Earlier this year "The Monty Heat Treat News" had an article entitled "AI Data Centers Spiking New Vacuum Furnace Orders" (this article can also be found further down this page).

To summarize, the rapid growth of Artificial Intelligence Centers has driven a vast increase in electrical demand which has led to a dramatic increase in gas turbine demand to power these centers. Each and every turbine produced requires vacuum brazing of some components, hence the dramatic increase in vacuum furnace demand and consequently sales.

As an update to this story, it now appears that demand for gas turbines has reached a "fever" pitch and is increasing faster than even industry insiders expected which will mean the boom in vacuum furnace sales will continue at the same torrid pace for quite some time.

Industry expert "Matthew Pearce" recently posted these excellent thoughts about supply and demand of new power projects and gas turbines and points out that delivery times for new turbines is now over 5 years in some cases;

Matthew Pearce; "It's becoming a race to secure gas turbines. It wasn't long ago that one of the biggest hurdles for new power projects was securing funding.

Today, for many developers, it's securing the equipment. The surge in electricity demand, driven by AI, hyperscale data centers and broader electrification, has created unprecedented demand for gas-fired generation across the US.

As a result, gas turbine lead times have stretched beyond five years in some cases, with developers reserving equipment years in advance to avoid delaying projects.

At the same time, major OEMs including GE Vernova, Siemens Energy and Mitsubishi Power are investing heavily to expand manufacturing capacity, but demand continues to outpace supply.

It's a reminder that delivering a power project isn't just about engineering, procurement and construction anymore. It's also about timing. The ability to secure critical equipment early could become just as important as securing the project itself. With record investment flowing into US power infrastructure, it will be interesting to see how the supply chain adapts over the next few years.

What do you think will be the industry's biggest bottleneck over the next five years?
Equipment availability?
Skilled labor?
Permitting?
Grid infrastructure?
Or something else?"

"APRIL 2026 POSTING; Who would have thought that Artificial Intelligence centers would cause new vacuum furnace orders to go through the roof? That is exactly what has been happening recently-"The Monty" has run across several vacuum manufacturers who report having received orders due to this increased demand.

AI centers required massive, continuous (24/7), and highly variable power which in many cases leaves only one solution, gas turbines. The advantages of gas turbines are obvious; they can be deployed in 12-24 months and can ramp up to full power in a matter of minutes, claims which most other power sources can't boast of.

Gas turbine manufacturers such as "Siemens", "GE" and "Mitsubishi" all maintain large in-house heat-treating departments, primarily focused on vacuum brazing furnaces. As demand grows for gas turbines, so too does the need for vacuum furnaces.

As an example of increased demand "Siemens Energy" nearly doubled its gas turbine sales from 100 units in 2024 to 194 in 2025.

Not to be outdone "Mitsubishi" is planning on doubling it's production capacity by 2027 to meet this increasing demand.

While new gas turbines can be on line within 12-24 months, the increased demand is causing a "bottleneck" in the production of new turbines with deliveries inching up to 6-8 years for some models.

A good example of a gas turbine supplier and their heat-treating requirements is "GE Gas Turbine" in Greenville, South Carolina, USA. In 2024 "The Monty Heat Treat News" rated this location as the 14th largest captive heat treater in North America; "15 Largest Captive Heat Treats-North America" with a total of 16 vacuum furnaces at that time.