To support the global demand for its high-alloy products, Sweden’s Höganäs will expand its Johnstown, Pa., facility in North America. The project, which is expected to create 25 jobs, will add new production capabilities to support additive manufacturing and other technologies. The company will construct a 24,000-square-foot building and purchase new machinery.

Alcoa Corp. announced that the Aluminerie de Bécancour Inc. (ABI) smelter plans to restart curtailed smelting capacity after members of the United Steelworkers union in Quebec approved a six-year labor agreement. The smelter, which is owned by Alcoa (74.95%) and Rio Tinto Alcan Inc. (25.05%), has total capacity of 413,000 metric tons per year. The restart will begin on July 26 and is expected to be complete in the second quarter of 2020.

Central Motor Wheel of America Inc. (CMWA) will invest nearly $112 million to expand its aluminum wheel manufacturing facility in Paris, Ky. The project will create 145 full-time jobs and increase the company’s production by 50%. CMWA plans to expand onto an additional 40 acres and add 270,000 square feet onto its existing 330,000-square-foot plant. The 145 new jobs will include production, maintenance and engineering. Work on the expansion will this summer, and company executives expect production to begin in July 2021.

The recent staging of the Bright World of Metals, which consists of GIFA, METEC, Thermprocess and Newcast, confirmed its position at the world’s most important international platform for the metallurgy and casting sectors. Numerous investments, spontaneous business deals and lively discussions characterized the dynamic atmosphere in the 12 halls of the fairgrounds in Düsseldorf, Germany.

Solar Atmospheres recently installed an all-metal hot-zone vacuum furnace at its facility in Souderton, Pa. This is the heat treater’s third all-metal hot-zone furnace installation for its climate-controlled room. The new furnace increases Solar’s capacity for processing sensitive materials such as PH stainless, nickel-chrome-based superalloys, titanium and ferritic and austenitic stainless steels. 

Tenova LOI Thermprocess received an order from U.S. Steel Kosice, a Slovakian steel producer and fully integrated metallurgical plant, for an annealing and coating line (ACL) for dynamo steel strips. Tenova will supply the complete ACL, including a heat-treatment furnace, drying oven and the associated electrical, instrumentation and control technology. The plant will use the ACL to produce non-grain-oriented electrical steel. The contract scope includes engineering, turnkey delivery of all equipment and supervision of the assembly and commissioning.

Saarstahl is investing approximately $19 million to expand heat-treatment capacity at Saar-Blankstahl, its subsidiary in Homburg, Germany. The investment includes a roller-hearth furnace for heat treatment; construction of a 4,300-square-meter hall with cranes; and a straightening machine with a corresponding packaging unit. The new heat-treatment plant is scheduled to begin operation in fall 2020.

South-Tek Systems, a manufacturer of nitrogen generators for heat-treating applications, plans to expand in Wilmington, N.C. The company expects to move to a higher-capacity manufacturing facility in September 2019. The custom-designed 66,000-square-foot plant is only a few miles from South-Tek’s current home, which is close to full capacity.

Thermal Product Solutions LLC (TPS), a global manufacturer of thermal-processing equipment, appointed Greg Jennings to the position of president and CEO. Jennings has experience in both Fortune 500 and private companies. He has held the position of chief financial officer (CFO) at TPS since 2013. During his time as CFO, he was instrumental during the acquisition of Wisconsin Oven and Baker Furnace. Prior to TPS, Jennings held a number of domestic and international positions within SPX Corp.

Advanced Heat Treat Corp. (AHT) announced building expansions at its Monroe, Mich., and Waterloo, Iowa, locations. The extra space will enable AHT to add more equipment and services. The Michigan site is expanding its pit, which will allow for two additional nitriding units. AHT Burton, referred to by the street name because there are two locations in Waterloo, is adding additional square footage onto its building. The expansion will allow for additional equipment and services to be added. The expansions are expected to be complete by mid-summer.