Ipsen’s Engineered Components Group has seen a large increase in vacuum and atmosphere furnace hot zone and retrofit orders in the first quarter of 2014 compared to the same period in 2013. Orders include 27 hot zones, 37 controls upgrades and 23 mechanical retrofits for several customers, both domestically and internationally, in the steel brazing, tool & die, medical and commercial heat-treatment industries. Updating a hot zone can increase efficiency and improve cycle times. Adding a SCADA system or a VPN router to your controls can save time on monitoring and maintenance, and upgrading to a new pumping system can decrease cycle times.