of Wisconsin Oven. Dave Strand has dedicated 33 years to the continued growth of Wisconsin Oven Corporation.
Dave Strand
During the HEAT TREAT 2019 conference, Fluxtrol Inc., in conjunction with the ASM Heat Treating Society, will be recognizing and awarding academic researchers and young scientists in the field of thermal processing. Two Fluxtrol/ASM awards will be given, the “Prof. Valentin S. Nemkov Academic Research Award,” and the “Fluxtrol Student Research Award”.
In an effort to continually improve the workplace environment for all Employee-Owners, the Pelican Wire leadership team recently announced a new, comprehensive “Paid Family Leave” benefit. This expanded paid-leave benefit includes maternity/paternity leave and leave for primary caregivers of immediate family members with a serious health condition requiring
full-time care.
Heat TreatToday is pleased to join in the announcements of growth and achievement throughout the industry by highlighting them here on our News Chatter page. Please send any information you feel may be of interest to manufacturers with in-house heat treat departments especially in the aerospace, automotive, medical, and energy sectors to the editor at editor@heattreattoday.com
15 Quick Heat Treat News Items to Keep You Current
Heat TreatToday offers News Chatter, a feature highlighting representative moves, transactions, and kudos from around the industry.
Personnel and Company Chatter
Leroy M. Ball has recently been appointed to the Board of Directors at Allegheny Technologies Incorporated (ATI). Ball, 50, is president and CEO of Koppers Holdings Inc.
Heat TreatToday 2018 40 Under 40 recipient Matt Clinite of Ipsen USA has recently been promoted from Midwest Regional Sales Owner to Customer Service Sales Manager, effective immediately. Clinite joined the company in June 2014 as a Sales Engineer.
Vesuvius plc recently announced that it has acquired CCPI Inc., a specialty refractories producer focused on tundish (steel continuous casting) applications and aluminum. Based in Ohio, CCPI will become part of Vesuvius’ Advanced Refractories business unit.
Gasbarre has announced that the company will no longer be using the J.L. Becker name, but instead, are transitioning to its new name, Gasbarre Thermal Processing Systems. Thermal Processing Systems is one of the three new business units that now comprise Gasbarre Products, Inc. The other two units are Powder Compaction Solutions and Manufacturing Technologies.
Marisa A. Oeltjen has been added to the Bluestreak I Bright AM™ team as customer success support specialist. Ryan Wenzel, working from Bluestreak I Bright AM™’s Northeast Ohio location, serves as a database analyst and key member of the tech support group.
Howard Kimberley has joined Aeromet International as Chief Executive Officer. Kimberley has extensive experience in the aerospace industry including senior executive positions at GKN and Hampson Industries, and most recently as CEO of international aerospace group Shimtech since its formation in 2011.
Abbott Furnace Company recently announced it will be hosting its Fifth Annual Continuous Brazing Symposium in Mexico this spring in Puebla, Mexico from May 21 – 23, 2019.
Leroy Ball joins Bd of Directors at ATI
Matt Clinite is promoted at Ipsen USA
Marisa A. Oeltjen, Bluestreak I Bright AM™
Ryan Wenzel, Bluestreak I Bright AM™
Howard Kimberley has joined Aeromet International as CEO
Equipment Chatter
A European manufacturer of investment castings for the medical industry recently purchased a gas-fired pusher furnace from Armil CFS, Inc. The 2-row pusher furnace will be used for the burnout and pre-heating of investment casting molds.
A midwestern facility of a US-based manufacturer of safety-critical fasteners and assembly solutions has purchased a new MB48-120 mesh belt furnace from AFC-Holcroft, replacing an older AFC-Holcroft installation. The new mesh belt furnace will be used in the production of metal fasteners.
Several orders have been met by SECO/WARWICK for various equipment and systems: 1) An American manufacturer of flat rolled aluminum sheet recently added a new SECO/WARWICK sow and T-bar preheat furnace system 2) The main producer of forgings in Central Europe for strategic markets recently invested in a single-chamber furnace type PEK. 3) A manufacturer of high quality matrix forgings, construction connectors and manual tools purchased a CaseMaster AFS – a multipurpose Sealed Quench chamber furnace, intended for thermal and thermo-chemical treatment in a controlled endothermic atmosphere. 4) SECO/WARWICK provided an additional atmosphere generator system to a supplier of engineered carbon and graphite solutions for severe service lubrication applications in the aerospace, petrochemical, energy, industrial, and defense sectors. 5) The company updated and simultaneously extended a box furnace’s productive longevity for a leading international participant in the field of precious metals and advanced materials.
Lindberg/MPH announced the shipment of a single-zone tube furnace to an engineering company in the nuclear power industry.
Armil CFS ships a gas-fired pusher furnace.
SECO/WARWICK makes several equipment transactions
Lindberg/MPH ships single-zone tube furnace
Kudos Chatter
U.S. Rep. Mike Kelly (PA) meets with Onex Inc and members of NWIRC
U.S. Rep. Mike Kelly (PA) recently met with Onex Inc and members of NWIRC with the purpose of hearing firsthand from Onex employees about NIST MEP’s impact on Pennsylvania’s manufacturing industry.
Dana Incorporated‘s motor and inverter joint venture, TM4, recently announced it has reached a major milestone with the production of its 12,000th TM4 SUMO™ electric powertrain for buses and commercial vehicles in China.
For the ninth time, The Timken Company, a world leader in engineered bearings and power transmission products, has been recognized as one of the World’s Most Ethical Companies. Ethisphere Institute is a global leader in defining and advancing the standards of ethical business practices.
Special Mention
On Valentine’s Day, Thermcraft lost its founder, Mr. Morris L. Crafton, at 93. In 1971, Mr. Crafton and his wife Clara founded Thermcraft on the principle of providing the best customer service available in the thermal processing industry.
Born in West Palm Beach, Florida, Mr. Crafton grew up in North Carolina and served in the US Navy during WWII, and then after college, he was called again to serve his country during the Korean War. After his military service, Mr. Crafton moved his family to Washington, PA, where he ran a popcorn business and, in time, became a partner in a business that manufactured replacement heating elements for industrial and laboratory furnaces.
After returning to North Carolina, he decided to start his own company. With the full support of his wife Clara, they secured a small warehouse in downtown Winston Salem and began making replacement heating elements for industrial and laboratory furnace applications.
Thermcraft was moved to its current facility in 1979, just a few miles south to the edge of Winston Salem. Through new product development and various acquisitions, the Craftons began to grow Thermcraft into the company it is today.
Mr. Crafton lost Clara to cancer in 1995. He eventually turned the reigns of Thermcraft over to his son Tom, but that didn’t stop Mr. Crafton from being involved in the day-to-day business. He continued to drive himself to work well into his 92nd year, making mail runs and performing various other tasks. He enjoyed a daily walk through the factory, talking to his employees and staying on top of what was going on within his company.
Mr. Crafton will be missed by all who knew him. He will be remembered as a strong leader who was kind and generous to those around him. He had a great sense-of-humor and often left those he met with the saying, “glad you got to see me.”
“We are certainly glad we had the opportunity to meet you, Mr. Crafton,” is the sentiment of all at Thermcraft.
Heat TreatToday offers its condolences to the family of Mr. Morris Crafton and the team at Thermcraft.
Heat Treat Today is pleased to join in the announcements of growth and achievement throughout the industry by highlighting them here on our News Chatter page. Please send any information you feel may be of interest to manufacturers with in-house heat treat departments especially in the aerospace, automotive, medical, and energy sectors to the editor at editor@heattreattoday.com.
A Baker’s Dozen Quick Heat Treat News Items to Keep You Current
Heat TreatTodayoffers News Chatter, a feature highlighting representative moves, transactions, and kudos from around the industry.
Personnel and Company Chatter
Ashleigh Walters, president of Onex, Inc., recently participated in Penn State’s 2018 Fall Engineering Speaker Series, addressing how leadership can create impact through focusing on teamwork, creativity, improved processes, and mission.
Wallwork Heat Treatment’s Richard Burslem recently received the Meritorious Service to Heat Treatment Industry Award at the annual Surface Engineering and Heat Treatments Awards, presented on October 12th at the Radisson Blu in Manchester by Alan Hick, the secretary of the Contract Heat Treatment Association (CHTA).
A high tech provider of vacuum solutions for multiple markets recently opened a new 27,000-sq ft building in Nashua, New Hampshire, to house the company’s North American headquarters for administration, sales, product management, marketing and customer care. Pfeiffer Vacuum will convert the former 24,000 square foot administration building into a Service Center of Excellence, bringing together under one roof all service activities for the major part of the Pfeiffer Vacuum product portfolio.
A mobile heating station where ceramic components can be heated uniformly to 400ºC has been introduced by StrikoWestofen, allowing the components of dosing furnaces to be heated up on site.
StandardAero recently extended its long-running relationship with leading aviation services provider Dumont Group, LLC, through a follow-on contract for Pratt & Whitney Canada (P&WC) JT15D-5R engine overhauls.
Novelis Inc. recently made several newsworthy announcements: 1) The company announced that it expects its new $300 million automotive aluminum sheet manufacturing plant in Guthrie, Kentucky, to be in production in mid-2020 where it will operate heat treatment and pre-treatment lines that prepare aluminum for use in vehicle parts. 2) Novelis has agreed to partner with Impression Technologies to explore innovative ways to increase the broader adoption of aluminum through the hot stamping process. Impression Technologies has the exclusive rights to Hot Form Quench (HFQ®), a unique technology used to design and manufacture components using ultra high-strength aluminum for the high volume automotive and transport markets. 3) Finally, the company unveiled plans to establish a global network of Customer Solution Centers (CSCs) to accelerate collaborative innovation between Novelis and automakers for the next generation of vehicle design.
Ashleigh Walters, president of Onex, Inc., at Penn State\’s 2018 Fall Engineering Speaker Series
Wallwork Heat Treatment\’s Richard Burslem recently received the Meritorious Service to Heat Treatment Industry Award
Pfeiffer Vacuum adds 27,000 sq ft onto facility in Nashua, NH
Mobile heating station by StrikoWestofen
Equipment Chatter
Ipsen USA recently posted a record month of sales with orders for nine TITAN® vacuum furnaces to be shipped for use in a variety of applications for companies in aerospace, automotive and commercial heat-treating industries. In addition, Ipsen also sold seven custom units, including MetalMaster®, TurboTreater® and vacuum aluminum brazing furnaces.
A Hot Isostatic Press from Quintus Technologies has been purchased by Paulo to be installed in the Cleveland Division’s recent expansion and primarily support densification and heat treatment of investment castings and additively manufactured parts.
GE Additive and GE Aviation recently announced that the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has given ‘change in design’ approval to replace a conventionally manufactured power door opening system (PDOS) bracket, used on GE Aviation’s GEnx-2B commercial airline engines that power the Boeing 747-8, with an additively manufactured bracket.
An order for a complete walking hearth furnace plant has been received by ANDRITZ Group from Deutsche Edelstahlwerke Specialty Steel GmbH & Co. KG, Germany, for its facility in Witten, Germany. Production is scheduled to start in the second quarter of 2020.
The expansion agreement for an existing bell annealer facility is expected to begin production next month. Guang Xi Zheng Run New Material Technology Co., Ltd. placed an order with EBNER® for the expansion this summer. The agreement includes three HICON® workbases employing 100 % argon as a process atmosphere, two heating bells, and one cooling bell.
Ipsen USA post record month of sales with 9 TITAN® furnaces sold, plus 7 others.
GE Additive and GE Aviation recently receives ‘change in design’ approval from FAA.
Andritz Group receives order for a complete walking hearth furnace plant from Deutsche Edelstahlwerke Specialty Steel GmbH & Co
EBNER sees production begin next month on order for existing bell annealer facility for Guang Xi Zheng Run New Material Technology Co., Ltd.
Kudos Chatter
Solar Atmospheres – Greenville, SC, announces that it has been awarded Nadcap 18-month Merit status for Heat Treating, Brazing and Carburizing. We are extremely pleased PRI has recognized our corporate commitment to quality. Achieving 18-month merit has been a goal set by Solar’s employees since opening its doors in 2015. The adherence to strict specification requirements, flawless process execution, and a daily commitment to quality processing is evident among all employees of Solar Atmospheres. The Solar Atmospheres Greenville facility has held Nadcap accreditation since 2015.
Meron Medical, LLC, announces the successful transition to ISO 13485:2016. Safety and quality are non-negotiables in the medical devices industry. Regulatory requirements are increasingly stringent throughout every step of a product’s life cycle, including service and delivery. With greater attention on the organization’s ability to meet applicable customer and regulatory requirements, ISO 13485:2016 focuses on the entire supply chain of the medical device industry, with added emphasis on risk management.
Solar Atmospheres – Greenville, SC, announces Nadcap 18-month Merit status for Heat Treating, Brazing and Carburizing.
Meron Medical, LLC announces the successful transition to ISO 13485:2016
Heat TreatTodayis pleased to join in the announcements of growth and achievement throughout the industry by highlighting them here on our News Chatterpage. Please send any information you feel may be of interest to manufacturers with in-house heat treat departments especially in the aerospace, automotive, medical, and energy sectors to the editor at editor@heattreattoday.com.
15 Quick Heat Treat News Items to Keep You Current
Heat TreatTodayoffers NewsChatter, a feature highlighting representative moves, transactions, and kudos from around the industry.
Personnel and Company Chatter
The purchase of a producer of fixtures and parts in refractory alloys for heat treatment, steel, incineration, power generation, automotive, and aerospace industries was recently announced. The Safe-Cronite business unit of the Safe Group was purchased by its CEO Pierre Wittmann and a group of managers in partnership with investment funds driven by CICLAD.
The central laboratory of H.C. Starck, known until recently as H.C. Starck Analytical Services, announced it became an independent company with the name ChemiLytics GmbH & Co. KG. The new company will remain part of the H.C. Starck Group. The company is presented on its new webpage www.chemilytics.com to provide interested customers with an overview of the company, its core competencies, and service range.
Paulo, a supplier of heat-treating services for a wide range of industries headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri, officially inaugurated its first plant outside the U.S., located at the GP Escobedo industrial park in the municipality of Escobedo, Nuevo Leon. The facility started operations earlier this year providing proprietary heat-treatment processes for the automotive industry in a 50,000 square-feet footprint which is expected to expand up to 110,000 sq.-ft as new equipment keeps coming into the plant in order to serve manufacturers of aerospace components and agriculture equipment, among others.
A leading producer of semi-fabricated specialty aluminum products Kaiser Aluminum Corporation recently announced that it has acquired Imperial Machine & Tool Co., a leader in multi-material additive manufacturing and machining technologies for aerospace and defense, automotive, high-tech, and general industrial applications.
Paulo inaugurated its first plant outside the U.S., in Escobedo, Nuevo Leon
Kaiser Aluminum Corporation acquires Imperial Machine & Tool Co
Equipment Chatter
Ipsen USA recently announced several furnace shipments, including several TITAN® vacuum furnaces from the platform product line, several custom horizontal and vertical vacuum furnaces and multiple atmosphere box furnaces all designed to meet customers’ specifications. Many of these shipments also included PdMetrics® software for predictive maintenance.
Gasbarre recently designed, manufactured, and commissioned a large capacity gas-fired temper furnace for a major specialty alloy manufacturing company located in the Northeastern portion of the United States. The furnace is designed to temper workloads that are 32 feet wide by 6 feet long by 4 feet high and weigh up to 40,000 lbs. The furnace utilizes the latest design and control technologies to achieve excellent temperature uniformity (±10°F) across a wide temperature range (800°F to 1400°F)
A new Hot Isostatic Press will soon be in operation at Lake City Heat Treating, expanding their Hot Isostatic Press capabilities for the aerospace and medical industries. With a much larger capacity of 2,000 pounds per load, Lake City will be able to expand load sizes and meet customer turnaround requirements. The new press will be housed in their new 6,000 square foot addition.
Solar Atmospheres of Western PA recently commissioned a new 20-foot car bottom furnace that has a total load capacity of up to 30,000 pounds. The Class 2 furnace, built by John Becker’s Heat Treat Equipment Inc., located in Canton, Michigan, was installed and fully tested for the first time in Hermitage, PA. This new piece of equipment will serve to compliment Solar’s lower temperature work – especially where surface oxidation is of little concern. It will also be used to economically process many “downstream” processes, including multiple tempering operations, which typically follow vacuum austenitizing treatments.
Quintus Technologies supplied a hot-isostatic press to a Chinese manufacturer to complement the additive manufacturing capabilities at Xi’an Bright Laser Technologies Co., Ltd. BLT produces 3DP parts in titanium and aluminum alloys, superalloys, and stainless, die, and high-strength steels, for a range of industrial applications, including automotive engine and structural parts, aircraft engine and structural components, mold/die, energy, electronics, and other customer segments.
Ipsen delivers several heat treat equipment lines.
Gasbarre delivered a gas-fired temper furnace for a major specialty alloy manufacturing company.
Lake City Heat Treating orders HIP.
Solar Atmospheres of Western PA commissioned a new 20-foot car bottom furnace.
Quintus Technologies supplied a hot-isostatic press to Xi\’an Bright Laser Technologies Co., Ltd.
Kudos Chatter
Materion Corporation recently announced that the Society of Automotive Engineers – Aerospace Material Specification Nonferrous Alloys Committee (SAE-AMS) has approved AMS4369 specification for SupremEX® 225XF metal matrix composite (MMC) and AMS4379 for SupremEX 225XE MMC. This represents the second AMS specification for SupremEX 225XE and applies to the extruded form of the material. With the two recently added specifications, the company now has a total of four AMS specifications for its SupremEX line of products, allowing engineers to reference a national standard for material properties.
Worcester Polytechnic Institute recently presented its 2018 Innovator of the Year Award to metallurgical pioneer Diran Apelian. The first WPI faculty member to receive the honor, Apelian is the founding director of WPI’s Metal Processing Institute, an internationally recognized researcher and educator, and a fellow of the National Academy of Inventors.
ASM International recently recognized several members for achievement at its ASM Awards Banquet, held in Columbus, OH on October 16, 2018. In addition, ASM International Trustee-Elects have been selected to serve on the 2018-2019 ASM Board of Trustees. ASM International’s trustees are charged with acting in the best interests of the society’s membership and help to lead the governance of the society. The ASM officers and trustees were officially installed in office at ASM’s Annual Meeting on October 15, 2018, also in Columbus, OH. Details can be found at ASM International’s website: https://www.asminternational.org/membership/awards/photos
Kanfit Ltd., a leading manufacturer of assemblies and subassemblies for the aerospace industry, announced today that it has recently achieved Nadcap re-certification for chemical processing and heat treatment following thorough audits of the Performance Review Institute. Kanfit was awarded recertification of Chemical Processing and is qualified for full Nadcap merit status of 24 months. This means that the frequency between audits has been increased from 18 months to two years. Kanfit has been Nadcap accredited for chemical processing since 2013 and has been accredited by Nadcap for heat treating since 2008.
GE Aviation recently produced 30,000th 3D printed fuel nozzle at its Auburn, Alabama, plant.
Surface Combustion Inc., Maumee, Ohio, has recently updated its website, which provides details about its standard atmosphere and vacuum furnace designs. Not only is the website mobile friendly, but also thermal processing solutions on the product, industry, and process pages are easier to navigate.
Materion Corporation receives AMS4369 and AMS4379 specification.
WPI presents 2018 Innovator of the Year Award to metallurgical pioneer Diran Apelian.
ASM International recently recognized several members.
Kanfit Ltd. achieves Nadcap re-certification for chemical processing and heat treatment.
Surface Combustion Inc., Maumee, Ohio, has recently updated its website.
Heat TreatTodayis pleased to join in the announcements of growth and achievement throughout the industry by highlighting them here on our NewsChatter page. Please send any information you feel may be of interest to manufacturers with in-house heat treat departments especially in the aerospace, automotive, medical, and energy sectors to the editor at editor@heattreattoday.com.
Name: Sergio Gallegas Cantu
Discolored Part—Who’s to Blame?
AMS2750 Is Golden
