Lucifer Furnaces received an order from Southwick & Meister Inc. for a box furnace. The Meriden, Conn.-based manufacturer of collets, bushings and cutting tools will use the furnace – its third Lucifer box furnace – to heat treat under nitrogen atmosphere. The 9-inch-high x 12-inch-wide x 18-inch-long chamber is lined with 5 inches of a combination of lightweight firebrick hot face backed with cold-face mineral wool for energy-efficient operation and low outside shell temperature. The furnace is fabricated from 10-gauge sheet steel reinforced with structural-steel members continuously welded to form a solid shell for operation with a positive flow of inert atmosphere. 

Bodycote is targeting the marine renewables sector after securing work with Sweden’s CorPower Ocean. The U.K.-based provider of heat-treatment and thermal-processing services helped CorPower optimize key components in its Wave Energy Converters (WECs). CorPower’s high-efficiency WECs, inspired by the pumping principles of the human heart, offer five times more energy per ton of device compared to previously known technologies, according to the manufacturer. Incorporating a series of features to boost storm survivability and power capture, WECs benefit from thermochemical treatment to protect against the harshest marine conditions.

Tenaris is scaling up industrial activity, including heat treatment, at its plant in Conroe, Texas. The company will add about 140 employees to support the facility’s ramp-up, which includes a $600,000 investment in IT and automation infrastructure. Tenaris is adding crews to operate the heat-treatment and finishing areas of the facility. Pipes undergo heat treatment to obtain defined metallurgical properties and are then finished, which is the last part of the manufacturing process. Finishing consists of threading, stenciling, inspections and final rounds of testing. 

SECO/VACUUM received an order from a global aerospace manufacturer for a gas-quench vacuum furnace. It is the company’s second order for its U.S. plant in less than one year. The furnace, which meets Class 2 requirements per AMS 2750F, will be installed in the company’s Center of Excellence and will be used to heat treat 3D-printed parts. The Vector 2-bar quenching unit is equipped with a high-vacuum diffusion pump and convection heating for improved performance at low temperatures.

Quintus Technologies will deliver a hot isostatic press (HIP) to the Fraunhofer Institute for Manufacturing Technology and Advanced Materials IFAM in Dresden, Germany. The HIP will permit researchers to refine processes for pressure-supported heat treatment, which is used to maximize theoretical density, ductility and fatigue resistance in high-performance materials. Applications for the new system include the hot isostatic pressing and heat treatment of specialty materials such as nickel-based superalloys and intermetallic compounds like titanium aluminides, as well as densification of the unconventional microstructures associated with additive manufacturing (AM).

L&L Special Furnace Co. Inc. shipped two heat-treating furnaces to a manufacturer of brick dies, textured stucco rollers and extrusion equipment for the construction industry. The furnaces, which will be used to meet an immediate need for increased heat-treating capacity, have internal working dimensions of 18 inches wide x 12 inches high x 24 inches deep. They will provide a supporting role in the company’s die manufacturing process.

Peters’ Heat Treating Inc. recently earned Nadcap certificates in Heat Treating and AC7004 Aerospace Quality Management System at its Meadville, Pa., facility. The company is focused on continuing to improve its processes and services in order to service all customer needs. Nadcap provides a standardized approach to quality assurance for the aerospace industry. Accredited companies must have a stringent quality system in place and be able to pass annual audits to keep the certifications active.

Aerospace Material Specification 2750 (AMS 2750) is the main pyrometry specification that provides the requirements for the calibration and testing of thermal-processing equipment.

L&L Special Furnace Co. Inc. shipped a dual-chamber heat-treating and temper furnace, along with an oil-quench tank, to an eastern European ammunition manufacturer. The equipment will play a supportive role in keeping key production equipment online along with thermal processing of munitions projectiles. The furnace has two chambers: the top chamber is rated to 2350°F and is used for heat treating various steels and other nonferrous materials; the bottom chamber is rated for 1250°F and includes a recirculation fan and baffle for tempering, stress relief or preheating.

While not his first invention, the hammer – and in particular the hammer head – has helped man expand his universe like no other invention until the advent of the personal computer. Through the centuries, the hammer head has kept up with the times, evolving from the Stone Age to the Bronze Age to the Iron Age and through the Industrial Revolution (the Steel Age).