EDITOR

Message from the Editor: Passing the Baton

/ EDITOR, FEATURED NEWS

Watching the calendar phase from one year to the next has us all thinking about change. Karen Gantzer, senior editor and associate publisher of Heat Treat Today, gives insight to a change happening within the Heat Treat Today team. The team is thankful for the work of both Karen Gantzer and Bethany Leone and look forward to the new year and their new roles!

This article first appeared in Heat Treat Today's December 2022 Medical and Energy print edition. Feel free to contact Bethany Leone at bethany@heattreattoday.com if you have a question, comment, or any editorial contribution you’d like to submit.

Karen Gantzer
Senior Editor, Associate Publisher
Heat Treat Today

Transitions. How appropriate as we look at 2023 approaching without hesitation. We have no choice but to welcome this new year, preferably with joy and perhaps a child like anticipation of the new adventures to come.

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One of the transitions taking place now, albeit an intentionally slow and steady one, is the move of all the print responsibilities at Heat Treat Today from my plate to Bethany Leone’s as she continues to assume the managing editor role.

I’ve been leading the editorial team for the past several years as we’ve expanded to eight annual print magazines. I have loved helping to produce them each quarter, and honestly, it’s been difficult passing the baton of this responsibility. Not because I don’t think Bethany can do it — I know she will do a phenomenal job in leading the team. I’m seeing it now and am so stoked!

Bethany Leone
Managing Editor Heat Treat Today / Heat Treat Radio Editor

No, it’s because I kind of see the magazine as my “baby.” It’s hard to give it up! Can anyone relate? When you work on a project and see it grow, how exciting and rewarding. To build our team and watch them pivot when necessary and contribute creative and thoughtful ideas to help better serve has truly been energizing and exciting. I think it’s because I love experiencing the process and seeing that magazine in print.

However, the time has come for Bethany to receive the complete baton hand off. (If you ever ran on a relay team and practiced those hand offs, do you remember running with your hand outstretched behind you and adjusting your speed so that you could achieve the perfect transition of the baton from your teammate’s hand to yours without dropping the baton?!) Bethany has her hand in perfect position to receive the baton and I’m looking forward to passing it to her smoothly and completely so that she can run with confidence and vigor.

I’m not leaving Heat Treat Today, just transitioning into new responsibilities — that of associate publisher and senior editor. I’ll still be able to be part of the print publication from 20,000 feet, just not up close and personal (for which Bethany will be incredibly thankful)! I’m looking forward to working on special projects and learning other facets of the publishing world.

So, in February 2023’s Air and Atmosphere Heat Treat magazine, you’ll see Bethany’s picture on this page and enjoy her column in each issue, and you’ll know then that hand off went down without a hitch!

Find heat treating products and services when you search on Heat Treat Buyers Guide.com

 

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Message from the Editor: The Life-Giving Encouragement of Connection

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The 2022 Furnaces North America event in Indianapolis was an unforgettable experience! Karen Gantzer, senior editor and associate publisher of Heat Treat Today, shares about the FNA show with the Heat Treat Today team. 

This article first appeared in Heat Treat Today's November 2022 vacuum print edition. Feel free to contact Karen Gantzer at karen@heattreattoday.com if you have a question, comment, or any editorial contribution you’d like to submit.

Karen Gantzer
Senior Editor,
Associate Publisher
Heat Treat Today

Well, the Heat Treat Today team is still riding high from our time at Furnaces North America a few weeks ago in Indianapolis. If you’ve had the opportunity to meet, talk, or work with any of us, you know how passionate we are about the industry, our work in helping you become better informed, and most importantly all of you! We truly love people and building relationships.

Being with many of you and connecting in person is energizing for us! It sure was a full week, but we came home with overflowing emotional tanks because we not only experienced FNA as a team together, but we were also able to have meaningful conversations with you! So, I thought it would be fun for you to hear special FNA highlights from several of the Heat Treat Today team.

Bethany Leone, our managing editor shared: “Breaking bread with 40 Under 40 people in the concessions, sharing chocolate with attendees in the booth, and clinking glasses with the Heat Treat Today  family in the evening. It is the joining together and hearing the humanity of so many special people in our lives, whom I only email behind Calibri Light Font Type size 11. “FNA was more. More fun, more lively, more meaningful than I thought. As someone who enjoys anonymity, it was a surprising joy to meet more people face-to-face and strategize ways that the editorial team could help readers and authors. The work to be done beneath my feet was more than I imagined, so much so that I couldn’t leave our booth the first day, save for lunch! Those ‘more’ memories continue to flood my mind, even as I type ‘I’m so sorry I missed you’ to the many people I didn’t get to meet.”

A common theme amongst our team was walking the floor and visiting with you. Lauren Porter, production manager and first-time attendee said: “For me, the highlight of FNA was walking around the exhibit hall on Tuesday morning feeling the room fill with energy! Seeing so many people I had met — but never face to face — was really fun.”

l to r: Ben Bootsma and Wilder Porter

This year we gave away Heat Treat Kids shirts. They were a hit with both attendees and staff Alyssa Bootsma, social media editor/copy editor, expressed her favorite memories: “I LOVED handing out the Heat Treat Kids T-shirts. It brought so much joy to those parents and relatives. I also loved having lunch with some of the 40 Under 40 honorees. We had fun conversations, and it was great to meet them. Of course, I absolutely loved being with the Heat Treat Today team. You all are such a joy to be around. It was also great to be able to meet people on the show floor or catch up with people we met last year at the Heat Treat Show.”

The first lady of Heat Treat Today, Mary Glenn, said: “I loved having everyone together and hearing how our magazines are helping businesses grow!”

Administrator Ellen Porter shared: “Working with our Team, in person, is such a great feeling of community. That feeling only builds when you get to go to a show and see all the smiling faces of the people we email with regularly, in the greater Heat Treat World. It was great!”

Closing our reflections is our publisher and founder Doug Glenn whose sentiments are shared by us all: “Having (almost) the entire team in one place at one time was really fulfilling and enjoyable. Being a remote company, the opportunities we have for face-to-face interactions are very limited. The time at FNA was especially enjoyable because not only were we together, but we also shared a common mission: get to know our customers and prospects so that we can be better informed about how to help them. The dinner we had together (with a couple of spouses and two honored guests) was also a wonderful time.

“Another major highlight is the satisfaction of seeing the show so successful since this was the first time that Heat Treat Today was the official media sponsor. It seems that our audience showed up and was quite engaged. Getting to meet a handful of our 40 Under 40 honorees was also a super memory for me.”

Until the next time; thanks for the memories!

Main Photo Caption: Heat Treat Today Team: (back row): Michelle Ritenour, Ellen Porter, Sarah Maffet, Bethany Leone, Lauren Porter, Alyssa Bootsma; (Front row): Karen Gantzer, Doug Glenn, Mary Glenn

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Message from the Editor: Wonder

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Seeing behind the scenes of everyday processes, seeing the previously unknown "how," can be an "Aha" moment. Karen Gantzer, senior editor and associate publisher of Heat Treat Today, shares about two such "Aha" experiences for the Heat Treat Today team. 

This article first appeared in Heat Treat Today's August 2022 Automotive print edition. Feel free to contact Karen Gantzer at karen@heattreattoday.com if you have a question, comment, or any editorial contribution you’d like to submit.

Karen Gantzer
Senior Editor, Associate Publisher
Heat Treat Today

It was the summer between my junior and senior year at college. I had secured a sports internship at WLWT, a television station in Cincinnati, Ohio. The opportunity to experience many behind the scene and front of the camera exposures was invaluable and rewarding. One memory that has stuck with me all these years was the first time I saw the meteorologist’s segment from behind the camera while she was on the newscast. She was standing in front of a green screen with a monitor off to the side explaining weather fronts and forecasts. I stood there in wonder. It looked totally different from the station side of things and today, I can’t watch a weather segment without thinking of the blank green screen!

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Have you ever had that experience? Completely blown away by seeing a common or everyday product, process, or presentation whose behind the scenes production was, until the point you saw it, unknown to you. I suppose one could describe it as an “Aha” moment. Well, in early June, the Heat Treat Today team had one of those memory-making trips that we’ll not soon forget.

We had the privilege of visiting the fine folks at ThermTech in Waukesha, Wisconsin. Mary Springer and Chuck Hartwig along with their experienced team shared their expertise and insights as they led us on tours of their facility. How fun it was to see some of the industry vocabulary we put on paper come to life! To actually see everything from the fiery furnaces and the products being heat treated to the pre-furnace parts prep and huge baskets that are used, it was a moment that connected the industry words we work with to the actual processes. We will not forget the sights, smells, temperatures, kindness, and generosity of our time at ThermTech.

Heat Treat Today Team: Doug, Bethany, Lauren, Michelle G-P, Alyssa, Karen, Michelle R., Ellen

The next day, the Heat Treat Today team was graciously hosted by the Quad Graphics folks who print our eight annual magazines. Being divided into a few smaller groups, we each had our own

Quad expert who toured us through the vast and expansive printing facility. To see the incredible precision that it takes to get each magazine from our PDFs to the tangible copies you hold in your hands is truly a sight to behold. From the massive rolls of paper being stored wherever there is available floor space (and, yes, there is a paper shortage) to witnessing the inking, folding, and binding processes gave us all pause to: first recognize the importance for accuracy in our processes, and second to marvel at the many highly skilled individuals it takes to produce each issue. Truly “Aha” moments!

I’m thankful for the opportunity we had to experience these visits as a team and that we can still marvel and appreciate those once unknown processes.

When I view baskets when running errands that remind me of the ones at ThermTech, I’ll remember what and how they do what they do. And, it’s safe to say, when I look at any magazine on the rack, I will see all the machinations it went through from conception to publication. What a grand time to be alive!

Find heat treating products and services when you search on Heat Treat Buyers Guide.com

 

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Message from the Editor: Celebrations

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Not every day is a wedding day, so what are the small goals that keep the needle moving forward? Karen Gantzer, associate publisher of Heat Treat Today, leans into this idea in her column about celebrating the "small wins" even as we rejoice in the grand moments of life.

This article first appeared in Heat Treat Today's May 2022 Induction Heating print edition. Feel free to contact Karen Gantzer at karen@heattreattoday.com if you have a question, comment, or any editorial contribution you’d like to submit.

Karen Gantzer
Associate Publisher
Heat Treat Today

Our youngest son will be getting married in two weeks and our third grandson is due to make his entry into the family in mid-May. These are huge celebrations to be sure, and Team Gantzer is excitedly anticipating these life-changing events with great joy.

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I’m sure we can all recall those worthy milestones that we recognized with the appropriate amount of fanfare and recognition. These celebrations are not only fun for the honorees but are also special for those doing the honoring. For the graduate or the one getting promoted, it’s an occasion to highlight the “how” and the “why” of the accolade. For the bride and groom, it’s the collective community sharing in the joy of love and family. The newborn child is representative of life and hope. And the celebration of a life well lived inspires us remaining to cherish each day, pivot if we need to, and look for the opportunities to make a difference in the lives of others.

These remarkable celebrations, though, have been paved with small nondescript victories — victories that may have come at a cost. But do we celebrate those small wins? Or ignore them because they’re not the prominent ones?

We surely don’t want to get into the mentality of the “participation trophy” that diminishes excellence and winners by celebrating every little jot and tittle of a project. But what about those rhythms that help to move the needle forward, whether it be the breakthrough in a particular relationship that was inhibiting growth or fine tuning a habit that needed attention and now will aid, instead of hinder, production? Don’t those deserve a happy dance, too?

"These remarkable celebrations, though, have been paved with small nondescript victories — victories that may have come at a cost. But do we celebrate those small wins?" --Karen Gantzer

Lately, I have been thinking of those small steps needed to make the big goals — earthly and spiritual — a reality and full of impact for not only ourselves, but also for others. It was a tribute, written by a granddaughter to the legacy of her Jesus-loving grandfather who recently passed away that gave me pause to consider how important the small things are in the journey. Here is a brief excerpt by Raechel Myers about Richard Pennington: “The legacy he leaves is the one I hope to someday leave as well: he was a man whose life and rhythms were shaped around his relationship with Christ. Certain things were fixed in his days and weeks and everything else had to earn its way in.”

“[And] everything else had to earn its way in.” I have read and re-read her tribute many times and I keep coming back to this one part. What/who is shaping my life? What things are fixed? And what is already in my life that should have had to earn its way in?

The answers to these questions are important as we set goals and prepare for success. Whether it’s a business or personal goal, remember to assess the small wins along the way and celebrate them as heartily as the major ones, for they bring life and contribute to a rich legacy.

Find heat treating products and services when you search on Heat Treat Buyers Guide.com

 

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Message From the Editor: How To Use the Heat Treat Buyers Guide

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Finding heat treat related equipment and services has never been easier than with the Heat Treat Buyers Guide. Karen Gantzer, senior editor/associate publisher of Heat Treat Today, describes what this one-of-a-kind, searchable resource can do for you.

This article first appeared in Heat Treat Today's June 2022  Heat Treat Buyers Guide print edition. Feel free to contact Karen Gantzer at karen@heattreattoday.com if you have a question, comment, or any editorial contribution you’d like to submit.

Karen Gantzer
Senior Editor/Associate Publisher
Heat Treat Todayy

Welcome to the second edition of the Heat Treat Buyers Guide. We are excited for you to experience this new edition with additional valuable resources. Here’s how you can get the most out of this resource: The Heat Treat Buyers Guide is divided into three major sections.

Alphabetic Supplier Listing

The first section, from pages 13-23, contains an alphabetic listing of all the suppliers of heat treating equipment and related services in the North American heat treat marketplace. You’ll notice that some of the companies listed in this section have a red star before their name. These are the advertisers who make this guide possible. Please lend your support to these industry-leading companies when it comes to purchasing.

Other companies have a boldface listing along with their company logo, but no red star. These are our Gold Level suppliers who have paid extra to be in the online version. These companies are also worthy of your serious consideration.

Those companies without a red star, no logo, and no blue asterisk are what we call our Basic Level companies. They’ve also contributed a nominal yearly amount to be listed in the online and print versions of this buyers guide. These companies should be considered, too.

There are still other companies who have not yet completed their online listing and therefore have relatively little information in the print edition. You’ll be able to recognize these companies because they have a blue asterisk (*) next to their name. More and more of these companies are signing up daily, so our suggestion is to check our website for the latest information about these companies OR go directly to these companies’ websites, which are listed along with their company names in this first section.

Heat Treat Equipment and Related Services

The second major section of this buyers guide is an exhaustive listing of heat treat equipment and related services. There is a comprehensive index of these services listed between pages 24 and 26. This is a good place to start your search.

Immediately after the Index of Equipment & Related Services are six sub-categories with hundreds of products and companies who provide them. The six sub-categories are: 1) Heat Treat Furnaces, Ovens & Induction Equipment, 2) Heat Treat Components, Supplies & Materials, 3) Heat Treat Controls, Instrumentation & Sensors, 4) Heat Treat Auxiliary, Sub-Systems, Ancillary Equipment & Services, 5) Heat Treat Lab, Testing, & Materials Characterization Equipment, and 6) Heat Treat Gases & Atmosphere Generation Equipment. There are too many products and services to reproduce here, but you can see them all on pages 28-71.

Alphabetic Commercial Heat Treater Listing

The third and final section of the Heat Treat Buyers Guide runs from pages 76 to 91 and includes an alphabetic listing of commercial heat treaters as well as the two new sections highlighting the services and processes they perform. If you’re looking for a company to perform heat treating on a product your company makes, this is a good place to start.

A final thought. If you are a supplier of heat treating equipment or related services OR if you are a commercial heat treater and you are NOT listed in this directory, there is a quick and easy remedy. All you must do is go to www.heattreatbuyersguide.com and search for your company’s name. If you are there, all you need to do is “claim” your listing. If you are not there, you can easily create a listing for your company in less than 15 minutes. If you have any trouble, please feel free to contact us at buyers_guide@heattreattoday.com with any questions. We’ll respond as quickly as possible.

Find heat treating products and services when you search on Heat Treat Buyers Guide.com

 

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Message From the Editor: Engagements

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Social media has become an ubiquitous part of daily life for many of us. Karen Gantzer, managing editor of Heat Treat Today, shares how the editorial team is leveraging this tool to help heat treaters across North America.

This article first appeared in Heat Treat Today's March 2022 Aerospace Heat Treat print edition. Feel free to contact Karen Gantzer at karen@heattreattoday.com if you have a question, comment, or any editorial contribution you’d like to submit.

Karen Gantzer
Managing Editor
Heat Treat Today

I like Instagram. I don’t post, but I do like to read other people’s posts. I get creative ideas for entertaining and decorating, as well as incredibly delicious recipes, innovative garden designs, and challenging fitness options. One of the influencers I follow shared that a video she posted a few weeks ago had received 9 million views. She was thrilled at its viral status because it also brought many new followers to her account.

Why does the increase in followers bring such joy? Well, it shows that people are certainly interested in what is being shared and perhaps has some relevance to the viewer — maybe he/she can resonate with it in some way. Or, at the very least, wants to find out why all the attention because, let’s be honest, who wants to suffer from FOMO?!

For the last year or so, it has been a goal of Heat Treat Today to “up our game” in the social media realm because, for us, we see it as a vehicle to help people become better informed. The articles chosen for posts and the way in which they are promoted have been intentional by design. I think there may be a science to this whole social media thing!

Who knew?!

The team, led by Social Media Editor Alyssa Bootsma, has been working diligently to discover that secret sauce to growing social media presence and helpfulness. In 2021, we celebrated the fruits of their labor because the data is showing that people are seeing value and relevance in the Heat Treat Today posts on LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter.

Of course, there is a learning curve to all new endeavors and this one is no different. Holding fast to our mantra of “The beginning of wisdom is the definition of terms,” we’ve learned about “post impressions”, “engagements”, “number of followers”, and “page likes.” And, just to be clear, the majority of the stellar Heat Treat Today team are young rising stars who probably already knew this, but the more seasoned among us, i.e., Doug and me, were on a steeper learning trajectory!!

The Heat Treat Today team is passionate about sharing incredibly helpful information that will assist you in your heat treat decisions and add to your own knowledge bank. It looks like the word is spreading through social media and we are thrilled. In these graphs, see the increases we’ve enjoyed. We are thankful for each of you who are following us and if you haven’t had the opportunity yet, please take a look at the Heat Treat Today content and consider following us. If there are topics you’d like to see or suggestions you’d like to make, please email Alyssa at Alyssa@heattreattoday.com. We’ve only just begun!

Find heat treating products and services when you search on Heat Treat Buyers Guide.com

 

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Message From the Editor: Risks

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We take risks every day. Often times, taking risks is the only way to innovate or move forward. Karen Gantzer, managing editor of Heat Treat Today, muses on the cutting-edge technology and new frontiers of the heat treating world.

This article first appeared in Heat Treat Today's February 2022 Air & Atmosphere Furnace Systems print edition. Feel free to contact Karen Gantzer at karen@heattreattoday.com if you have a question, comment, or any editorial contribution you’d like to submit.

Karen Gantzer
Managing Editor
Heat Treat Today

Risks. We’ve all taken them at some point in our lives. You know, those times you faced a situation in which you really had to act but weren’t sure what the outcome would be. You took that step of faith into the unknown. Perhaps those steps led to success or maybe they didn’t. But, whatever the outcome, a lesson was learned. I’m sure we’ve all heard those inspiring stories of innovative and creative people who took risks and persevered. Some of them have wild stories, but incredibly motivating! (Check out the podcast, “How I Built This” and Gary Hirshberg’s story on how he built Stoneyfield Yogurt — a crazy one! I’m not sure I would have persevered!)

In today’s climate, especially in the technology realm, there are new frontiers to explore in the heat treat industry. For example, have you heard of e-commerce? In the heat treat industry? What an interesting concept. Heat Treat Today has reached out to several of these companies who have dipped their toes into e-commerce for an original content article due out next month.

Technology and innovation are also highlighted in this month’s Air/Atmosphere Heat Treat magazine. Be sure to take a look at “Tech Trends: Heat Treat Technologies to Watch in 2022” which includes insights from heat treat leaders whose technology trends could help your company. Additionally, don’t miss John Clarke’s Combustion Corner to determine if there are any uncashed checks in your possession that could be cashed to invest in worthwhile projects. Mesh belts are one of this edition’s focus areas, so you will want to save time to read these three informative and helpful articles, “‘The light at the end of the tunnel’ — Monitoring Mesh Belt Furnaces”; “Mesh Belt Atmosphere Heat Treatment Systems: Meeting Demands for Performance, Quality, and Innovation”; and “Mesh Belt 101.” And, as we round out this month’s articles for your enjoyment and edification, on-site hydrogen generation is a hot topic that is discussed in “On- Site Hydrogen Generation: A Viable Option for Reducing Atmospheres in Heat Treating.”

Photo Credit: Orlando Florin Rosu @ Adobe Stock

In closing, I leave you with three quotes I hope will encourage you and cause you to pause. May 2022 be a year of great adventure into new risk-taking frontiers!

“You’ll always miss 100% of the shots you don’t take.” — Wayne Gretzky, hockey great

"Remember, a dead fish can float down a stream, but it takes a live one to swim
upstream.” — W.C. Fields

And, from one of my most favorite coaches, legendary UCLA basketball coach, John Wooden:

“The person who is afraid to risk failure seldom has to face success. I expected my players to make mistakes, as long as they were mistakes of commission. A mistake of commission happens when you are doing what should be done but don’t get the results you want." — John Wooden

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Message from the Editor: Pivoting

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In the age of new technology, Karen Gantzer, managing editor of Heat Treat Today, reflects on a year of "pivoting" to make heat treating content deliverable over the best media. If you don't know about the ebook library and podcast videos on the website, find out what Karen has to say about launching these helpful products.

This article first appeared in Heat Treat Today's December 2021 Vacuum Furnaces print edition. Feel free to contact Karen Gantzer at karen@heattreattoday.com if you have a question, comment, or any editorial contribution you’d like to submit.

Karen Gantzer
Managing Editor
Heat Treat Today

Several years ago, I remember hearing glowing reviews about the Barnes and Noble Nook. How wonderful it was to take one device that could hold numerous full-length books instead of actually having to physically carry all of them! Wow, little did we know then how the advent of the Nook, and eventually the Kindle, would not only revolutionize reading for pleasure, but also the way in which we learn and take in information.

As you know, Heat Treat Today believes that people are happier and make better decisions when they are well informed. That often includes pivoting to ensure we are covering all bases to get the information out there. It was with that belief that Heat Treat Today jumped into the ebook realm. There is always excellent technical information to share that will be helpful to you, and ebooks provide a beneficial and user-friendly platform. It’s a win-win for both the authors and readers. And an added bonus is that you don’t even need an e-reader or app to read any of our ebooks. Just download the book on your device and you’re set to go.

There are two titles currently in the Heat Treat Today ebook series. The first one is Hydrogen Generation and Its Benefits for Heat Treaters. It shares useful information about generating your own hydrogen, a key reducing agent in thermal processing atmospheres. Presently, it has almost 350 downloads. The second, High Pressure Heat Treatment: Leading the Renaissance of Hot Isostatic Pressing, explores high pressure heat treating through the many facets and advances of hot isostatic pressing and has 225 downloads. Both were written in cooperation with Nel Hydrogen and Quintus Technologies, respectively.

Keep an eye out for new titles because coming soon to your virtual ebook shelf are books covering AMS2750F and CQI-9 Rev.4. Both are based on the highly popular Heat Treat Radio episodes that discuss these relevant and important standards.

Not only do we have options for the readers, but we also have compelling and informative video formats for those who like to watch and listen. Heat Treat Radio has recently produced special video episodes. One, with close to 300 interactions, is Heat Treat Tomorrow: Experts Look Forward 10 Years that Heat Treat Today partnered with Eurotherm to produce. It includes a panel of 5 experts who address questions about the next 5–10 years in the heat treat industry, specifically focusing on the trends.The latest video, with 71 downloads, is Heat Treat Tomorrow – Hydrogen Combustion: Our Future or Hot Air? In it, Doug Glenn talks with 5 industry experts who address questions about the growing popularity of hydrogen combustion and what heat treaters need to do to prepare. In fact, you can read part of the transcript on page 34.

Heat Treat Today is here to help you in whatever way we can. So, if you’re interested in collaborating on an ebook or video or have a topic suggestion that is a must for everyone to hear about, please contact me at karen@heattreattoday.com.

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What Makes a True Leader

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OCAfter the fourth annual nomination for Heat Treat Today’s 40 Under 40 Class of 2021 came to a close, Bethany Leone, editor at Heat Treat Today, shared what type of leaders would be recognized in the September 2021 Trade Show magazine. Check out pages 32-55 for the full list of rising young leaders in the North American heat treat market.

Bethany Leone
Heat Treat Daily / Heat Treat Radio Editor

Where did you come from? I mean, before you got into heat treating. And how did you become the heat treater that your colleagues know you to be today?

If you are like most people, heat treating was something that you fell into. You didn’t plan to go into the family business, but you did; your other opportunity at your dream job fell through and someone offered you this position; you were waiting for the chance of a lifetime and decided to pursue heat treat instead. . . .

The stories go on. Mundane, perhaps more often than not, but very much our stories.

Among the ordinariness of moving from point A to point B and making the small decisions to take on a new customer or take on a new cleaning or processing technology, we find rising young leaders of the heat treat market. The general manager at a small plant who continues to impress his colleagues and employer, or the young female operations handler whose capable, can-do attitude has driven her to vice president are the constantly felt, though not often recognized, leaders in our sphere.

Determining what is a leader is the first step to recognize these invaluable figures in our ordinary lives, hidden behind their families, books-of-the-month, and job transitions. But how to talk about a good leader? How do you put into words what is felt and not spoken? It’s a difficult question, but the best answer I can give you: tell a story.

These stories show hard work and initiative from one step to the next. . .

"Erick developed successful bilingual/bicultural work instructions and created a seamless process to develop new equipment using local resources, all during demanding project schedules and in the middle of the COVID crisis."

Leadership stories highlight cultivated talent on display. . .

"Lindsey’s communications background has helped Advanced Heat Treat Corp’s growth in technical material content for customers [. . .] Lindsey’s marketing expertise has increased AHT’s website traffic year-after-year, with a 45% increase since the pandemic."

A good story moves people with cutting edge reality and humanity of a leader. . .

"With [Matthew’s] newly acquired purchase of his first home, he is honing his abilities as a handyman from rough carpentry to finish work. Applying his perfectionist personality to every job, it’s truly hard to tell if it was done by him or a professional."

As you peel through these pages to look for the next technical article or skim for an advertiser who will meet your needs, pause for a moment with fresh eyes on the incredible narratives that make up Heat Treat Today’s 40 Under 40 Class of 2021.

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Message from the Editor: Firsts

/ EDITOR, FEATURED NEWS, HEAT TREAT NEWS INDUSTRIES, OP-ED

OCLet's talk about "firsts" and the importance of starting new adventures in the heat treat industry. From her editorial perspective, Karen Gantzer, editor of Heat Treat Today, shares her experience meeting the patient, informative experts in the heat treat industry in today's original content article. Where will your next "first" take you?

This article first appeared in Heat Treat Today's November 2021 Vacuum Furnaces print edition. Feel free to contact Karen Gantzer at karen@heattreattoday.com if you have a question, comment, or any editorial contribution you’d like to submit.

Karen Gantzer
Managing Editor
Heat Treat Today

In January of 2019, our publisher and close family friend, Doug Glenn (Doug, his wife Mary, and I go all the way back to our days at Grove City College), called me, a middle school English teacher, and asked me if I’d consider working for them as an editor. While I was honored that they would think of me, my initial response was something like, “Doug, I don’t know anything about heat treating and besides, I’m a humanities girl, not STEM!” He assured me that I could learn the industry and it would be a fun ride. A first for me to dip my toes into STEM waters!

Well, fast forward to present day, having just passed my second year with the Heat Treat Today team, I can truly attest that it has been an exciting, yet growth-filled adventure in many ways. I don’t teach and grade papers of 7th and 8th graders, but I do have the privilege to work with the most talented and inspiring group of dedicated and committed men and women. What a joy to look forward each day to working not only with the Heat Treat Today team, but also with you, the experts in the industry.

I attended my first trade show in October 2019 — The ASM Heat Treat Show in Detroit. I was such a newbie and it was pretty overwhelming, but an enjoyable experience. Doug, Mary, and the managing editor, Laura Miller, were incredibly kind in not only introducing me to many of you, but I was also thankful for the patient tutorials many of you gave as I began learning the industry. I’ve mentioned this Socrates quote many times, but I truly believe it, “The beginning of wisdom is the definition of terms.” You helped me understand the terms!

While last year was a blur for us all with the cancellation of in-person trade shows, this year was an oasis for those of us extroverts who are energized by the face-to-face time that real, live shows provide. During this year’s Ceramics Expo in Cleveland and the ASM Heat Treat Show in St. Louis, I was able to meet so many of you — for the first time in person — who before this summer, I’d never met but had communicated with often.

Heat Treat Today team at the ASM Heat Treat Show 2021 in St. Louis. Left-Right: Michelle Ritenour, Doug Glenn, Karen Gantzer, Alyssa Bootsma, Ellen Porter, and Bethany Leone.

I truly believe we were created to be in community with one another, and these trade shows offered the opportunity to connect at a deeper level than emails afford. I loved talking with people about what they were working on and how Heat Treat Today could help in sharing their successes.

One of the people I had the pleasure of meeting was Carlos Carrasco of Carrasco Industrial Furnaces, a veteran expert in the industry. As we were chatting about article ideas, he asked if we’d be open to publishing the content in both English and Spanish. We loved the idea and so, with this issue, we are proud to feature our first ever Spanish-translated article entitled, “Guía para la Selección de Equipos para Tratamiento Térmico!” (p.33) which is “A Guide to Selecting Heat Treating Equipment” (p.28). We were honored to work with Carlos.

Taking those first steps can be wobbly, but oh so exhilarating when you experience the satisfaction of deciding to take on the unknown — whether it’s a career change, meeting new people, or accepting a new opportunity. It’s worth the effort. Go for it!

Message from the Editor: Firsts Read More »