Carburizing has rapidly become one of the most critial heat treatment processes employed in the manufacture of automotive components. Also refered to as Case hardening it provides necessary surface resitance to wear, whilst maintaining toughness and core strength essential for hardworking automotive parts. The carburizing heat treatment process is commonly applied to low carbon steel parts after machining, as well as high alloy steel bearings, gears, and other components. Being critical to product performance, monitoring and controlling the product temperture in the heat treatment process, is essential.
Careful control of both the process temperature and duration, both in the heating and quench stages is essential to both product quality and process efficiency. Obviously when considering temperature we are interested in the product temperature not the furnace. Measuring product temperature through a carburizing process although possible using trailing thermocouples, as performed historically, is certainly not easy, safe and distrupts production for lengthy periods.
PhoenixTM provides a superior solution with the use of a ‘Thru-Process’ temperature monitoring system. As the name suggests the PhoenixTM temperature profiling system is designed to travel through the thermal process measuring the product and or furnace environment from start to finish. Designed for purpose the system is compact enough to fit in even the most compact of LPC furnaces, yet robust enough to survive the combination of high temperatures and high-pressure gas quenches (up to 20 bar). Unique to PhoenixTM the innovative TS12 range of barriers even allows the monitoring of the continuous carburizing furnace including the oil quench. A high performance, 2way RF system option, permits not only real time live monitoring of the process but also full in-process control of the monitoring system (Start, Stop, Reset, Download etc). The real time RF system although useful in product profiling studies is even more beneficial when performing temperature uniformity surveys (TUS) to CQI-9 or AMS270E. Employing the custom designed Thermal View survey software comprehensive TUS reports can be generated quickly and efficiently.
If you need to Understand, Control, Optimize and Certify your LPC or continuous carburizing furnace to guarantee product quality, process operation efficiency and regulatory compliance, contact PhoenixTM today.
Happy American Thanksgiving! We wish all the best to our American friends while they celebrate Thanksgiving this year.
With 2019 around the corner, we look back at the top 3 corporate milestones that shaped United Process Controls in 2018.
USA HEADQUARTERS MOVES
United Process Controls, Inc. (UPC) has announced plans to relocate its USA headquarters from West Chester, Ohio to Oak Creek, Wisconsin this December. The relocation is the second-phase of the company’s initiative to unify its US operations to one centralized location. Earlier this summer, UPC completed the first phase that saw its two Wisconsin facilities come together under a larger facility in Oak Creek, WI. At present, the 30,000-square-foot premise located in the southeastern corner of Milwaukee county accommodates the growing flow controls business, and will provide additional manufacturing space for the company’s diverse product lines.
“This latest move is an exciting development for UPC and has been coming for a while, as the company has grown steadily over the past few years,” says Paul Oleszkiewicz, President of UPC. “With the acquisition of Atmosphere Engineering in 2017, we understood that moving all USA facilities to a new location was necessary to create operational synergy across our business units – heat treating controls, flow controls, and combustion optimization solutions. Sharing the same facility will bring more cross development and cross manufacturing opportunities, and this interactivity means that the latest products and systems are designed and delivered with better efficiency to our customers. Additionally, cross training will enhance the proficiency of our engineers, manufacturing and service technicians, building a greater team that can interact more effectively with our customers and sales network.”
Pat Torok, VP Sales & Marketing, added “UPC operations in the USA have outgrown its current space. The larger facility in Wisconsin allows for greater flexibility in inventory management and streamlined manufacturing, and will house an expanded laboratory, as well as engineering, manufacturing, sales, and service personnel. The space at 6724 South 13th Street also has room to accommodate future growth for product development.”
PROCESS-ELECTRONIC CHANGES NAME
On the other side of the Atlantic, our European affiliate Process-Electronic with operations in France, Germany, and Poland has officially changed its name to United Process Controls, consistent with the group’s company name strategy. “Since the founding of UPC in 2012, the brand has become synonymous with innovative process controls and automation solutions. The decision to use the group name reflects our position today to unify the company and its brands, which are well-established and trusted in the heat treating and combustion markets,” explained European Sales Director, Jens Baumann. “The changeover to the new name came into effect this past fall. The Process-Electronic name will stay as a product brand, alongside the group’s other brands – Atmosphere Engineering, Furnace Control, Marathon Monitors, and Waukee Engineering. As we step forward with the new name, I am proud to continue our tradition of providing quality, reliable solutions and services to customers in Europe and worldwide.”
ERP IMPLEMENTATION
Other important corporate developments at UPC include the digitalizing of the company’s global business. Following a six-month review of potential ERP software and partners, UPC partnered with SAP expert Projexia to oversee the implementation of SAP Business ByDesign system at its seven locations.
“The cloud ERP will streamline activities by improving synergies between operations within the group, help identify new market opportunities, as well as enable us to pursue further growth,” noted Jason Jossart, Vice President of Operations. “Additionally, SAP will ensure transparency of our processes and enable improved accuracy of production planning. Among other benefits are better control of inventory levels and effective intercompany cooperation to maximize the utilization of all company resources.” In the first phase, SAP was implemented at the company’s US operations. For subsequent implementations, the ERP system will be deployed across sites in Germany, France, Poland and China.”
Jim Grann of furnace manufacturer Ipsen gives us 5 reasons why you should NOT cook a turkey in a vacuum furnace.
In business since 1950 Metcor is the largest commercial heat treater in the Canadian province of Quebec. This Nadcap Aerospace heat treater offers Vacuum, Induction, Atmosphere and Salt Bath Nitriding all in a 50,000 square foot building located just outside of Montreal, Quebec. The company has been making some major investments recently in new equipment to be able to offer their customers more capacity as well as the latest and greatest technologies. Recent additions include a very impressive vacuum furnace built by Solar Atmospheres of Souderton, PA, an Ajax Tocco Induction scanner and a large oven built by Wisconsin Oven each of which can be seen below. http://www.metcorht.com/
“On Thursday, November 8, 2018, SSi-Mexico (Sistemas Superiores Integrales S de RL de CV) held an Open House and cut the ribbon on a new service center and calibration laboratory in Queretaro, Mexico. The celebration was attended by Stephen Thompson (President, Super Systems), employees, family, friends and customers. The relocated facility is approximately 5,500 square feet (500 sq. meters) with modern office environs and state-of-the-art repair and calibration lab. SSi-Mexico employees a talented staff of fifteen which serves all sectors of the heat treat industry in all the Mexican states within four major industrial zones of the country. SSi-Mexico is ISO/IEC 17025:2005 accredited which covers in-house laboratory calibration of sensors, analyzers, controllers, instrumentation and recording devices. The future is bright for the SSi Mexico operation with business opportunities and expansion room for world-class customer support and service.”
“In the spirit of Thanksgiving, Solar Atmospheres in Souderton, PA, along with sister companies Solar Manufacturing, Magnetic Specialties, and Vacuum Pump Services, held a food drive to support the Keystone Opportunity Center. Together, they were able to donate more than 790 lbs of food and supplies to those in need within the community. The mission of Keystone Opportunity Center is to help community members in need by offering a comprehensive array of social services that educate, encourage and empower them to become self-sufficient. Pictured with some of the donations are Solar employees Jon Schweitzer, Kim Harrison and Kristin Twardowski.”
Since 1963 Retech Systems has been manufacturing vacuum melting systems in Northern California…but that is all about to change. The next step in the story of Retech comes with a transition of much of the manufacturing and assembly previously done in Ukiah, CA to facilities in Świebodzin, Poland. All of the future work done at the SECO/Warwick facilities in Poland will be per the established Retech standards with the focus on maintaining all expectations associated with the Retech brand. The Ukiah office will be downsized and will retain our experienced engineers, leading technical directors, technologists, and service staff. Key leadership roles will continue to be filled and Retech’s unique R&D Center will continue to be built up. Ultimately, the company will then maintain a west coast office along with the recently opened east coast office in Buffalo, NY.
In the words of Retech’s President, Earl Good, “This is an effort to both strengthen our organization and to satisfy our customer’s expectations. Ultimately, we are confident that the new organizational structure and footprint will enable Retech to be much closer to our global customers while improving our competitiveness in the industrial markets we serve.” Retech will now be better positioned to support both large capital projects while also satisfying the regular, daily customer service needs our customers demand and deserve. This transformation has taken place due to efforts by both the Retech and SECO management teams as a purposeful reinvestment into the company with the most significant beneficiaries being Retech’s customers.
About Retech Systems LLC
Retech is the world’s leading supplier of Electron Beam (EB) and Plasma (PAM) Cold Hearth furnaces for melting and refining titanium and titanium alloys. Retech advanced vacuum metallurgical systems also include Vacuum Arc Remelt (VAR), VAR Consumable (Skull) Casting, EB and PAM Consolidation furnaces, Plasma Welders, Vacuum Induction melting (VIM), Precision Investment Casting (DS/SC/EQ), Cold Wall Induction melting and casting, Vacuum Heat Treating, and Gas Atomization for metal powder production. All our furnaces are available in various sizes and configurations, from simple laboratory-scale to large, custom engineered systems. Further, we provide customer access to a wide range of in-house resources, including technology, material and process development. Identifying customer needs, as well as understanding the importance of producing relevant, viable, and cost-effective technologies, is the foundation upon which Retech is built. Learn more about Retech by visiting the Retech website: http://www.retechsystemsllc.com/
About SECO/Warwick
SECO/WARWICK is a technological leader in innovative heat treatment furnaces. Expertise includes end-to-end solutions in 5 categories: vacuum heat treatment, atmosphere and aluminum thermal processing, controlled atmosphere brazing of aluminum heat exchangers and vacuum metallurgy. SECO/WARWICK Group has 10 companies located on three continents with customers in nearly 70 countries, has its production facilities in Poland, USA, India and China. In addition, the Group includes a number of service and sales offices in such countries as: Germany, Russia and France. The company provides standard or customized state-of-the-art heat processing equipment and technologies to leading companies in the following industries: automotive, aerospace, electronics, tooling, medical, recycling, energy including nuclear, wind, oil, gas, and solar and production of steel, titanium and aluminum. Learn more about SECO/Warwick by visiting the SECO website: https://www.secowarwick.com/
We were speaking the other day with John Quaglia, President of family owned Bennett Heat Treat which has two locations, one in Newark, NJ, USA and the other in Ivyland, PA http://bennettheat.com/ During the course of our conversation it came up in passing that the company has been in business since 1923 making it 95 years old-quite a feat. This prompted the question-is this the oldest commercial heat treater in North America? Certainly we can’t think of one older and neither could John. If anybody knows of an older shop we would be interested in hearing about it.
“East Carolina Metal Treating doing business as Virginia Metal Treating is proud to announce that Virginia Metal Treating in Lynchburg, VA has successfully completed their recertification for AS9100D and ISO 9001:2015 for Salt Heat Treat (Austemper, Mar Temper) Black Oxide, Tempering/Aging, and Abrasive Blasting. www.ecmtinc.com”
