“A metallurgist in Washington state was sentenced to 2 1/2 years in prison and a $50,000 fine Monday after she spent decades faking the results of strength tests on steel that was being used to make U.S. Navy submarines. Elaine Marie Thomas, 67, of Auburn, Washington, was the director of metallurgy at a foundry in Tacoma that supplied steel castings used by Navy contractors Electric Boat and Newport News Shipbuilding to make submarine hulls.
From 1985 through 2017, Thomas falsified the results of strength and toughness tests for about half the steel the foundry produced for the Navy. The tests were intended to show that the steel would not fail in a collision or in certain “wartime scenarios,” the Justice Department said. Thomas pleaded guilty to fraud last November. U.S. District Judge Benjamin Settle sentenced her in Tacoma, calling her actions a “crime of pride and ego, that in some way she knew better than those who set the standards,” according to a news release from Seattle U.S. Attorney Nick Brown. The sentence was less than half the nearly six years sought by prosecutors.
“Our Sailors and Marines depend upon high quality products and services from our contractors to safely and effectively meet the worldwide mission of the Department of the Navy,” Navy Secretary Carlos Del Toro said. “We will continue to insist that our contractors must meet these high standards.” There was no allegation that any submarine hulls failed. But authorities said the Navy has spent nearly $14 million, including 50,000 hours of engineering work, to assess the parts and risk to the 30 submarines affected. The Navy says it will incur further costs as it continues monitoring the subs. Thomas’ conduct came to light in 2017, when a metallurgist being groomed to replace her noticed suspicious test results and alerted their company, Kansas City-based Bradken Inc., which acquired the foundry in 2008. Bradken fired Thomas and initially disclosed its findings to the Navy, but the company then wrongfully suggested that the discrepancies were not the result of fraud. That hindered the Navy’s investigation into the scope of the problem as well as its efforts to remediate the risks to its sailors, prosecutors said.
In June 2020, the company agreed to pay $10.9 million in a deferred-prosecution agreement. When confronted with the doctored results, Thomas told investigators, “Yeah, that looks bad,” the Justice Department said. She suggested that in some cases she changed the tests to passing grades because she thought it was “stupid” that the Navy required the tests to be conducted at negative-100 degrees Fahrenheit (negative-73.3 degrees Celsius). In a letter to the court, Thomas said she was mortified at what she had done. Her attorney, John Carpenter, noted in a sentencing memorandum that she did not gain financially by faking the test results. He asked for a sentence of probation. “Ms. Thomas is good person who let a number of work pressures cause her to make bad decisions,” he wrote. “Ms. Thomas never intended to place any sailor at risk and is gratified that the Navy’s testing compels the conclusion that she has not.” From “Defense News”
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To date we have been proud to present almost 50 episodes of “The Heat Treat Podcast”, all of which can be found at Magazine & Podcasts | The Monty Our moderator Mr. Carlos Torres does a tremendous job of speaking with the leading figures in the global heat treatment industry and this includes captive heat treaters, industry suppliers, consultants and commercial heat treaters. Our next podcast, coming this week features one of the largest commercial, vacuum carburizing firms in the world, ALD Thermal Treatment. (By the way If you would like to be featured in “The Heat Treat Podcast” please let us know, [email protected] as we are always looking for interesting guests). In the meantime we leave you with this information about ALD who incidentally is ranked by “The Monty Heat Treat News” as one of the largest commercial heat treaters in North America; 50 Largest North American Commercial Heat Treats 2021 | The Monty
ALD Heat Treat Services is considered to be one of the premier heat treat organizations in the world specializing in distortion control through its specialization in Low Pressure Carburizing (LPC) and High Pressure Gas Quenching (HPGQ). ALD Vacuum Technologies GmbH., operates two facilities in North America; each ideally located in the manufacturing heartland of the United States and Mexico. ALD Thermal Treatment, Inc., located in Port Huron, MI, opened in 2006 and the sister plant in Ramos Arizpe, Coah. (Mexico), launched in 2008, have both earned the prestigious General Motors Supplier Quality Excellence Award for six consecutive years. ALD is proud to note that they are the only outside heat treat facilities in the GM supply base who can claim this honor. ALD also operates another state of the art facility in Saxony, Germany and are on track for a fourth facility in Suzhou China in early 2021.
We are the solution for superior quality vacuum heat treating services, with a strong international presence and worldwide operation which includes furnace sales and furnace equipment servicing offered by our world-renowned ALD affiliates. Our Quality System, automation controls, Research & Development Team, in-house Laboratory, and other internal processes are robust and second to none. We are IATF 16949, AS9100, and ISO 9001 Certified, and we are also ISO 27001 and ISO 14001 compliant. We are currently seeking NADCAP certification and look forward to servicing the Aerospace Community with the highest degree of quality and precision available in the market today. Our processes minimize the distortion of precision manufactured components, such as the gears and thin walled parts found in major automotive (trucks and off-road vehicles), energy and aerospace applications. Often, our customers can reduce or totally eliminate post heat treat processing resulting in total part cost optimization.
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Effective immediately, C3 Data’s real-time pyrometry compliance status can directly inform Bluestreak™, a leading Heat Treat Manufacturing Execution System (MES) and Quality Management System (QMS) whether parts about to be loaded into a specific furnace meet AMS2750 compliance.
This collaboration enables two informational platforms to work in unison, effectively eliminating human-error-prone (manual) processes associated with pyrometry compliance. Since Bluestreak™ is already being used by many heat treaters for quoting and sales, work order entry and management, scheduling of jobs, production control and real-time job-step tracking, quality management, compliance assurance and documentation control, now operators will have the C3 pyrometry compliance connected to Bluestreak™ in real-time.
Both Bluestreak™ and C3 Data have built their solutions designed specifically for the Heat Treat industry. Every Heat Treat job has its own unique requirements, customer/part specifications, compliance requirements, preferred list of vendors, operational constraints and audit management procedures to control, track and document each individual job and work order.
“Our partnership with C3 Data is a logical one because we both excel in data integration and specification management. Bluestreak’s™ Integrated Quality Management System (QMS) ties quality control and quality assurance directly to production Work Centers, individual operator accountability and equipment maintenance and management, including furnaces. Both companies help clients pass audits with ease and clarity, every time,” states Todd Wenzel, President of Bluestreak™.”
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We have news of 3 upcoming auctions which will feature at least some surplus heat treat equipment. From what we know of the equipment we don’t expect to see a great deal of interest but we at “The Monty Heat Treat News” are firm believers that there is a buyer out there for virtually everything (except possibly fluidized bed furnaces).
The first auction worth mentioning is Apex Tool Group in Sumter, SC which will be held February 25th. The main feature of this offering will be a big, old Ajax austempering line-50/50 scrapping versus being sold as a going concern would be our guess. The second auction we are mentioning today is at CJT Koolcarb in Carol Stream, Illinois, USA. Featured in this event are a couple of ovens and two out of service, old CI Hayes units-scrap value only for everything would be our suggestion. The final auction we mention today is at Hub City Gearing out in South Dakota and is the most interesting of the bunch. In the auction we find some Induction equipment which will sell, and a few older Lindberg batch IQ’s and associated equipment. Because of the age and size (small) we predict that the batch IQ’s will sell but not for a great deal.
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It is regret that we mention the passing of Dick Schumann one of the founders of furnace builder HeatTek. Dicks’ obituary is further down this
page along with a press release the company issued back in December of 2021 about how the company was expanding.
“Many of our customers serve critical industries and are seeing historically high demand. HeatTek has committed to support them,” explains Jason Plowman, President of HeatTek. “Because of our equipment’s large size, floor space is an important asset, so investing in new facilities is essential.” HeatTek’s original location will remain home to its headquarters offices, R&D lab and over 70,000 square feet of manufacturing space. Plowman summaries, “The recent expansion has tripled our capacity and optimized our manufacturing process so we can support these crucial industries.”
Richard “Dick” Schumann, 79, of Watertown, passed away on Sunday, January 23, 2022, at HonorHealth in Scottsdale, Arizona, following a brief illness.
He was born Richard Raye Schumann on March 3, 1942 in Watertown, son of Raymond E. Schumann and Norma P. (Daugs) Schumann. Known as “Dick” to his friends, he graduated from Watertown High School in 1960 and pursued a degree in Engineering at Stout University in Wisconsin. He married Deanna K. Haessig in 1963 and began their family life in Watertown. He was employed at Lindberg Hevi-Duty in Watertown for a short period of time before moving on to employment at Oven Systems, Inc.(OSI) in New Berlin. In 2000, Dick, alongwith a few highly experienced industry veterans, founded HeatTek in Milwaukee, a pioneer in the heat treat industry. He continued to help the company grow and expand to a larger facility in Oconomowoc, and then into a state-of-the-art manufacturing facility in Ixonia, in 2004 where he worked well into his 70s.
Dick was a pillar in his community. He gave generously of his time and finances and impacted the lives of so many. He loved to contribute to the success of others. He was a member of the Parent-Teacher Association, president of the Wisconsin Parkinson’s Association, a key figure in the development of the Avalon Equine Therapy Services, served on the Board of Directors for Ixonia Bank, and most recently, president of the Watertown Country Club.
Dick had a love for his family and friends. He was a loving father and a dedicated husband to his wife of over 50 years. He was her rock, championing her through the long road of Parkinson’s disease, and faithfully cared for her to the end. He loved spending time with his grandchildren, faithfully attending sports and theater events, fishing and many happy times in Florida.
Dick was highly athletic and competitive. He played basketball, football, baseball, and billiards in his youth, and enjoyed softball, tennis, skiing and golf in his later years. He enjoyed coaching flag football and basketball, had a love for ties, fancy socks, potato chips and SPAM sandwiches.
Dick was blessed to find love and companionship a second time in his life with Brenda Geib. The two of them shared travel, adventure, a love for fast driving, golf, and singing to the oldies.
Dick is survived by his two daughters, Kelly Beltz and Kim (Jon) Loomis, four grandchildren, Alexander, Abigail, Isabella, and Gabriel Beltz.
He was preceded in his death by his wife, Deanna, and his parents, Raymond and Norma.
A memorial service will be held in his honor at the Watertown Country Club on February 19, 2022, beginning at 11:00 a.m. A luncheon will follow. In lieu of flowers, donations to the Wisconsin Parkinson’s Association or Watertown Country Club Tree Fund would be appreciated. Hafemeister Funeral Home and Cremation Service of Watertown is serving the family. Onlinecondolences may be made at www.hafemeister.com.
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Back in early 2021 it was announced that 3 commercial heat treaters in Turkey had combined under the name “Alpha Heat Treatment” to form the largest commercial heat treat in Turkey. The original press release is below and in it the company tells us that the combined company with have 8 locations around the country with roughly 150 employees.
The company has now announced that they have just taken possession of a new vacuum furnace from French furnace builder BMI. The furnace is shown being unloaded prior to installation at the company’s location in Konya, Turkey. With this latest addition the facility now has 4 vacuum furnaces.
“May 2021 POST; Three Commercial Heat Treats in Turkey Merge-Form Largest Heat Treater in the Country A Historical joint venture in the Turkish Heat Treatment Market.
“Three Istanbul-based heat treaters with more than 40 years of experience have combined. Alper, İnsa and Tamçelik Heat Treatment will now be known as Alpha Metalurji A.Ş. and will serve the manufacturing sector in Turkey. The combined company will have 8 locations in 4 different cities, and will provide job opportunities for more than 150 employees. This is the first time in the history of Turkish heat treatment that three rival companies have come together and joined forces. The company, aims to bring together high technology heat treatment processes with appropriate quality standards.
The agreement of the parties in the merger decision took about 8 months. With the fulfillment of the legal requirements, signatures were signed and Alpha Metalurji was established. According to company General Manager Koray Yavuz, the company’s turnover and number of employees will make it the largest in the Turkish heat treatment market. “The company will serve the automotive, defense and aerospace sectors, as well as aluminum extrusion and general machinery manufacturing.” said Utku Inan, Business Development Director at Alpha.”
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Ipsen has expanded its field service capabilities to include ultrasonic wall thickness testing for vacuum furnaces. The test helps customers verify the integrity of their chamber and determine its remaining lifespan.
“Having a better understanding of the furnace’s condition will result in more accurate maintenance planning,” said Ipsen Chief Service Officer John Dykstra. “Customers can have peace of mind knowing their furnace is safe for operation, while also preparing for future repairs or replacement.”
Vacuum chamber wall thickness testing is a service provided by Ipsen’s Field Service Engineers using an ultrasonic inspection instrument. This non-destructive method requires only the removal of a small amount of paint at each desired test point.
Ipsen’s service team works with the engineering department to determine the appropriate thickness for each chamber wall, and whether it passes or fails to meet the ASME Pressure Vessel Code. When the test concludes, customers receive a detailed report charting the thickness of the chamber wall across a wide range of areas, as well as maintenance and repair recommendations.
The service is now available anywhere in the United States on both Ipsen and non-Ipsen equipment. For more information, customers can contact their Regional Service Manager, or call 1-844-GO-IPSEN.
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Since 1999 “The Monty” has been publishing annually a list of the largest commercial heat treaters in North America based upon annual sales, our 2021 list can be found at https://themonty.com/articles/50-largest-north-american-commercial-heat-treats-2021-2/ This year readers will see we became much more ambitious and expanded the list to the 50 largest. In our 35th spot we have Voestalpine AG.
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GM is issuing a recall of 1,789 full-size SUVs as a result of a supplier issue that may make their rear driveshafts wear prematurely and could lead to them seizing. The recall affects the 2021 GMC Yukon and Yukon XL, the 2021 Cadillac Escalade and Escalade ESV, as well as the 2021 Chevrolet Suburban, and Tahoe. All were fitted with incorrectly produced parts from a supplier.
The issue relates specifically to the rear-wheel driveshaft assemblies with recirculating balls that were not properly heat treated. These were supplied to GM by Tsubaki Nakashima Georgia, which informed the automaker of the potential problem in October.
Between October and November, GM worked to evaluate the potential effects of the improperly heated recirculating balls on the driveshaft’s durability and reviewed its records to see which vehicles at its Arlington, Texas, plant had been built with the part. By mid-November, GM determined that there might be long-term durability concerns as a result of the production error. It opened a formal investigation in mid-December after finding that the components could become deformed with long-term use, which could lead to a loss of propulsion, which could increase the risk of a crash, per NHTSA documents.
It is now issuing a recall on all 1,789 vehicles identified, which will have the left and/or right rear driveshaft assemblies replaced at no cost to the owner. It plans to start sending letters to customers in March. In the meantime, drivers are warned that if they experience gradually increasing noise and vibration from under the vehicle, it could be a sign of the failing part.
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In Plainwell, Michigan, USA we find family owned commercial heat treater Darby Metal Treating, a company which has made “The Monty Heat Treat News” a couple of times over the years. They grace our pages again today because they just hired a new Sales Manager by the name of David Bates.
We would be remis if we didn’t mention our most recent news item about Darby, this is from February of 2021 when the firm installed a new gas nitrider; “Rubig, a furnace manufacturer based in Wels, Austria is in the process of installing a “duo” gas nitrider which can also nitride stainless steels at a company in Michigan. Darby Metal Treating in Plainwell, Michigan is a family owned business and in this picture you see from the left Tom, Max, and Adrien Darby, Mike Fortuna, Ernst (Rubig service), and John Young who is the local Rubig representative. While Darby offers a number of heat treat processes they really concentrate on vacuum heat treating.”
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