The heat treatment of steel often involves heating a component part into the austenite region (aka austenite phase field) in order to perform a thermal treatment such as normalizing, hardening, case hardening, etc.

The heat treatment and performance of high-temperature superalloys, and Inconel® 718 in particular, has always been of interest to The Doctor.

Heat treatment plays an important and – most would agree – critical role in gear manufacturing.

Having the right tools in our toolbox or knowing who to call and rely on makes any job go easier, faster and better.

Just how clear is your crystal ball? Over the past two years, The Doctor has had the good fortune of interacting with a large number of industrial clients and industry professionals from all over the globe.

Thinking back to our high-school days often brings a smile to our faces. As a freshman, the daunting task of picking a foreign language to study fell to The Doctor’s mother, who immediately chose Latin for him.

Some say we are on the cusp of another industrial revolution, namely the decentralization of manufacturing heralded by the growth of additive-manufacturing (AM) technology.

The father of the endothermic gas generator was a gentleman by the name of Norbert K. Koebel, who was fond of saying to young engineers such as The Doctor, “Treat ‘em right, and they’ll treat you right.” He knew that the endothermic gas generator was the heart of any atmosphere heat-treat operation.

Heat treatment is an energy user and all too often an energy abuser. Given the significant amounts of energy needed to run a typical process, this translates into a huge cost to the heat treater.