Asimco Shuanghuan Piston Ring Co., Ltd. has added a third nitriding system to its heat treating operations, enhancing piston ring production capabilities to serve a range of applications, including the automotive, commercial vehicle, construction machinery, and marine sectors. The compact furnace system was installed in line with two identical systems acquired in 2018 and 2021.
Nitrex installed the latest nitriding system in June, 2024, and Asimco began production in July with a goal to increase its annual production capacity of 180 million pieces and over 4,800 different varieties and specifications. Nitrex’s NITREG®-S stainless steel nitriding technology improves wear resistance, corrosion resistance, fatigue strength, surface hardness, and dimensional stability of piston rings, while reducing friction. These improvements result in better sealing, lower oil consumption, and overall enhanced engine efficiency and durability.
Nikola Dzepina Nitrex Regional Manager – Asia Source: NITREX
“The addition of the NXK-812 furnace aligns with Asimco Shuanghuan’s objectives to boost production volume and ensure precision and reliability in high-volume manufacturing,” said Tao Liu, sales manager at Nitrex China.
“By incorporating an additional Nitrex system into their operations, Asimco enhances its ability to produce stainless-steel piston rings with superior performance, durability, and reliability. This advanced treatment makes their products exceptionally suited for high-demand engine applications,” said Nikola Dzepina, account executive at Nitrex.
The press release is available in its original form here.
A U.K.-based thermal processing service provider announced it has begun production at its facility in Greenville, SC, where it recently expanded its hot isostatic pressing (HIP) services. The site houses heat treating operations, EDM, and other capabilities to serve the aerospace, defense, power generation, medical, and general industries.
HIP Product Fabrication – metal part from powder metal Source: Bodycote
The additional HIP capacity at Bodycote‘s Greenville location was commissioned to service the development and processing of advanced materials for industries situated within the Southeastern U.S. as well as other Bodycote facilities in the supply chain. With HIP capacity now in full production, Bodycote is able to meet the rising demand for highly reliable additive manufacturing post-processing. The company has more than HIP vessels of varying sizes in multiple locations. Processing capability can accommodate components nominally up to 6.5ft in diameter by 12ft high, and weighing over 30,000kg.
The press release is available in its original form here.
Featured photo: HIP furnace being lowered into place
A melting and holding furnace with a preheat hearth and a maximum temperature rating of 1,450°F (788°C) has been shipped to a manufacturer to increase capacity for processing aluminum parts.
Lindberg/MPH announced the shipment of a gas-fired reverberatory aluminum melting and holding furnace with a total holding capacity of 85,000 lbs based on 155 lbs per cubic ft. of molten aluminum and a melt rate of 10,000 pounds per hour. A full width vertically rising air operated door provides access to load the preheat hearth and a full width cleanout door at the rear allows for unloading.
Kelley Shreve General Manager Lindberg/MPH Source: Lindberg/MPH
This melting furnace is designed with an elevated base and bottom mounted magnetic stirring mechanism. An air pressure pump well for dispensing molten aluminum provides the operator with greater ease of use and allows the unit to stand idle over long periods of time such as weekends without having a large temperature differential between the pumper and the furnace.
“This aluminum melting furnace design provides maximum melting efficiency and large capacity. The customer supplied magnetic stirring mechanism helps reduce damaging oxide growth,” said Kelley Shreve, general manager at Lindberg/MPH.
The press release is available in its original form here.
A Missouri-based furnace manufacturer for the foundry, die casting and metal forming industries recently announced plans to expand its footprint in the St. Louis area with a new facility. The $4M investment in O’Fallon, Missouri, will create 25 new jobs and result in the consolidation of operations located in two Missouri counties with room to grow.
“We’ve seen explosive growth over the past few years, which initiated an extensive search for a new location,” said Joe Slattery, president and COO of SINC Thermal. “Our new, consolidated facility in O’Fallon will allow us to successfully address the current needs of our customers and position us for future growth.”
Mike Parson Governor of Missouri Source: flickr
“It’s exciting to see yet another Missouri-made business like SINC Thermal thriving in the St. Louis region. We look forward to the company’s continued success in O’Fallon as it expands and strengthens the area’s vibrant manufacturing sector,” said Missouri Governor Mike Parson.
Bill Hennessey Mayor O’Fallon, Missouri Source: www.ofallon.mo.us
For this expansion, SINC Thermal will benefit from the Missouri Works program, a tool that helps companies expand and retain workers by providing access to capital through withholdings or tax credits for job creation.
“We are thrilled that SINC Thermal has joined O’Fallon’s vast number of advanced manufacturers, and proud of the Select O’Fallon team’s work in making it happen,” said O’Fallon Mayor Bill Hennessy. “I also wish to thank our county, regional, and state partners for their support of SINC Thermal and help in reaffirming O’Fallon as a place where businesses can succeed.”
SINC Thermal president and COO Joe Slatterly is a member ofHeat TreatToday‘s 40 Under 40 Class of 2020. Click here to learn more.
The press release is available in its original form here.
Cleveland-Cliffs Inc, a major supplier of steel to the automotive industry with heat treat capabilities, has announced its acquisition of Stelco Holdings Inc, an integrated steelmaker with two operational sites in the province of Ontario. The $2.5B (USD) transaction will bring 1,800 workers into the Cleveland-based steelmaker’s current workforce of 18,000 employed across its facilities in the United States and Canada.
Cleveland-Cliffs Inc. (Cliffs) recently released its definitive agreement to acquire Stelco Holdings Inc, increasing its steelmaking footprint and doubling the company’s exposure to the flat-rolled spot market, which includes raw materials, energy, and healthcare. Stelco adds capabilities that complement Cliffs’ existing operations, confirming the Cleveland-based steelmaker’s commitment and leadership in integrated steel production in North America.
Lourenco Goncalves Chairman, President and CEO Cleveland Cliffs
Stelco’s facilities consist of Lake Erie Works, a new integrated steelmaking facility in North America, and Hamilton Works, a downstream finishing and cokemaking facility, adding capabilities that complement Cliffs’ existing operations and product portfolio, while diversifying its market industries. Upon completion of the transaction, Cliffs shareholders will own approximately 95% and Stelco shareholders will own approximately 5% of the combined company, on a fully diluted basis.
“We did this deal the way it should be done, reaching a respectful agreement between the two parties that keeps national interests at the forefront and recognizes the importance of the workforce,” said Lourenco Goncalves, chairman, president and CEO of Cliffs. “The enterprise value of this transaction is significantly lower than the cost of building an equivalent replacement mill in the United States, and the cost structure is lower than what a new U.S. mill would provide us. Stelco is a company that respects the Union, treats their employees well, and leans into their cost advantages. With that, they are a perfect fit for Cleveland-Cliffs and our culture. We look forward to proving that our ownership of Stelco will be a net benefit for Canada, the province of Ontario, and the cities of Nanticoke and Hamilton.”
Alan Kestenbaum Executive Chairman & CEO Stelco Holdings
“I am proud of what we have accomplished over the past seven years, and the value we have generated,” said Alan Kestenbaum, executive chairman and CEO of Stelco. “Most importantly, we have revitalized Stelco and restored it to its iconic status in Canada. I know thac Cliffs will continue to build upon the excellent work and life environment we have created for all of our employees and continue to be a reliable supplier to our valued customers, while maintaining Stelco’s stature and reputation in Canada and maintaining our Canadian national interests. One of the important drivers for this transaction was receiving a meaningful portion of the consideration in Cliffs shares. I have strong belief and optimism in the North American steel market. I believe that Lourenco and his team have created a winning platform, and I intend to remain an investor in Cliffs for a long time to come as he and his team continue to build out their platform and business.”
Pictured in featured image: Lourenco Goncalves
The press release is available in its original form here.
The heat treating industry is under pressure to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions (GHGE), and the response has been a noble effort to attain sustainability. In two previous articles in this continuing series, guest columnist Michael Mouilleseaux, general manager at Erie Steel, Ltd., discussed the U.S. Department of Energy’s initiative related to the decarbonization of industry and its potential impact on the heat treating industry.
The endeavor to reduce greenhouse gas emissions (GHGE), albeit noble in intent, begs the question: Why is the heat treating industry being asked to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions?
Some background:
The United States’ GHGE account for approximately 14% of the total worldwide emissions.
According to the U.S. DOE, U.S. industry accounts for approximately 23% of the total U.S. GHGE.
According to the U.S. DOE, “process heating” accounts for approximately 43% of the total GHGE generated by U.S. industry.
According to the U.S. DOE, heat treating accounts for approximately 2.8% of the GHGE they have attributed to process heating.
In sum, heat treating accounts for 0.3% of the total U.S. GHGE (23% x 43% x 2.8%), and 0.04% of the worldwide GHGE (14% x 23% x 43% x 2.8%).
Why is the Department of Energy imposing natural gas restrictions on an industry that they have calculated to be responsible for 0.3% of the country’s total emissions?
Second, this administration has spent something between several hundred billion and a trillion U.S. dollars to incentivize power, transportation, and industrial sectors in their effort to stem global warming. Years from now, we will look back at this as one of the greatest capital reallocations in our history. If we can accept that the “past is a prologue,” we have a storied history of government failures to determine the future of the agricultural, aircraft, and financial sectors. This is already happening in Western Europe: Power is substantially more expensive, and industrial output has dropped nearly 6% for the past two years — the European Investment bank attributes the reduction in industrial output to “elevated energy costs.”
Perhaps it’s time for us to take notice and slow down this effort until such a time that we have the technology in place to accomplish decarbonization without eviscerating our industrial, transportation, and power industries. A greatly overused term today is “existential threat” — but our livelihood, our national security, and our way of life are, in fact, on the line.
Attend the SUMMIT to find out more about the DOE’s actions for the heat treat industry.
On www.heattreattoday.com/factsheetDOE, you can utilize the one-page resource to let governmental officials know what our industry is, who we are, who we employ, and the effect this effort has in regulating us out of business.
I want to thank Surface Combustion, Gasbarre, and Super Systems Inc. for the guidance they provided me with in navigating the technology of this subject matter.
Any errors contained herein are mine and mine alone.
About the Author:
Michael Mouilleseaux General Manager at Erie Steel, Ltd. Sourced from the author
Michael Mouilleseaux is general manager at Erie Steel, Ltd. He has been at Erie Steel in Toledo, OH since 2006 with previous metallurgical experience at New Process Gear in Syracuse, NY, and as the director of Technology in Marketing at FPM Heat Treating LLC in Elk Grove, IL. Michael attended the stakeholder meetings at the May 2023 symposium hosted by the U.S. DOE’s Office of Energy Efficiency & Renewable Energy.
Today’s News from Abroad installment investigates the influence AI is bearing on the global field of heat treating, as well as a 2023 sustainability report and a future-looking question about the German foundry model amid transformations and a shortage of skilled workers.
Heat TreatTodaypartners with two international publications to deliver the latest news, tech tips, and cutting-edge articles that will serve our audience — manufacturers with in-house heat treat. heat processing, a Vulkan-Verlag GmbH publication, serves mostly the European and Asian heat treat markets, and Furnaces International, a Quartz Business Media publication, primarily serves the English-speaking globe.
AI News No.1: Smart Manufacturing Proves Its Value
Viking Analytics and Bharat Forge sign a three-year contract
“A new agreement has been signed between Viking Analytics and Bharat Forge Kilsta (BFK) from Karlskoga. The agreement, which is for three years, provides BFK with the AI-based optimization tool ‘Smartforge’ after a 10-month implementation phase. Smartforge optimizes the forging process, primarily in the critical heat keeping process where the problems with scrap are greatest. The goal is to reduce discarded products by 50% and contribute to energy savings and a more environmentally friendly production.”
AI News No. 2: Global Industry Goes “All In” With AI
Digital transformation and the concept of a sustainable economy go hand in hand with energy and environmental challenges.
“According to a report by the Boston Consulting Group (BCG), nearly 80 percent of companies around the world consider innovation to be one of their three main priorities this year, and 66% of them plan to increase spending for this purpose, of which 42% are ready to invest up to 10% more than before. Innovation is one of the SECO/WARWICK Group’s values, embedded in its DNA. Industry 4.0 is the guiding principle in the Group’s mentality and strategic direction, which identifies AI, automation and digitization as a priority.”
A Sustainability Commitment to a Greener, Equal Future Shows Results
Tenova’s 2023 Sustainability Report illustrates the company’s ESG-guided sustainability framework, including energy efficiency initiatives, circular economy solutions, and sustainable innovation.
“Tenova has announced the launch of its new Sustainability Report, which tracks the progress the company has made against its sustainability agenda over the past year. The Report illustrates the company’s ESG-guided sustainability framework, including energy efficiency initiatives, circular economy solutions, and sustainable innovation. . . . Tenova’s flagship technologies–Direct Reduction Iron (DRI), Electric Arc Furnaces (EAFs), and the Silicon Steel ones–are essential in driving the decarbonization of both the metals industry and the planet. This is demonstrated by its major international projects, which are set to make a substantial impact on sustainability in Europe, China, and other parts of the world.”
At its third “Zukunftstag“ (Future Day), the German Foundry Association (BDG) discussed: Do we still need casting from Germany? And why is the industry currently facing such difficulties?
“At its third ‘Zukunftstag’ (Future Day), the German Foundry Association (BDG) posed a rhetorical question to stakeholders and the industry: Do we still need casting from Germany? And why is the industry currently facing such difficulties? The Federal Association of the German Foundry Industry launched the ‘Future Day’ format in 2020 in order to visualize and establish generally applicable topics from corporate management and framework conditions in open discourse with experts from outside the industry, in addition to the industry’s technically focused conferences. In addition to economic policy framework conditions, the program revolved around skilled workers in the afternoon. The German foundry industry, part of the energy-intensive SME sector, is struggling amid transformations and a shortage of skilled workers.”
Heat TreatToday offers News Chatter, a feature highlighting representative moves, transactions, and kudos from around the industry. Enjoy these 10 news items.
Equipment
Premier Furnace Specialists received orders for nine pieces of heat treating equipment to be delivered to a range of manufacturing operations, all of which are currently in various stages of completion and testing or delivery and installation.
A manufacturer in the composites industry recently received shipment of a cabinet oven from Gruenberg, an industrial oven and sterilizer manufacturer. The furnace will be used for curing composite parts under a vacuum.
A second nitriding system was installed by Nitrex to increase capacity at Balexco, an aluminum extrusion company in Bahrain focusing on increasing production capacity.
Nine furnaces in various stages of completion and testing on the floor at Premier Furnace SpecialistsGruenberg cabinet oven shipped to composites manufacturerNitrex nitriding system installed at Balexco
Company & Personnel
Greg Miller National Business Manager Superheat
Cognizant, a professional services company that helps clients modernize technology, announced intent to acquire Belcan, a global supplier of digital engineering services for multiple industries, including aerospace, defense, and automotive.
Greg Miller has joined Superheat as national business development manager for the United Kingdom and Ireland. Greg will continue to work from his base in Lanarkshire, Scotland, bringing experience in manufacturing and preventative maintenance, with a foundation in induction heating.
Kudos
On July 2, 2024, David Lynch celebrated 40 years with Induction Tooling, Inc. This milestone was accomplished by his commitment to excellence and consistent hard-work and dedication.
Superheat, an on-site heat treatment service provider based in New Lenos, IL, recently received two Industrial Safety Training Council (ISTC) Safety Achievement Awards: one for achieving three consecutive years with zero recordable injuries and another for celebrating five years without an OSHA lost workday case. Bret Cadenhead, regional HSE manager at Superheat, represented the company at the awards event in Beaumont, Texas.
StandardAero celebrates 60 years of providing service to Pratt & Whitney Canada’s PT6A turboprop across four overhaul locations worldwide. In 1964, Dallas Airmotive (acquired by the company in 2021) became the first independent MRO provider to enter into a turboprop agreement with Pratt & Whitney Canada.
Centorr Vacuum Industries celebrates its 70th year in business in the vacuum furnace industry. The company was founded in Somerville, MA, as Vacuum Industries in 1954, and Centorr Furnace Company in 1962 in Suncook. NH. The two companies merged in 1989 in their current facilities in Nashua, NH.
Sławomir Woźniak, CEO of the SECO/WARWICK Group, celebrates five years in the position, managing all three brands: SECO/WARWICK, Retech, and SECO/VACUUM.
StandardAero’s engine overhaul center in San Antonio, TX, has completed correlation of its first test cell for the CFM International LEAP-1B turbofan engine, as part of its introduction of LEAP-1A and LEAP-1B maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) capabilities.
Bill Stuehr (L), president & CEO of Induction Tooling, Inc., congratulates David Lynch (R) on 40 years with the companyBret Cadenhead, Superheat (R), receives ISTC Safety Achievement AwardSławomir Woźniak President & CEO SECO/WARWICK GroupCentorr Vacuum Industries, Nashua, NH, location
A Georgia-based provider of natural gas measurement and control products and solutions has announced the acquisition of a distribution and service center for the natural gas industry, extending its capabilities for heat treating manufacturers.
“We’re excited to welcome the Tri-State team to Equipment Controls,” said Jeb Bell, president of Equipment Controls Company. “Tri-State has built its reputation on a foundation of exceptional service. Their motto, ‘The Service Matters,’ resonates with our values, and we’re eager to extend that level of service to our customers.”
“We look forward to our future with ECCO. Our shared vision and complementary strengths will enable us to deliver exceptional value to our customers and the natural gas industry as a whole,” said Paul Hayes, president of Tri-State Meter and Regulator Service, Inc.
ECCO will be keeping Tri-State’s brand, team, offices, products, and service offerings.
This press release is available in its original form here.
Nitriding systems have expanded the operations at two global companies: a gear manufacturer for the automotive industry and a fuel injection systems manufacturer for the marine machinery industry. In both cases, the systems will be integrated into existing installations in order to increase production capacity.
NXHL-910512 nitriding furnace Source: Nitrex
A Chinese gear manufacturer has added a fourth Nitrexnitriding furnace to its automated gear production, which includes the manufacturing of transmission gears, transfer case gears, synchronizers, and engine-gear rings for both local automotive OEMs and global markets.
“This expansion goes beyond capacity enhancement; it elevates the manufacturer’s in-house capabilities and tightens production controls,” said Tao Liu, sales manager at Nitrex China. “It allows the company to focus resources on driving innovation and sustainability across domestic and international vehicle markets, including the growing new energy vehicle (NEV) sector.”
A third Nitrex nitriding system has been installed at a manufacturer specializing in high-performance fuel injection systems for diesel engines in maritime vessels. The new NX-815 batch furnace with a 3300 lb. (1,500 kg) load capacity is specifically tailored for processing carbon steel and stainless steel parts and meets stringent requirements of the shipbuilding and industrial marine industries.
“As environmental regulations propel the shift towards alternative energy-powered ships, our advanced nitriding technologies play a crucial role. We are proud to support their expansion into stainless steel applications,” said Tao Liu.
Press releases are available in their original form hereand here.
