Charlie Hushek is a 5th generation heat treater at family-owned commercial heat treater Phoenix Heat Treating in Phoenix, Arizona, USA-so why the heck did he just announce that he is now co-founder of Ceramic Diffusion Technologies?
We believe the answer can be found in the description below and how this process can lead to improved results in furnace alloy. I am sure we will be hearing more about this technology in the future.
“Ceramic Diffusion Technologies are the creators of the Ceramic Diffusion® process. Our Ceramic Diffusion® process features our proprietary blend of ceramic elements known as CD-30G. Using this blend of elements, we embed ceramic into the base alloy. It is a groundbreaking heat-treating process for the most rugged applications. Ceramic Diffusion is poised to redefine materials engineering and manufacturing. The Ceramic Diffusion® process yields high surface hardness, its ability to process portions of parts without masking, and its exceptional environmental friendliness. Furthermore, we discuss its versatility across materials, expanded design parameters, supply chain consolidation, and its suitability for wear-prone parts, making it a transformative solution for numerous industries.”
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Josh Hale and Jessica Maier of “International Search Partners”, a heat treat recruitment firm in the USA are without a doubt the experts in the industry when it comes to employment. We have always appreciated their input on everything from “Salaries” in the industry to “Will the Heat Treat Industry Embrace a 4 Day Work Week” and “Finding and Retaining Good People” “-all of their articles can be found at https://themonty.com/articles-interviews/.
It is very opportune that their most recent article has to do with this question; “How can I effectively network for new employment opportunities in a manner that is professional, but doesn’t arouse suspicion with my current employer?
Attending a tradeshow can be a golden opportunity for professionals to expand their network and uncover new career prospects (and for managers and owners a great way to directly reach potential candidates for hire). However, it’s essential to navigate this terrain carefully. Job seekers don’t want to alert their current employer that they’re looking to make a change, and hiring managers may have their reasons for wanting to keep their recruitment efforts confidential. All of this is especially amplified in a niche like heat treating where word spreads fast amongst a tight knit community… so, what to do?”
- Set Clear Goals. Before you step into the tradeshow, define what you hope to achieve. Are you looking for potential job openings, new hires, or general business connections? Having clear goals will help you navigate the event efficiently. Keep your objectives focused on learning and relationship-building rather than directly seeking job opportunities, which can help you avoid raising suspicions.
- Optimize Your Online Presence. Ensure your LinkedIn profile and other professional online profiles are updated and polished before the tradeshow. This way, when you make new connections, they can easily find and review your credentials. Position yourself as a knowledgeable industry expert rather than overtly job-hunting. Highlighting your recent accomplishments, skills, and interests relevant to the tradeshow’s focus is a good way to garner attention before, during, and after the event.
- Engage in Meaningful Conversations. When networking, focus on engaging in genuine conversations rather than pitching yourself directly. Ask questions about the other person’s experiences, challenges, and insights related to the industry. By showing interest in their work and opinions, you build rapport and position yourself as a thoughtful professional. Subtly steer conversations towards your interests and strengths to naturally highlight your qualifications.
- Leverage Industry Trends. Participate in discussions about current industry trends and challenges (consolidation of smaller commercial heat treats, clean energy requirements, furnace technology upgrades are a few noteworthy topics that jump to mind for heat treating right now…). Demonstrating your knowledge about emerging news items and how they impact the industry can position you as a valuable resource. This approach allows you to showcase your expertise without overtly signaling that you’re seeking new opportunities.
- Attend Seminars and Panels. Tradeshows often feature seminars and panel discussions (FNA certainly does!). Attend these sessions to gain insights and meet speakers or panelists who are leaders in the field. Engage with them during Q&A sessions or in informal settings afterward. This strategy helps you build connections based on shared interests and expertise rather than directly seeking job leads.
- Utilize Informal Networking Opportunities. During breaks, social events, or networking mixers, take advantage of less formal settings to strike up conversations. These environments are conducive to building relationships and can provide a more relaxed platform for discussing professional interests.
- Exchange Contact Information Carefully. When exchanging contact information, be strategic. Use a professional but non-intrusive approach. For example, offer your business card and suggest connecting on LinkedIn. If asked about your current employment, focus on the exciting projects you’re working on rather than discussing potential career changes.
- Follow Up Thoughtfully. After the tradeshow, follow up with the connections you made by sending personalized messages or LinkedIn requests. Reiterate something specific from your conversation to strengthen the connection. Use this opportunity to share relevant content or insights related to your discussions, reinforcing your expertise and interest in the field.
- Monitor Industry Job Boards. If you’re exploring job opportunities, keep an eye on industry job boards (https://www.ispards.com/wp/careers/ is a great place to start) and company websites. Use tools like job alerts to stay informed about potential openings without actively advertising your job search. Pro Tip for Managers: if you’re hiring, keep an eye on recently updated LinkedIn profiles for clues as to who might be looking for a career change.
- Maintain Professionalism. Throughout the tradeshow and in all follow-up interactions, maintain a high level of professionalism. Ensure that your actions and communications reflect positively on your current role and employer. This approach minimizes the risk of raising concerns or drawing unwanted attention.
By employing these strategies, you can effectively network and explore new opportunities while attending a tradeshow, all without tipping off your current employer or anyone else who you don’t want to alert. The key is to approach networking with a focus on building genuine relationships and demonstrating your expertise, rather than explicitly seeking new positions.
Bonus Tip #11: Engaging the help of a professional recruiter is another great way to ensure anonymity! ISP will be at FNA in October, so feel free to come introduce yourself to Josh, Jessica, or Jim or just slip us your business card with a “wink and a nod” and we’ll be glad to help!
Josh Hale has collaborated with companies to identify, engage, and hire top performers as a professional “headhunter” where he’s focused exclusively on the heat treat industry as part of International Search Partners since acquiring the firm in 2015. He works closely with Jessica Maier to support the practice, and, together, they’ve helped dozens of companies and hundreds of candidates find the match within the industry, including roles for engineering, sales, quality, metallurgy, management, and more. For additional information email [email protected] or call 619-465-9621
These are the top 3 heat treatment industry news stories for the week starting September 23, 2024 as ranked by our readers;
Dan brings a diverse background in capital equipment, spanning material handling, control systems, boilers and furnaces, combustion systems, and industrial washing/deburring equipment. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering and a Master of Science in Engineering Management from the University of Michigan, and he is a licensed Professional Engineer. His expertise in project engineering, quality, and R&D is complemented by his leadership skills.
“Dan’s extensive experience and proven success in building relationships and developing customer solutions make him a valuable addition to our team,” said Ben Gasbarre, EVP of Sales & Marketing. “His passion for the industry and commitment to excellence align perfectly with our goals, and we are excited to have him on board.”
Dan has a strong track record in advocating for continuous improvement and new product development. He has served on various industry committees, including the ABMA Associate Council, the AGMA Metallurgy and Materials Technical Committee, and the National Fire Protection Agency Technical Committees. Based at Gasbarre’s Livonia, Michigan facility, Dan looks forward to using his skills and experience to support Gasbarre’s growth and innovation efforts.
With locations in Livonia, MI, and St. Marys, PA, Gasbarre Thermal Processing Systems has been designing, manufacturing, and servicing a full line of industrial thermal processing equipment for over 50 years. Gasbarre’s equipment is designed for your process by experienced engineers and metallurgists that understand your requirements. For more information about Gasbarre and its products, please visit www.gasbarre.com Dan can be reached via email at [email protected] or via phone at 734-418-5575.”
These regional service centers help ensure quicker response times, dedicated support teams, and thorough knowledge of each customer’s facility. By grouping customers in close geographic proximity, Ipsen can offer more efficient service tailored to their specific needs, reducing downtime and optimizing performance for heat-treating operations. The shift to the HUB model reflects Ipsen’s commitment to continuously improving customer experience while enhancing the quality of life for its Field Service Engineers (FSEs). With reduced travel time, FSEs are able to spend more time at home, contributing to better work-life balance while still providing high-quality, responsive service.
Lu Chouraki, Manager of Business Development, is leading the implementation of the HUBs. “Our goal is for the HUBs to tackle the immediate needs of our customers, eliminating long response times for operators experiencing outages,” Chouraki explained. Ipsen’s HUBs are now fully operational in four key regions, with plans to expand even further in the coming years. This transformation is part of Ipsen’s broader vision for service excellence, combining regional expertise with a personal touch that benefits customers and empowers the Ipsen team.
Additionally, to support the rollout of the HUB model, Ipsen has introduced the Ipsen Technical Development Center (TDC), an initiative led by Darci Johnson, Program and Transformation Manager, and Cavan Cardenas, Technical Training Lead. The TDC is focused on training and developing new FSEs, including the launch of the Field Service Engineer Academy, a specialized program that equips both new and current technicians with the skills needed to thrive in the HUB model. With more HUBs planned through 2025 and beyond, Ipsen is poised to redefine customer support in the heat treating industry, providing localized, expert service to meet the evolving demands of its customers. For more information, visit https://ipsenglobal.com/hub.”
Now comes word that “McLaughlin Furnace Group” https://www.mclaughlinsvc.com/ of Avilla, IN, USA also had a record breaking 2023 and anticipates that 2024 will be substantially better. Founder and President of the company, “Mr. Jeff McLaughlin” had this to say;
“2023 was our best year ever for the group in terms of sales and I can now confidently say that based upon shipments and order backlog 2024 will be even better-at this point we anticipate that our sales for the calendar year 2024 will be pushing $30 million USD. What makes me most pleased is that this sales growth is spread over all of our product lines. “Tru Mix” endothermic generator sales are strong, our partnership with “Rohde Furnaces” of Germany has been very productive for both sides, we shipped several mesh belt furnace lines and we have received a number of orders for temper furnaces. In addition, at the FNA show in October of this year in Colombus, Ohio we will be introducing a new product which we feel will attract a great deal of attention”.
“The Monty Heat Treat News” had the chance to visit McLaughlin last week and we came away with these photos of the assembly floor which shows 2 mesh belt furnace lines almost ready to ship, a “Rohde” Salt Recovery Unit under construction, a batch IQ being assembled and a partly built “Tru Mix” endo generator. The individual in the foreground of the one photo is “Mr. Ryan McLaughlin”. Jeff McLaughlin had this to add; “The entire McLaughlin team has done an incredible job this year-we have asked a lot of the team in terms of effort and overtime and without exception everybody has willingly pitched in. I can’t thank the team enough”.
The purchase was financed from a targeted subsidy for the implementation of an investment related to scientific activities for the purchase of research equipment granted by the Ministry of Education and Science (currently the Ministry of Science and Higher Education). SECO/WARWICK is cooperating with Łukasiewicz – Institute of Non-Ferrous Metals (Łukasiewicz – IMN) for the second time. The Institute already has one similar solution from the vacuum metallurgy segment. The furnace on order, with a maximum operating temperature of 2000˚C, is a single-chamber VIM furnace with induction heating for melting, designed to produce metal and alloy castings weighing up to 20 kg in vacuum, or under pressure using an inert gas (argon).
The VIM furnace is a compact solution with small dimensions, designed for work in research laboratories. It can be equipped with a sampling system, an alloy additive feeder and many other functionalities which allow for flexibility in conducting research and development work. The multitude of additional options makes research institutions willing to choose SECO/WARWICK solutions, because they provide the ability to conduct various observations.
“Scientific institutions are one of the group of recipients for our solutions. For example, we have supplied solutions to the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), which ordered a non-standard, 12-meter vertical rotary retort furnace for the heat treatment of a gyrotron part, as a contribution to the ITER experimental thermonuclear reactor. We have also supplied laboratory furnaces for the Institute of Precision Mechanics. We invest heavily in research and development ourselves. We have our own R&D centers, which allow us to continuously improve the technology we offer,” – says Sławomir Woźniak, CEO, SECO/WARWICK Group.”
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September 23rd we had the news item below about Vac Aero International, one of the 50 largest commercial heat treaters in North America (https://themonty.com/articles/the-montys-50-largest-north-american-commercial-heat-treaters-2024/) celebrating their 65th year in business;
“Vac Aero International to Celebrate 65 Years in Business; Thursday, September 26th, 2024 Vac Aero International is celebrating 65 years in business with an open house at their location in Oakville, Ontario, Canada. The company was founded by Mr. Ross Pritchard in 1959 as Canadian Vac-Hyd Processing Ltd., a subsidiary of Detroit, Michigan-based Vac-Hyd Processing Corporation. Since that time the company has grown and expanded and its services now include commercial heat treating, coatings and new vacuum furnaces from 5 locations in Ontario and Quebec, Canada. “The Monty Heat Treat News” will be in attendance at the open house and provide a report on the event.
As a background to this story, Mr. Jordan Montgomery of “The Monty” visited the firm’s location in St. Laurent, Quebec, Canada just last week. The Quebec Division is situated in the heart of Quebec’s aerospace community with the Ville St. Laurent plant providing Thermal Processing services and the Boucherville plant providing Coating services. The St. Laurent location is long established and boasts over 20 employees offering commercial vacuum heat treating and associated processes. In this photo we see Jordan Montgomery in the back row 4th from the right.
There has been a marked difference in this company since new ownership and management was announced early in 2023. As an outsider “The Monty” can say that we have seen a revitalized company, with extremely ambitions plans for the entire company right from commercial heat treating to coatings to an expanded product offering from their furnace manufacturing division. We expect we will be able to announce some of these changes in the near future.” https://themonty.com/vac-aero-international-to-celebrate-65-years-in-business/
Gord and Jordan Montgomery did indeed join the celebration, a celebration which included a number of Vac Aero’s largest customers and the result are these photos. We should add that Vac Aero is very unique in that they are one of just a handful of heat treaters around the world who are able to heat treat aerospace landing gear-several examples of this can be seen in these pictures. While they do occupy a very unique space in the heat treat industry, they also provide more conventional heat treating and brazing, an example of which can be found in the one photo featuring Gary Younger and Gord Montgomery. https://vacaero.com/
Dave Farmery, President Vac Aero
Gary Younger, General Manager VAC AERO Furnace Manufacturing Division, Gord Montgomery
Ismail Kus, Plant Manager, Vac Aero, Jordan Montgomery, “The Monty”
Pawel Udrycki, Gord Montgomery
Pawel Udrycki, Jordan Montgomery
Recently “The Monty Heat Treat News” had the opportunity to visit one of the 50 largest commercial heat treaters in North America (the list can be found here 50 Largest), an experience which turned out to be fascinating. What you see in this photo is a 12′ long part weighing several thousand pounds being heat treated in a monster bottom loading vacuum furnace with oil quenching. Full details on Monday.
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There is a brand-new commercial heat treater in Texas by the name of Armor Heat Treat LLC which opened their doors very recently. Located in Richland Hills, Texas the relatively small operation is starting off with two batch IQ furnaces with working dimensions of 48″ X 36 X 48″ and 48″ X 72″ X 36″, these will be followed by at least one more in the near future. All ancillary equipment such as an endothermic generator, washer, charge car and tempers are already operational and when everything is completed the company will be offering carburizing, anneal, normalizing, stress relieving and age hardening. We wish them the best of luck.
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The photo attached to this interesting press release was taken when Paulo installed their new “HIP” system back in 2019-the original press release can be found further down. The Cleveland facility of Paulo is almost entirely dedicated to servicing the aerospace industry and is one of the larger single location commercial heat treats in the US.
“Paulo’s Cleveland Division was recently awarded approval from GE Aviation for Hot Isostatic Pressing, specifically GT193 Process Code FF. Approval followed an audit of the Cleveland Division.
Adding GE Aviation to Paulo’s list of HIP approvals is another example of supporting our customers by securing approvals needed to process their parts. Paulo is also approved for other GT193 processes including vacuum heat treating (BA), heat treating stainless and superalloy (BG), vacuum brazing (CC), and brazing (CD).
Paulo’s Cleveland facility is uniquely positioned to serve GE aviation suppliers who require both Hot Isostatic Pressing and vacuum heat treatment. By offering both processes under one roof and in conjunction with the largest commercial vacuum heat treatment operation in North America, Paulo reduces outside processing time.
Founded in 1943, Paulo is one of the largest providers of thermal processing and metal finishing solutions in North America. Headquartered in St. Louis, Paulo operates six strategically-located divisions across the U.S. and Mexico. We deliver quality results with datagineering: blending the best in automation, data, and human expertise.”
“MARCH 2019 PRESS RELEASE; Quintas Technologies, Sweden, announces that Paulo Heat Treating, St. Louis, Mo., has acquired a Quintas hot isostatic press for its Cleveland Division. The press, model QIH 122 M URC, is equipped with Quintus’ proprietary uniform rapid cooling (URC), a feature that improves material properties for products of additive manufacturing and investment casting.
“We see the market for HIP expanding, with a large part attributed to additive manufacturing,” says Scott Herzing, Paulo Vice President of Engineering. “We have the leading material knowledge and process expertise to help our customers in this area. The ability to combine HIP and heat treatment will allow us to offer one-stop-shop thermal processing solutions, with faster turnaround times.”
The HIP will be installed in Paulo’s recently expanded Cleveland Division, in Willoughby, Ohio, which provides specialized brazing and precise vacuum heat treatment. The plant’s AS9100 quality management system and Nadcap accreditation make it especially well-suited to serve the needs of the aerospace and power generation industries.
Configured as a Quintus Modularized Solution, a space- and energy-saving profile that simplifies building and civil work and reduces infrastructure investment, the press features a work zone of 26.0 inches (660 mm) in diameter and 68.9 inches (1750 mm) in height. It operates at a maximum temperature of 2,552°F (1,400°C) and maximum pressure of 30,000 psi (2,070 bar).”
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Dan brings a diverse background in capital equipment, spanning material handling, control systems, boilers and furnaces, combustion systems, and industrial washing/deburring equipment. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering and a Master of Science in Engineering Management from the University of Michigan, and he is a licensed Professional Engineer. His expertise in project engineering, quality, and R&D is complemented by his leadership skills.
“Dan’s extensive experience and proven success in building relationships and developing customer solutions make him a valuable addition to our team,” said Ben Gasbarre, EVP of Sales & Marketing. “His passion for the industry and commitment to excellence align perfectly with our goals, and we are excited to have him on board.”
Dan has a strong track record in advocating for continuous improvement and new product development. He has served on various industry committees, including the ABMA Associate Council, the AGMA Metallurgy and Materials Technical Committee, and the National Fire Protection Agency Technical Committees.
Based at Gasbarre’s Livonia, Michigan facility, Dan looks forward to using his skills and experience to support Gasbarre’s growth and innovation efforts.
With locations in Livonia, MI, and St. Marys, PA, Gasbarre Thermal Processing Systems has been designing, manufacturing, and servicing a full line of industrial thermal processing equipment for over 50 years. Gasbarre’s equipment is designed for your process by experienced engineers and metallurgists that understand your requirements. For more information about Gasbarre and its products, please visit www.gasbarre.com Dan can be reached via email at [email protected] or via phone at 734-418-5575.
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View our recent magazines and podcasts by clicking the following link. https://themonty.com/magazine/
“Solar Atmospheres of Michigan Inc. is making steady progress on its expansion project, which remains on track for completion by the end of 2024. Significant construction milestones have already been achieved and are on schedule. Additionally, the purchase of a brand new 14’ long car bottom air furnace will be the first new piece of equipment installed in this 18,000 square foot addition. It will serve as a compliment and an option for those customers who do not require vacuum processing of large parts.”
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