Solar Atmospheres hosted 28 high-school students enrolled in the Summer Engineering Institute (SEI) at Lehigh University on July 11. The group also included a few members of Lehigh University undergraduate students and staff. The SEI program is a two-week residential program, running two sessions back to back. Students are nominated by faculty of local high schools, and the program specifically targets under-represented groups including girls, first-generation students and students who might otherwise have limited opportunities to study in the fields of science, technology, engineering and math (STEM).

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. 

Ipsen USA recently embarked on an initiative to double its number of regional sales engineers (RSEs). The company’s RSEs engage customers with the objective of improving furnace performance and increasing service life. Recent hires include Midwest RSE Joyce Paliganoff, Southeast RSE Patrick Heiser and West/Northwest RSE Larry Gomez.

The Industrial Heating Equipment Association (IHEA) heads to Cleveland, Ohio, for its 2019 Fall Seminars and Fall Business Conference. The event will be held at the Intercontinental Cleveland Sept. 24-26. The technical seminar series will be held on Tuesday and Wednesday, followed by the IHEA Fall Business Conference on Thursday.

The overall furnace design and volume determines the required throughput of the pumping system and the ultimate vacuum expected.

Retech Systems, a subsidiary of SECO/WARWICK Group, supplied two vacuum induction melting (VIM) systems to Siemens Power and Gas division. The VIM systems will play a key role in the casting of components such as turbine blades and vanes for the power-generation industry. One VIM directional solidification/single crystal/equiax pitless (VIM DS/SC/EQ) combination casting furnace and one VIM directional solidification/single crystal (DS/SC) casting furnace were installed.

Nucor Corp. announced a capital investment that will add vacuum degassing to its engineered bar capabilities at its mill in Darlington, S.C. Adding this capability will enable the mill to produce engineered bar products meeting some of the most stringent quality specifications in the industry. The vacuum degassing system is expected to begin operations in late 2020. According to Nucor, the investment wlll position it to better serve customers in the southeastern U.S. 

Furnacare Inc., a TAV Group Company, sold a TAV horizontal vacuum furnace with a maximum temperature of 2462°F (1350°C) to an international mint. The furnace, which has useful dimensions of 400 mm (15.7 inches) wide x 400 mm (15.7 inches) high x 600 mm (23.6 inches) long, has high-speed quenching with up to 25 bar of helium with an optional recovery circuit. A large pumping group allows for rapid evacuation of the chamber and high operating vacuum level. In addition, a closed-loop gas cooling system combines high flow capacity and pressure to guarantee fast and uniform cooling of the load.

The DRYVAC DV 200 and DV 300 complement the existing product range of DRYVAC 450, 650 and 1200 and offer the same user benefits for applications requiring smaller sizes.

HiLobe series Roots pumps can be used for industrial vacuum applications such as electron-beam welding, vacuum furnaces or freeze drying.