Our understanding is that there is a new vacuum furnace builder in North America by the name of “High Vacuum Technologies LLC”-their website which can be accessed here provides virtually no details on the company “High Vacuum Technologies LLC” . However we believe that Mr. Suresh Jhawar, former owner of G-M Enterprises is CEO of this new venture. If you recall California based G-M was acquired by Nitrex just over 5 years ago in a story which can be found here; “Nitrex Acquires G-M Enterprises to strengthen products portfolio”
 
There is a very interesting rumor floating around AND WE STRESS THAT THIS IS A RUMOR that “High Vacuum Technologies” has started off with a bang by landing a multi-million dollar order already and that the order is from a very large commercial heat treater in Ohio who already has a number of vacuum furnaces.
 
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If it seems like commercial heat treatment firms in North America have been dropping like flies over the past year you can certainly be forgiven for thinking so. Over the course of the past year “The Monty Heat Treat News” has mentioned at least 12 firms that have closed, with at least two more to be mentioned in the next few weeks. This prompts the question “Why Ae So Many North American Commercial Heat Treaters Closing”?
 
There are three schools of thoughts on this rather depressing trend; the first holds that manufacturers are bringing more heat treating in house leading to lower volumes going to commercial operations. The second suggests that uncertainty in the automotive sector and an overcapacity in the commercial heat treat industry is leading commercial treaters to adjust to these new realities. And the 3rd school of thought offers that large government subsidies during the Covid Pandemic kept many commercial operations afloat long after they should have closed down.
 
(To bolster the views of those in the first camp who believe manufacturers are bringing more heat treating in house leading to a decline in volumes for commercial heat treaters we would suggest this article; “More Manufacturers Bringing Heat Treating in House?” written by Mr. Marco Baretti of vacuum furnace builder “TAV”. Granted Marco wrote this from a European heat treat perspective but we believe that many of the thoughts are applicable to North America also). 
 
The list below shows some but not all of the commercial heat treaters in North America which have closed in the past year-the team at “The Monty”looked at each one to determine why they closed down and we came to some very interesting conclusions-basically that there are a wide variety of reasons why heat treats close down. Our conclusions are below this list (please note that two firms on this list will be announcing their closures in the next few weeks, at this point in time we choose not to identify them). 
 
Commercial Steel Treating, Michigan; https://themonty.com/another-usa-commercial-heat-treater-closes-its-doors/?no_cache=1
 
American Steel Treating, Ohio: https://themonty.com/substantial-us-heat-treater-to-close-april-1-2025/
 
Cambridge Heat Treating, Ontario; https://themonty.com/cambridge-heat-treating-celebrates-40th-anniversary/
 
Weiss Industries, Ohio; https://weissind.com/
 
Elm Plating, Michigan; https://themonty.com/us-company-to-exit-commercial-heat-treating/ Elm Plating
 
AMAC Industries, Ohio; https://themonty.com/ohio-usa-metal-processing-company-to-temporarily-slow-down-halt-production/
 
Bodycote, California; https://themonty.com/usa-commercial-heat-treat-facility-to-close/
 
Texas Heat Treater
 
Ohio Heat Treater
 
Diamond Heat Treat, Illinois; https://themonty.com/thermal-process-holdings-consolidates-plants/
 
Missouri Heat Treat, Missouri; https://themonty.com/another-usa-commercial-heat-treat-closes-its-doors/   
 
MT Heat Treat/Quality Steels/Metallurgical Services; https://themonty.com/what-the-heck-is-happening-to-heat-treating-in-ohio-usa/
 
Commercial heat treats close down for any number of different reasons, using the above examples these are the conclusions we came to;
 
Retirement; In the case of two of these firms including “Cambridge Heat Treating” the owners with no family members to take over the business and unable to find a buyer decided to liquidate the businesses. In both cases hard assets such as land, building and equipment was greater than the value of the business as a going concern.
 
Tariffs; One of the companies on this list closed because new US tariffs meant their largest customer found it made more sense to keep the heat treating in Canada as opposed to sending it to the US.
 
Consolidation; Three of these closures were the result of multi-location commercial heat treaters consolidating operations.
 
Older Technologies; We always had a high opinion of Amercian Steel Treating in Perrysburg, Ohio which at one time was an industry leader in automated pusher furnaces. However the firm never moved beyond what has become an older technology and that combined with the fact that their fortunes were tied to the auto industry proved to be too large a challenge for the company.
 
Lack of Profits; In a couple of cases firms found that their margins on heat treating were so small that the decision was made to pivot away from commercial heat treating in favor of other business units.
 
Stupidity & Incompetence; And of course in at least one case sheer incompetence lead to the demise of what was once a good business model.
 
While it would appear to be doom and gloom in the commercial heat treat industry in North America, at the end of the day we can’t lose track of the fact that there are over 500 commercial heat treat locations in North America and a failure of even 15 commercial heat treats represents a very tiny % of the overall market.
 
For more information about commercial heat treating in North America we would suggest; “52 Largest North American Commercial Heat Treaters 2025
 
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Precision investment casting firm “Signicast” finds themselves in the position of having to clear out an older heat treat department at a facility in Wisconsin, USA.  The heat treat department consists of a number of 36 X 48 X 38 Abar-Ipsen batch IQ furnaces with top cool option and all ancillary equipment-everything needs to be removed by the end of July 2025. They are willing to give the equipment to any interested parties for the price of removal-you pay for removal costs you get the equipment for free. If this is of interest please let us know; [email protected], [email protected] 
 
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With 10 locations around Germany “Hot Group” ranks as one of the largest commercial heat treaters in all of Europe. Very recently the firm invested in a new “Sealed Quench” (Batch IQ for our North American readers) line provided by “Ipsen” of Kleve, Germany. The line consists of a hardening furnace with dimensions of 910 x 1,220 x 1,200 mm (roughly 36″ width x 48″ length x 48″ height) with a weight capacity of 2,000 Kg (approximately 4500 pounds). The hardening furnace is also capable of flexible hybrid heating (electricity, gas, hydrogen).  
 
“HOT Group” and “Ipsen” brag about the fact that the line offers 100% CO₂-neutral production which is something which means a great deal to Europeans and very little to North Americans. 
 

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“As part of the SECO/WARWICK Group’s strategy for 2023–2026, the Group is merging its two American companies: SECO/VACUUM Technologies (SVT) and SECO/WARWICK (SWC). Both entities, located in Meadville, will now operate under one brand – SECO/WARWICK. Piotr Zawistowski, the current president of SECO/VACUUM, will remain at the helm of the merged organization in the USA.
 
The decision to consolidate responds to the growing market needs, the changing geopolitical conditions, and the aim to further strengthen the global SECO/WARWICK brand as the partner of choice in heat treatment technology in North America.

 
The merger of the companies eliminates duplicate administrative, management, and IT structures, reducing operational costs. Additional savings will come from joint production planning, better utilization of human and material resources, and the impact of scale in purchasing. Annual savings are estimated to reach several hundred thousand dollars.

“With this change, we will gain brand clarity, a simplified structure, and higher operational efficiency. We are combining engineering potential, team experience, and service and sales capabilities to better meet the needs of our customers. Operating under one brand (SECO/WARWICK) is an important step in implementing our product strategy in the North American market. The consolidation will strengthen brand recognition, optimize operational processes, and simplify administrative formalities. I want to emphasize that while the formal structure and name change, the values, mission, and vision of the SECO/WARWICK Group remain unchanged. The goal of the entire undertaking is growth on all fronts,” says Sławomir Woźniak, CEO of the SECO/WARWICK Group.

 
After years of the development of both companies and the success of SECO/VACUUM in the vacuum technology segment, the time has come for the next step – integration.
 
“We believe that integration opens up new growth opportunities and further strengthens our position in the demanding American market. It is also a reflection of organizational maturity and the conscious development of the entire Group. I would also like to emphasize that all existing product lines of both entities will continue. Moreover, we plan to expand the offer with new solutions from the Group’s portfolio, including breakthrough technologies the market for aluminum products and proven solutions in the atmospheric furnace segment. All previously manufactured devices will still be covered by full technical support. The merger of the companies will increase the speed of service response, the availability of spare parts, and access to highly qualified specialists,” commented Piotr Zawistowski, Managing Director of the American SECO/WARWICK branch.”
 

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There is certainly a raft of changes happening in the North American commercial heat treatment industry these days-a quick search of our pages reveals that over 10 shops have closed in the past year with at least a half dozen acquisitions in just the past few months. 
 
The most recent acquisition involves a fairly substantial Canadian commercial heat treater by the name of “Metcor”. Located in the town of St. Eustache (just north of Montreal Quebec) the company has been around for almost 75 years, occupies a 55,000 square foot facility and is the second largest commercial heat treater in the province. 
 
Owned by Mr. John Spencer and Yves Lachambre the company has shifted direction over the years, going from one largely based on atmosphere heat treating of a wide variety of parts to one more focused on the aerospace industry.
 
The new owners are DCM Group, which is a portfolio company of Thrust Capital Partners. Thrust Capital Partners is a private equity firm based in Toronto, Canada focused on the Canadian aerospace industry supply chain. 
 
In our attached photo we see from the right Gord Montgomery, John Spencer and Yves Lachambre.
 
To find out more about commercial heat treating in North America we would suggest this very recent, exclusive article by “The Monty” “52 Largest North American Commercial Heat Treaters 2025″
 
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Furnacare, the North American division of TAV Vacuum Furnaces of Italy, responsible for Sales and Service in the USA, Canada and Mexico has just appointed Mr. Jay Jefsen as Director of Sales replacing Mr. Jan Massholder who is no longer with the company. Jay Jefsen brings with him a world of experience having worked with companies such as Nitrex, Bodycote and Midsouth Metallurgical.
 
To find out more about TAV we would suggest this summary from Gord Montgomery when he visited the firm in Italy, April of this year.
 

“TAVENGINEERING” A Giant in Vacuum Furnace Servicing

March 26th“The Monty Heat Treat News” looked closely at one of the larger vacuum furnace builders in the world “Furnace Builder “TAV” Lands Order# 1,001-“The Monty” Visits”. In this article we mentioned in passing their sister company “TAVENGINEERING”-we are now in a position to offer a few more details;
 
“TAVENGINEERING” is also located in the Italian city of Caravaggio, literally directly across the street from “TAV”. Since 1999 the firm has been offering pretty much everything required by the vacuum heat treatment industry including;
  • Vacuum furnace installation, start up, repairs and rebuilds for all brands
  • Temperature Uniformity Surveys
  • New hot zones-the company produces 50-60 per year
  • Complete rebuilds of vacuum furnaces
  • Control upgrades
 
The 50 employees of the company are very proud of what they do and feel that they are one of the largest vacuum furnace servicing companies in the world which means that yes, they work most places in the world. Locations include this one and a smaller operation in France.
One aspect of the firm which caught our attention is the number of furnaces available for rebuild. During our visit we saw roughly 20 vacuum furnaces of all makes and styles available for rebuilding, rebuilding so the furnace is in a like new condition with a full warrantee.​
This visit took place March 10 and our very hospitable hosts included; Roberto Gaspani, General Manager, Michele Baretti, Production Manager, Marco Baretti, TAV Sales Area Manager
 
https://www.tav-vacuumfurnaces.com/en
Earlier this week, Monday June 2 to be exact “The Monty Heat Treat News” in an industry exclusive announced that one of the largest commercial heat treaters in Mexico had made a “Very Significant Acquisition”.
 
“Especialidades Termicas, S.A” (ETSA Group) is a family owned commercial heat treater with several locations around the country. Several years ago Gord Montgomery of “The Monty” visited this firm and did a complete report, a report which can be found at https://themonty.com/etsa-group-mexico/.
 
Very recently “ETSA” acquired another Mexican commercial heat treater “Termproces” in Puebla, Mexico. “Termproces” is a smaller firm which specializes in vacuum heat treating (quite different than ETSA who concentrates on atmosphere heat treating) and it’s equipment includes a very nice ALD 10 bar quenching furnace with a capacity of 600kg.
 
Mario Fabián Méndez, Executive Director of the company had this to say; “I wanted to let you know that our company recently acquired Termproces, a dedicated vacuum heat treatment company located in Puebla that has ALD furnaces of 10 Bar quenching pressure and 600 kg batch capacity. This acquisition will expand our footprint in the center of Mexico, particularly among suppliers servicing AUDI and VW in the region.” 
 
Attached are pictures of the plant and the celebration dinner that closed the deal. From left to right: Leonardo Cárdenas (Plant Manager), Mario Fabián Méndez (Executive Director), Constantino Alcantara (Board Member), Gerardo Cárdenas (Founder and previous owner of Termproces), Mario Méndez (Founder and President of ETSA), Carlos Díaz (Board Member), Berenice Méndez (Partner). Eugenia Vogel (previous owner of Termproces) and Delia Diaz (Partner).
 
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The link below will take you to the July 2025 digital edition of “The Monty Heat Treat News”-for almost 30 years bringing you the most up to date news and trends in the global heat treatment industry.  
 
In this issue you will find that the news mirrors the uncertain nature of the global economy-a mixture of both good and bad news. Some examples include these;
 
 
“The Monty Heat Treat News” is also proud to bring you updated, quality, surplus heat equipment. Some recent offering include these;
 
 
As always the entire team at “The Monty Heat Treat News” looks forward to your thoughts and comments. Feel free to reach out to us about press releases, advertising inquiries, used furnace inquiries, technical inquiries or general questions about the heat treatment industry. Sincerely, Gord, Jordan & Dale Montgomery. “The Monty Heat Treat News” a family owned business for 56 years.  
 
Click Here To Read The June Magazine
“VAC AERO is proud to welcome M S Ganesh to our Furnace Manufacturing Division. Ganesh brings over 40 years of expertise in the vacuum furnace industry, along with a deep passion for delivering advanced material solutions to customers worldwide.
 
He is the founder of 𝐃𝐲𝐧𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐜𝐡 𝐕𝐚𝐜𝐮𝐮𝐦 𝐅𝐮𝐫𝐧𝐚𝐜𝐞𝐬, where he successfully expanded operations across India and the United States. Following this, he served as Director at ALD India, focusing on the advancement of vacuum heat treatment technologies across the aerospace, medical, and energy sectors.
 
We’re excited about the future as Ganesh joins us in continuing VAC AERO International’s 65-year legacy of excellence in custom vacuum furnace design, manufacturing, and service optimization.”
 
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