Remember physical paper maps? These were not easy to use and navigate while driving, and that’s why we tended to rely on our front-seat passenger to help guide the way or memorized the directions to our destination. These paper maps soon evolved into digital maps on specific GPS devices, and now everyone has a GPS navigation system available on their smartphone.

Solar Atmospheres of California (SCA) added additional large furnace capacity to its inventory of vacuum equipment. The furnace was specifically designed to process a variety of materials that require optimum performance during controlled heating, controlled cooling, vacuum processing, positive-pressure processing and differential-pressure processing. The furnace includes an 84-inch-diameter x 144-inch-long graphite and CFC hot zone. It has a maximum operating temperature of 2650°F, temperature uniformity ±10°F and a maximum load of 50,000 pounds.

Can-Eng Furnaces International Ltd. has been contracted to deliver a number of different furnace types to multiple customers in the United States and Canada for the heating and heat treatment of aluminum and steel closed-die forgings. The furnace configurations either under construction in the company shops or in the early stages of commissioning include rotary hearth, chain conveyor, roller hearth, mesh belt and cast-link belt. These furnaces will be delivered to Georgia, North Carolina and Ontario. They will be used in the production of powertrain, suspension and steering/linkage components for the automotive sector.

A Virginia-based manufacturer of high-quality plumbing tube commissioned a SECO/WARWICK solution heat-treat furnace to expand its capabilities to include aluminum extrusions. This is the first installation of new aluminum-processing equipment at the plant. Tubing extrusions and other shapes up to 26 feet long are loaded horizontally at floor level into a load carriage. The carriage containing the load is then pulled by a hoist from one end until it is vertical next to the furnace. The carriage is then secured to the supporting structure, allowing the hoist to lower the load down and out of the carriage. The load is lowered into a powered rotating carousel, which contains two submerged drywells that extend below the floor into the water-filled pit. The load is then supported by the carousel, allowing the hoist to be released. The carousel rotates until the load is in position directly below the furnace. The furnace door opens, and a second hoist retrieves the load, pulling it up into the furnace chamber for heating.

TMK’s Seversky Pipe Plant awarded SMS group the final acceptance certificate for a heat-treatment line for tubes and pipes at its Polevskoy site in Russia. The line has an annual capacity of up to 300,000 tons of pipes with diameters between 168 and 370 mm (6.6 and 14.5 inches), a wall thickness of up to 40 mm (1.5 inches) and lengths of up to 13.5 meters (44.3 feet). The line is able to process small batch sizes and different product groups in a cost-efficient manner.

Alugen Aluminium, a Turkish aluminum extrusion company, expanded its production capabilities with a Nitrex NXK series nitriding system. The turnkey system was delivered with Nitreg potential-controlled gas nitriding and Nitreg-C potential-controlled gas nitrocarburizing technologies. Process recipes are optimized to improve the performance of aluminum extrusion dies and increase throughput. The service life of dies is also extended through periodic nitriding, which helps to control the high heat and impact pressure that dies undergo during extrusion cycles. With a work area of 23.5 x 47.25 inches (600 x 1,200 mm) and a load capacity of 1,700 pounds (800 kg), the NXK system allows Alugen to mix special dies with regular production dies for a faster turnaround of product-specific production plans.

This coordinated Nadcap system results in a standardized approach to quality assurance and a reduction in redundant auditing throughout the aerospace industry.

Lucifer Furnaces supplied a top-loading furnace with a maximum temperature of 2300°F (1260°C) to a tooling manufacturer. Heavy-gauge, coil-wound, low-watt-density heating elements in six removable holders are controlled as three separate zones to provide uniform heating. The furnace chamber, which measures 48 inches high x 18 inches wide x 18 inches long, is insulated with 6.5 inches of multilayer insulation for energy-efficient operation and low outside shell temperature. This furnace joins a second Lucifer Furnace already in use for the production of dies to cut fabric to make N95 masks for the medical industry.

Gasbarre Thermal Processing Systems designed and commissioned a vacuum oil-quench furnace to an international manufacturer. The batch system, which has an isolated graphite heating chamber, is capable of processing 12-inch-wide x 12-inch-high x 36-inch-long loads weighing up to 500 pounds. It is rated for operation up to 3000°F (1649°C). The modular furnace design gives the company the capability of utilizing the 2-bar gas quench in the heating chamber or transferring through internal doors to the oil-quench module.

Solar Atmospheres of California and Kittyhawk announced a strategic partnership for vacuum heat treating and hot isostatic pressing (HIP) services. Because many parts require both heat treating and HIP, the relationship allows the customer to work with two companies that have extensive experience and a strong reputation within the industry. Solar Atmospheres and Kittyhawk are both Nadcap, ISO 9001 and AS9100 certified, and both companies maintain source approvals for a full line of major aerospace primes.