MANUFACTURING HEAT TREAT

California Heat Treater Expands with New Furnaces, Endo Generator

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A California-based, full-service brazing and heat treating company recently installed several pieces of equipment, including an indirect temper furnace as well as a generator that has clocked less downtime than the previous unit.

Nick Schreiber, Quality Manager of ThermoFusion; Glen Ottinger, President of ThermoFusion; and Jeff McLaughlin, owner of McLaughlin Furnaces and Equipment

ThermoFusion’s investment of the 2200 Tru-Mix Generator and indirect temper furnace, both McLaughlin Services products, are part of the company’s commitment to support customers in the automotive, aerospace, medical, and energy industries, as well as for multiple other application.

The Tru-Mix 220 is supporting two of ThermoFusion’s internal quench furnaces and a high-temperature tool furnace, almost twice as much equipment as the generator it replaced. According to Glen Ottinger, president of ThermoFusion, the results were better than he had anticipated when researching the 2200 Tru-Mix and other gas generators.

The McLaughlin Indirect Temper Furnace was fully functional and ready for operations only two days after arrival, according to Nick Schreiber, quality manager at ThermoFusion, and has been surveyed at +/- 10F or less, between 300ºF and 1400ºF.

 

 

 

Photo credit: ThermoFusion

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New Vacuum Furnace to Stress Test Defense Vessel Parts

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A new vacuum furnace will be tasked to stress test parts for the LM2500 turbine, which is used by the U.S. Navy to power Spruance and Kidd-class destroyers, Olive Hazard Perry-class frigates, Ticonderoga-class cruisers, and Arleigh Burke-class destroyers.

Ashleigh Burke-class destroyer

Fleet Readiness Center Southwest (FRCSW) commissioned the $1.9 million furnace from SECO/Warwick Group, which manufactured the 2,800°F unit to specification for technicians to test the engine’s components after the heat treat process. It will not be used for the heat treating or plating of LM2500 parts.

“The furnace was custom made for our use and took almost a year to manufacture,” said Martha Hoffman, project manager for FRCSW’s Capital Investment Program (CIP), which invests in new technologies and equipment to improve production efficiencies. “The equipment arrived May 15, and the sign off (acceptance) was July 2.”

The new unit replaces a model that was more than 50 years old with a four-year history of sporadic operation. Difficulty in maintenance and increasingly obsolete replacement parts often resulted in a 60-80 percent down time, causing some LM2500 work to be contracted out.

Sailors check a gas turbine engine. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Brian M. Brooks/Released via Wikimedia)

Hoffman said that the new unit will save the command about six months in turn-around time per part vice contracted workload and that 12-15 components will be tested weekly.

FRCSW is scheduled to overhaul about 15 LM2500 engines annually.

 

Photo caption:

FRCSW teammates who were instrumental in the procurement, installation and acceptance of the Seco/Warwick Group furnace are, from left, materials engineers Michael Schutt and Jessica Porras, CIP project manager Martha Hoffman, metrology calibration Hung Pham, and material engineers David Arenas and Blake Whitmee. (U.S. Navy photo)

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What’s Going on Inside Your Heat Treated Part?

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Source: Gear Technology

 

It’s no secret to heat treaters that not all methods work well on all parts and specifications. It’s also a hard fact that false readings can result when applying hardness measuring systems, therefore, says Charles D. Schulz of Gear Technology, “critical service parts often require a few ‘sacrificial lambs’ to be processed along with the production parts.”

“I cannot emphasize enough that if you are not cutting up parts or coupons you do not know what is really happening during your thermal processing.” — Charles D. Schulz

 

Read more: “Gear Materials: More Inside Heat Treating Trivia”

Photo credit: Gear Technology

 

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Industrial Knife Manufacturer Transitions to Vacuum Heat Treating at Vietnam Facility

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A manufacturing company based in Loves Park, Illinois, recently purchased a vacuum furnace with 2 bar gas quenching that will be used at its facility in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam.

The TITAN® H6 furnace

Zenith Cutter, which manufactures industrial knives, cutter blades and related accessories for multiple applications, is transitioning its shop from atmosphere heat treating to using vacuum equipment for production and commissioned a TITAN® H6 furnace from vacuum furnace maker Ipsen for its Metkraft location.

The TITAN® H6 furnace has a graphite work zone measuring a 36″ x 48″ x 36″ (915 mm x 1,220 mm x 915 mm) with a 3,000-pound (1,360 kg) load capacity and is capable of operating at temperatures of 1,000 °F to 2,400 °F (538 °C to 1,315 °C) with ±10 °F (±6 °C) temperature uniformity.

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The Great Chain of the Hudson River: When Heat Treating Assisted Revolutionary Victory

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Source: RecordOnline.com

Map of West Point fortifications from 1775–1783

To join the United States in the celebration of Independence Day, Heat Treat Today brings you a story that highlights the role played by colonial-period metallurgists in the fight against the British, specifically the British Navy’s attempts to sail up the Hudson River during the American Revolution.

One of the first steel and iron manufacturers in the American colonies, the Sterling Iron Works, located in Warwick, New York, very near the New Jersey line, forged its place in history by forging the Hudson River Chain as a way to prevent the British from gaining access to West Point, the strongest and most important military post in America at that point in the war.

Interesting FAQs:

  • Peter Townsend, owner of Sterling Iron Works, probably violated the Iron Act of 1750 by building the steel furnace and kept it hidden from the British.
  • The chain was forged at Stirling ore mines and hauled to the shoreline of the Hudson where it was floated down the river. It was positioned on logs across the river with a heavy log boom in front of it.
  • The links of the chains weigh 140 lb (64kg) each; the total length weighed 186 tons.

    The placement of the iron chain and boom at West Point
  • Benedict Arnold plotted to reveal a strategy to breach the chain to the British, but he was discovered by Sally Townsend, Peter Townsend’s cousin, when she intercepted his message and unmasked him as a traitor. He escaped to the British, and no attempt was made to break the chain.
  • The Great Chain of the Hudson River remained unbroken for the length of the war. Afterward, most of the links were melted down and made into cannons, but a few of the links have been preserved at the Military Academy at West Point.
Read more:
“845 Life: Forging the Great Chain of the Hudson River, Part I” and “Part 2”;
and these articles from Wikipedia: Sterling Iron Works and Hudson River Chain
Main image 1: An illustration from Iron Age Magazine of the construction of the chain
Main image 2: The Sterling Iron Works
Main image 3: Remnants of the chain 

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Heat Treat Radio #9: Tom Morrison on Why Manufacturers Should Send Their Entire Heat Treat Team to FNA 2018

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Welcome to another episode of Heat Treat Radio, a periodic podcast where Heat Treat Radio host, Doug Glenn, discusses cutting-edge topics with industry-leading personalities. Below, you can either listen to the podcast by clicking on the audio play button, or you can read an edited version of the transcript. To see a complete list of other Heat Treat Radio episodes, click here.

Click the play button below to listen.

Metal Treating Institute CEO, Tom Morrison, talks with Heat Treat Today’s Doug Glenn about 2018’s largest heat treat event, Furnaces North America, which will be held in Indianapolis, Indiana, from October 8-10, 2018. Find out why manufacturers with in-house heat treat shops should not only attend FNA 2018, but why they should send the entire team to this once-every-two-year event. And when you come to the end of the podcast, click over to Heat Treat TV to see a recently released FNA 2018 promotional video that will whet your appetite for the event.

FNA 2018

To find other Heat Treat Radio episodes, go to www.heattreattoday.com/radio and look in the list of Heat Treat Radio episodes listed.

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Tool Steel Potential Dependent Upon Heat Treating

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Source: L&L Special Furnace

 

With its unique ability to be used in the shaping of other materials, tool steel, which includes a variety of carbon and alloy steels, is a particularly valuable property for tool manufacturers as well as manufacturers of components and parts that require the same degree of distinctive hardness, resistance to abrasion and deformation, and ability to hold a cutting edge at elevated temperatures.

The three-phase process of heat treating tool steel — annealed, austenite, and martensite — ensures the tool retains these qualities, achieves intended functionality, and meets performance specifications. In addition,

 

“The phases that define the process of heat treating tool steel alter the microstructure of the steel itself. Observable under a microscope, heat treatment rearranges the atoms of the iron, carbon, and any other metal components, which serves to give the final material specifically desired properties.” —  L&L Special Furnace

 

Multiple factors can influence the final product, including the appropriate hardening and tempering temperatures depending on the type of steel.

This table provides general recommendations for the appropriate hardening and tempering temperatures based on steel type, as well as the recommended type of quench process. — L&L Special Furnace

 

“Heat treating tool steel does more than adding significant value to the treated material—it makes the use of the tool steel possible. Without properly applied heat treating, tools simply wouldn’t work or couldn’t even be made. Modern metallurgical engineering is essential to the production and manufacturing of tool steel and all of its applications.” —  L&L Special Furnace

 

Read more: “The Critical Aspects of Preparing Tool Steels Through Heat Treatment”

 

Photo credit (main image): Youtube.com  and caption: “Visual indication of tool steel phase change to austenite when heat treating. Small pools of iron are forced from the steel as the volumetric change takes place and small amounts of carbon are burned off.”

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Restarting Blast Furnace, Steel Producer Focuses on Demand

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With the restart of the second of its two blast furnaces, a major U.S. steel producer expects to step up its supply of American-made steel to support customers demand.

U. S. Steel President and Chief Executive Officer David B. Burritt

United States Steel Corporation recently announced it will restart “A” blast furnace at its Granite City Works, an integrated steelmaking plant in Granite City, Illinois.

“We are excited to announce that after the restart of the “A” blast furnace on or around October 1, all of the steelmaking operations at Granite City will be back online, helping us meet an increased demand for American-made steel that has only grown since our March announcement,” said U. S. Steel President and Chief Executive Officer David B. Burritt. “After careful consideration of market conditions and customer demand, including the impact of Section 232, the restart of the two blast furnaces at Granite City Works will allow us to serve our customers’ growing demand for high-quality products melted and poured in the United States.”

Photo Credit: CBS Pittsburgh 

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Clarity and Accuracy in Heat Treat Specifications Ensures Quality Processing

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Source: Paulo Learning Center

 

Heat treaters strive to deliver parts that meet industry and manufacturers’ specifications with precision, but too often the information they get from customers is inadequate, unclear or incorrect. This article from Paulo’s Learning Center provides 7 points of data that will help a metallurgist treat parts to stand up to the manufacturer’s intended application, including:

  • making sure materials are clearly identified
  • specifying the process required
  • noting prescribed hardness tolerance
  • identifying case depth tolerance
  • sharing the right amount of information
  • providing correct hardness scales
  • identifying inspection points

 

Read more: “Understanding Heat Treatment Specifications”

 

Photo credit: Paulo Learning Center

 

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Induction Heating Manufacturer Doubles Facility Space to Meet Demand

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Tony Mazzullo, president of Ambrell

An induction heating manufacturer has moved its operations to a facility twice the size of the previous location to accommodate increased demands for its products and industry solutions.

Ambrell Corporation, the thermal segment subsidiary of inTEST Corporation, which designs and manufactures thermal management products, recently broke ground on the new 80,000 sq ft facility in Rochester, New York. The $2.1 million project, which started in September 2017, included a complete company relocation from its previous manufacturing facility in Scottsville, New York.

“This is an exciting time for Ambrell and marks a huge milestone for the company, its employees, and customers who will all benefit from the opportunities this expansion presents,” said Tony Mazzullo, president of Ambrell, at the previous ribbon-cutting ceremony. “This new facility adds floor space to our Applications Laboratory to provide our customers with access to all of Ambrell’s products when they visit The Lab at Ambrell. The addition of floor space and equipment will also enable us to manufacture more products to meet the growing demands of our customers. In addition, our highly efficient manufacturing floor will enable us to maximize throughput while continuing to manufacture solutions that are innovative, of very high quality, and reliable.”

James Pelrin, inTEST president and CEO

“The new facility is designed to meet the demands of Ambrell’s growing business, increasing current capabilities for both product design and manufacturing,” commented James Pelrin, inTEST president and CEO. “To accommodate this rapid company growth, we are expanding from approximately 40,000 square feet at the previous facility to 80,000 square feet at the new location.”

inTEST designs and manufactures induction heating products for joining and forming metals for use in a variety of industrial markets, including automotive, aerospace &defense, machinery, wire & fasteners, medical, and semiconductor.

 

 

Photo caption and credit: Ribbon-cutting ceremony with Ambrell and inTEST representatives and local and state officials; Twitter

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