In October 2023 “Chromalox” announced that they were making a major investment in their manufacturing facility in Ogden, Utah, USA an investment which includes more heat treat capacity-this announcement can be found further down. Part of this investment included a mesh belt annealing furnace from furnace manufacturer Gasbarre, a furnace which has just been received at the plant;
“OCTOBER 2023 ANNOUNCEMENT; Chromalox will be expanding its operating capacity during 2024 at their Ogden, Utah manufacturing facility to support its strong demand for their electric heating technology. This technology was pioneered by Chromalox over 100 years ago and has a patented Medium Voltage Technology to support decarbonization efforts by their customers.
In conjunction with Utah’s Weber County Economic Development Office, Chromalox announced a major upgrade and expansion to its Ogden factory that produces thermal electric heating technology used for sustainable heating applications in industrial and commercial installations throughout the globe.
The Company is investing more than $58 million in a major expansion project with EK Bailey Construction to increase capacity, create jobs, and advance to new manufacturing technology, while also implementing key technology and systems in accordance with Spirax-Sarco Engineering’s One Planet Sustainability Strategy. The One Planet vision is to be a global leader in industrial sustainability by increasing energy efficiency, minimizing greenhouse gas emissions and improving water efficiency. To that end, the facility is making a significant investment in a ground source heat pump system to efficiently heat and cool the facility year-round with renewable, geothermal energy. Additional investments will include LED lighting and high efficiency systems to conserve water consumption and improve recycling. State-of-the-art paint booths will utilize environmentally friendly paints and incorporate advanced filtration systems all while reducing operational energy consumption.”
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Our top 3 news items for the week starting July 15th/2024 based upon visitors to https://themonty.com/heat-treat-news/ and social media “views” include these three;
Mr. Bill Davis of Bodycote/Lake City Heat Treating in Warsaw, Indiana, USA recently retired. Bill was President and owner of commercial heat treater Lake City Heat Treating in Warsaw, Indiana a firm which was acquired by heat treating giant Bodycote January 19 of this year. “Lake Armida Oradeiis a medical market provider of hot isostatic pressing (HIP) and vacuum heat treatment services, primarily supplying the orthopedic implant market as well as civil aerospace. Lake City Heat Treating is forecast to have achieved 2023 full year revenues of about $14 million.” https://lakecityheattreating.com/
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“Nitrex has successfully completed the installation of a third nitriding system at a leading manufacturer specializing in high-performance fuel injection systems for diesel engines in maritime vessels. This new investment underscores the customer’s commitment to advancing manufacturing capabilities and maintaining leadership in the marine machinery sector. The decision to expand production capacity with a third Nitrex system was driven by the need to meet growing demands in the shipbuilding industry, both domestically and internationally.
The newly installed NX-815 batch furnace, with a 3300 lb. (1,500 kg) load capacity and equipped with Nitreg® and Nitreg®-S controlled nitriding technologies, represents a cutting-edge solution in heat treatment. Specifically tailored for processing carbon steel and stainless-steel parts, it meets stringent requirements of the shipbuilding and industrial marine industries. Nitrex’s precision-controlled nitriding process ensures superior outcomes, enhancing the durability and performance of critical components such as fuel injectors and needles. It enhances wear resistance and longevity, crucial for maintaining peak performance and efficiency in harsh marine environments and ensuring dependability over time. By nitriding critical components of the fuel injection system, maintenance costs are reduced, and engine failures prevented. Nitreg® and Nitreg®-S technologies further augment stainless steel’s inherent corrosion resistance, essential for protecting critical components from the corrosive effects of marine environments. This enhancement delivers precise case depth and uniformity, ensuring parts maintain exceptional structural integrity and dimensional stability.
Already proving its worth, this latest Nitrex installation has bolstered the manufacturer’s production capacity and efficiency, enabling them to meet growing customer demands with enhanced effectiveness. Moreover, the system’s advanced features support sustainable production practices, aligning seamlessly with the manufacturer’s environmental responsibility goals.
Tao Liu, Sales Manager at Nitrex China, remarked: “This third installation represents an important moment in our customer’s journey of transformation and progress. As environmental regulations propel the shift towards alternative energy-powered ships, our advanced nitriding technologies play a crucial role. We are proud to support their expansion into stainless steel applications, providing them with advanced solutions for enhanced performance and sustainability.”
Nikola Dzepina, Nitrex Account Executive, added: “Nitriding is indispensable for optimizing the performance and longevity of fuel injection systems in marine operations. The successful deployment of the NX-815 system not only reinforces the company’s leadership in the marine machinery sector but also sets the stage for continued growth and success in the evolving industry landscape in the years to come.”
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To this interesting press release from commercial heat treater Solar Atmospheres, we can add that Gord Montgomery of “The Monty Heat Treat News“ was fortunate enough to be able to see this facility at the very beginning. The individual with his thumbs up in one of the photos below is none other than Mr. Bob Hill, President of Solar Atmospheres of Michigan.
We are pleased to say that Bob will be featured in a “Heat Treat Podcast” which will be available on “The Monty Heat Treat News” in the coming weeks.
“Chesterfield, MI, July 17, 2024 – After successfully relocating and commissioning ten vacuum furnaces into their current facility, Solar Atmospheres of Michigan Inc. is poised for further expansion. Bulldozers have commenced work on a new 20,000-square-foot building, which will more than double the current footprint at their Chesterfield, Michigan location.
Bob Hill, President of Solar Atmospheres of Michigan, commented, “This expansion will create a larger shipping and receiving area to better serve our customers’ needs and position us for future growth. Come watch us grow!”
For more information about the Solar Atmospheres Michigan facility contact Chris Molencupp at (586) 264-8100 ext. 1620, or [email protected], and visit us at www.solaratm.com.”
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Commercial heat treater Paulo, ranked as one of the 50 largest North American commercial heat treaters by “The Monty Heat Treat News” has appointed a new Plant Manager for their St. Louis, MO location; https://themonty.com/articles/the-montys-50-largest-north-american-commercial-heat-treaters-2024/
“Paulo is excited to announce Ethan Castle as the new Plant Manager of the St. Louis Division. Ethan has been with Paulo as the St. Louis Division Key Account Manager for over 6 years. During his time with Paulo Ethan has grown his heat treat knowledge and built strong relationships with customers and throughout the Paulo team. Ethan has been a strong customer advocate living our mission to help our customers succeed. Ethan has shown leadership and technical capability through mentoring new team members. His efforts have been recognized as the recipient of our Example award in 2023. This award is given to a team member who goes above and beyond, tackling new challenges and helping wherever needed. In addition to being the face of the St. Louis plant to our customers, he has also been a valued representative of Paulo within the North American Diecasting Association and National Tooling and Machining Association communities.
Tee Rassieur, VP of Operations, commented, “We are excited to have Ethan transition to the operations team and serve as the leader of the St. Louis plant. His dedication, attention to detail, and general curiosity will serve him well as he accepts this next challenge. There is a strong team in St. Louis that will complement Ethan well.”
Ethan added, “Working with the Paulo St. Louis team for the past six years has been a great privilege. I am thrilled and honored to step into my new role to continue driving success for the division and supporting our customers in achieving their goals.”
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It has been 5 years now since Mr. Sławomir Woźniak was appointed CEO of the SECO/WARWICK Group and to mark the occasion Slawomir was asked about what has changed during his tenure-his answers are below. To compliment this interview we would like to point you towards an interview “The Monty Heat Treat News” did with Slawomir when he first accepted the position of CEO https://themonty.com/interviews/mr-slawomir-wozniak-president-ceo-of-seco-warwick/
“The CEO of the SECO/WARWICK Group – Sławomir Woźniak – is celebrating a milestone anniversary – it has been 5 years since he took over the management of a global organization with companies and representative offices on several continents and offering solutions under these strong brands: SECO/WARWICK, Retech and SECO/VACUUM.
How has the Group changed during this time? Has it managed to achieve all its goals? And to whom does SECO/WARWICK owe its success?
Is a five-year-period a good time to sum up ?
Sławomir Woźniak, CEO SECO/WARWICK: It is a round, symbolic anniversary, but honestly, I don’t attach much importance to it. I think five years is a sufficient period to determine whether the company is heading in the right direction.
When I became President of the Management Board in 2019, I had just returned to Poland after several years of running the SECO/WARWICK companies in Asia. I gained extensive experience there, which I could use in global structures. I am proud that over the years I have achieved the goals related to starting production in India and China, that our American companies are recording very large sales increases and are constantly developing, and finally, that we have survived a very difficult moment for the industry, i.e. the Covid-19 pandemic and the subsequent war outbreak in Ukraine. These events required decisive, quick actions on our part.
These two global events caused our team to completely reevaluate the business landscape and the approach to it. We decided to focus on providing services locally to reduce logistical costs, build our own independence, increase the safe delivery of our equipment, timeliness, and additionally to eliminate the risk of an interrupted supply chain.
The labor market has changed, the war caused rapid changes in the rare metal and raw material market, which in turn influenced the new approach to our goals and strategy. We redefined the direction of business development by working to improve competitiveness, and at the same time we always knew that the SECO/WARWICK Group’s development must be consistent with the direction set by the green transformation. For years, we have been adapting our offer to the industry’s key trends and to our customers’ expectations. Thanks to this, our solutions allow us to increase the heat treatment process efficiency and save on raw materials as well as the energy used in the processes.
We help our customers reduce the carbon footprint of their activities. For example, in the aviation industry we are faced with challenges resulting from the need to reduce the aircraft’s carbon footprint by reducing the machine weight, therefore more titanium is used in their production. Moreover, our solutions, thanks to the technologies used, allow for the effective recycling of titanium, which is a very valuable resource. Induction or plasma furnaces under our brand enjoy high interest and recognition among customers. We also focused on innovative technologies, e.g. plasma powder production technology, as well as the development of the product segment for the defense and energy industries. The aftermarket activity development is also worth mentioning – high-quality service, maintenance work and ensuring the availability of spare parts are one of our industry pillars. We are building this area very intensively and nowadays it is an important part of our business.
Today we can say that we have emerged unscathed from a difficult period for the global industry, strengthening our position as one of the leaders in the global market for metals and metallurgy heat treatment equipment. At the same time, we skillfully use the opportunities arising from the transformation of the economy, which is why I believe that we are well prepared to compete on the market in the long term.
What do you consider your greatest success during this period?
S.W.: I think that the SECO/WARWICK Group is constantly developing year by year. Both in terms of sales revenues generated, but also profitability, expansion of sales markets, number of employees and, finally, the innovative technologies that we implement. It is worth remembering that development is not a matter of speed, but of direction.
It looks like we chose the direction very well. Today, the SECO/WARWICK Group includes companies located on three continents in five countries. There are over 4,000 implemented solutions in five product areas. The company today employs over 850 employees, of which approximately 60% are engineers, owns two R&D centers (in Poland and the United States), and serves customers from over 70 countries around the world. I am proud to say that SECO/WARWICK is one of the global leaders in heat treatment and metallurgy technologies.
I am also extremely proud of how SECO/WARWICK approaches the issue of green transformation. Our product teams, R&D departments, and production team work to implement our mission of creating pro-ecological solutions for our customers. At the same time, the entire Group pursues goals related to reducing its carbon footprint in everyday life. The Group’s employees are strongly involved in this important idea and undertake numerous initiatives in the field of corporate social responsibility, e.g. planting new forests together.
What milestones, which influenced the current SECO/WARWICK Group position now would you mention
S.W.: There is certainly a focus on the technologies – process development and standardization. Vacuum furnaces are very standardized products. This allows for a greater focus towards tailor-made products. Importantly, they are equipped with solutions opening the green door to heavy industry.
The second important decision was to invest in CAB technology and create a product brand (EV/CAB) dedicated to the electric vehicle sector. Our continuous aluminum soldering lines operate at almost all key manufacturers of electric vehicle components. We now produce them in Asia, which has significantly shortened delivery times and reduced costs.
It was undoubtedly important to implement the Group’s development strategy for 2023-2026. It assumes at least double-digit revenue growth in each of our segments by 2026, and even triple-digit growth in some of them, so the plan is very ambitious. We assume that thanks to strategic initiatives, in 2026 it will be possible to achieve the Group’s total revenues of over PLN 980 million (while in 2023 we achieved a turnover of PLN 684 million) and the highest growth should be achieved in the vacuum metallurgy (VME) segment. We also assume an increase in results proportional to sales. The first year of our work under the new strategy, i.e. 2023, brought a 10% increase in revenues compared to 2022. We are working to at least maintain this trend in the coming years.
For many years you worked in the Group’s structures in China and India, what has changed over the years
S.W.: In 2011, I became the managing director of the company in China. My goal was to create internal structures and a sales force that would operate perfectly on the Asian market. The key was to hire the right people who knew the region’s business culture and to build a team. A few years later, I carried out a similar task in India. Today in China we have a factory with two assembly halls and the ability to work in many technologies, and in India we have recently started production, after several years of successful implementation of the sales & service business. We have also conducted extensive training aimed at providing unified SECO/WARWICK products, regardless of the region of the world in which they are manufactured.
SECO/WARWICK’s strength is, on the one hand, globality and a uniform high level of know-how for the entire Group, and at the same time, locality understood as the ability to adapt to the local market needs, also in the business communication field. Today, the Chinese branch can produce 20 CAB lines, 8-10 VAC vacuum furnaces and 2-3 VME vacuum metallurgy furnaces per year. Both of our production plants in China are 10,000 m2, so we have doubled the area in the last year. We are also systematically increasing employment to meet production challenges. In India, we started the production of continuous aluminum brazing lines and vacuum solutions, meeting the demand for these furnaces in this part of the world.
Five years, theoretically, is not much, but looking at how we have spread our wings in Asia during this time, you might think that light years have passed.
What does the American market look like?
S.W.: All three American companies belonging to the SECO/WARWICK Group have increased the area of their facilities, the number of employees and their sales over the last few years. The first half of 2024 was exceptionally intense for American companies, because we saw a very large increase in industrial activity in this part of the world. Last year, the American market accounted for 37% of the SECO/WARWICK Group’s sales. All three companies are currently expanding their capacities, enlarging production halls and warehouse areas. We also opened a branch in Mexico to reach Partners from Latin America more effectively.
What does the SECO/WARWICK Group’s future look like?
S.W.: In 2019, the SECO/WARWICK Group’s sales amounted to PLN 452 million (EUR 105 million). In 2023, we generated revenues higher by over 51%, i.e. PLN 684 million (EUR 151 million). The long-term goal, of course, is to further increase revenues, profits and profitability. For years, we have been transferring funds to our Shareholders in the form of dividends or buy-backs, which shows that we are a stable and reliable company.
At the same time, we do not stop investing, on the contrary, we even increase our expenditures on innovations – we develop new technologies, new furnace product lines and new functionalities. When it comes to the future, we also focus on automation, robotization and artificial intelligence, i.e. we are creating Industry 4.0. Our goal is to offer our Partners furnaces that are as maintenance-free as possible. We introduce remote inspection and repair systems. We also use tools to optimize the furnace operation, which is based on advanced artificial intelligence algorithms, so that the furnaces we produce are even more effective, efficient and ecological.
Ecology, including reducing emissions and building a circular economy, are topics which will have an increasing impact on the industry in the coming years. We try to anticipate these trends by working in our R&D departments on solutions which protect our planet and increase the efficiency and economics of processes for our customers
Your professional path is entirely related to SECO/WARWICK – this is extremely rare…
S.W.: Indeed, I started working at SECO/WARWICK with an apprenticeship as an electrician, and when I graduated, I became a service engineer. After separating from the CAB product segment, I was the deputy manager of the CAB plant, and from 2005, the CAB plant’s Director. Then I went to China and India, where I managed the Group’s local companies. In 2018, I became Vice-President of the SECO/WARWICK S.A. Management Board and Operations Director of the SECO/WARWICK Group, and a year later I took over as CEO.
This is obviously a unique career path, and I am very grateful and proud to be pursuing it. But it is worth emphasizing that in the SECO/WARWICK structures themselves, such a path is not particularly rare. Many employees have been working at SECO/WARWICK for decades, developing together with the entire Group. SECO/WARWICK owes its strength to people who have unity, diligence and reliability in their DNA. These are brave, committed, honest and responsible people, thanks to whom we are a reliable, professional partner for customers from all over the world. This summary is the perfect moment for me to thank them, because without these exceptional people we certainly would not be in such a good place.”
“Aalberts Surface Technologies” is ranked by “The Monty Heat Treat News” as one of the 50 largest commercial heat treaters in North America-find out where at https://themonty.com/articles/the-montys-50-largest-north-american-commercial-heat-treaters-2024/
We mention them today as their Livonia facility has just announced the addition of a new gas nitrider at their Livonia, Michigan, USA location-read on for the details;
“Aalberts surface technologies has added another gas nitriding furnace. Now, in addition to Greenville, SC, we have a gas nitrider in our Livonia, MI location with capabilities for Nitriding, Ferritic Nitro Carburizing (FNC), Tempering, and Stress Relieving.
This new furnace is compliant to AMS 2750F, AMS 2759/10, and 2759/12 requirements. It also features pre and post oxidation control and has an ammonia dissociator for zero white layer control. This furnace includes the latest technology for automatic atmosphere control and electronic process gas flow control.”
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From a regular reader in the Turkish heat treat market about commercial heat treater “DÖNÜŞÜM ISIL İŞLEM”, one of the larger in the country;
Dönüşüm Isıl İşlem, based in Kocaeli, has one of the most qualified heat treatment facilities in Turkey, which has continued its activities both domestically and internationally since 2010.
Heat treatment is generally performed for tool and die steels, stainless steels, and special metals. In this way, it cooperates directly and indirectly with many sectors such as automotive, aviation, plastic, glass, defense, mining, medical, and energy industries. Also, there is a steel service department called Dönüşüm Metal which supplies tool & mold steel, stainless steel, and special alloys, both department works coordinately. Dönüşüm Metal ve Isıl İşlem is the first company in Turkey to provide steel and heat treatment services together.
In the heat treatment facility, there are 9 vacuum heat treatment furnaces of BMI, SHMETZ, and IPSEN with different processing and weight capacities. Due to these furnaces, can provide special cooling rates at various pressures for a different analysis of materials. The heat treatment abilities are following that:
- Quenching and Tempering
- Gas Nitridation
- Vacuum Nitridation
- Gas Carburizing
- Oil Carburizing under Vacuum
- Normalization
- Recrystallization
- Cryogenic
The properties of metals and alloys in engineering applications vary depending on the atomic, crystalline, and microstructure of the materials. The microstructure in equilibrium can be predicted by looking at the equilibrium diagrams of metals or alloys. In practical terms, the mechanical properties can be changed as desired by various heat treatments. These heat treatment processes involve raising a metal or alloy to a certain temperature, holding it at that temperature for the required time, and finally cooling it from that temperature. If necessary, this solid-state process can be repeated multiple times. In short, the heat treatment process is the name given to the heating and cooling operations performed to obtain the desired mechanical properties of metals or alloys. The following changes can occur in the properties of metal alloys by heat treatment:
• Increasing Ductility
• Internal-Stress Relieving Treatment
• Grain Size Refining
• Improving Tensile Strength
• Improving Toughness
• Improving Machining
• Magnetic and Electrical Properties
• Recrystallisation
The sky is the limit for Dönüşüm Isıl İşlem, as it continues its investments to improve its abilities. In addition, it provides engineering services to its business partners by developing special processes with its experienced and dynamic engineering staff.
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Mr. Bill Davis of Bodycote/Lake City Heat Treating in Warsaw, Indiana, USA recently retired. Bill was President and owner of commercial heat treater Lake City Heat Treating in Warsaw, Indiana a firm which was acquired by heat treating giant Bodycote January 19 of this year. “Lake Armida Oradeiis a medical market provider of hot isostatic pressing (HIP) and vacuum heat treatment services, primarily supplying the orthopedic implant market as well as civil aerospace. Lake City Heat Treating is forecast to have achieved 2023 full year revenues of about $14 million.” https://lakecityheattreating.com/
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Commercial heat-treating giant Bodycote is pretty pleased to launch their new Hot Isostatic Pressing (HIP) facility in Greenville, SC, USA. “The Monty Heat Treat News” has been fortunate enough to visit this facility several times over the years including in 2023 and it has been fascinating to watch how it has changed.
Originally this facility was part of the “Carolina Commercial” heat treat group before being acquired by Bodycote a number of years ago. What was at one time a fairly average commercial heat-treating plant with batch IQ and continuous furnaces has evolved into a clean, upgraded and expanded plant with 2 HIP systems and several vacuum furnaces in addition to some of the older furnaces. All in all, a fully equipped Additive Manufacturing plant of which the company can be proud.
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