Hy-Vac Technologies Inc. was born from Vac-Hyd Processing, which was founded 65 years ago in 1955. In 1982, however, Vac-Hyd sold the business. The name was then changed to Hy-Vac Technologies, and the rest is history.

You could say brothers Frank and Gene Clark followed their father’s lead. 

Wade Clark, who had a long and distinguished career in the heat-treating industry, inspired his sons to enter the field. But instead of working in the heat-treat department of a manufacturer or for a commercial heat treater, the brothers opted to forge their own path.

With our diverse editorial coverage, there are a number of associations in our industry. I personally belong to APMI International (MPIF) for powder metals and additive manufacturing as well as AIST (Association for Iron & Steel Technology). That’s in addition to IHEA and MTI, of course.

Nitrex is set to start the fourth phase of expansion at its commercial heat-treating facility in Aurora, Ill. The project will add a fourth building that will house a new low-pressure carburizing (LPC) system and secondary heat-treating equipment. The ECM vacuum carburizing furnace with oil-quench capabilities will help meet growing demand from makers of high-end critical parts within the automotive, aerospace and tooling industries. The 20-bar dual-chamber furnace has a workload size of 40 inches long x 24 inches wide x 28 inches high (1,000 x 600 x 715 mm) and a load capacity of 1,500 pounds (680 kg).

At the writing of this column, the world is at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. Manufacturers and the supply chain are being disrupted like they have never been disrupted before.

Dependable Metal Treating is observing a milestone anniversary in 2020. It should be quite a celebration because the company has come a long way in a relatively short period of time.

Established way back in 1932, Rochester Steel Treating Works initially served tool-and-die shops with open hearth, coal-fired furnaces. A lot has changed since then.

Even though times – and with it technology – are constantly evolving, Industrial Heating’s directories (for the most part) remain the same. They may look different in the magazine, but their purpose never changes: to provide you with a valuable resource that can be used for the entire year.

Solar Atmospheres purchased and commissioned a Hitachi scanning electron microscope (SEM). The FlexSEM1000 II will allow the commercial heat treater to meet customer needs, such as strict requirements for low-level contamination from carbon, oxygen and/or nitrogen post heat treating. In addition, the SEM will enable Solar to fulfill materials characterization and microstructural determination requests beyond basic metallography and hardness testing. This investment is a response to the changing needs of Solar’s customers.