This week we are going to start off with news about new furnace instillations/orders starting off with a Can Eng mesh belt order. “Can-Eng Furnaces International Ltd. designed, built and delivered a mesh-belt heat-treatment furnace line to Gallos Metal Solutions of Milwaukee, Wis. The continuous atmosphere system will be used primarily for demanding processing, including carbonitriding and carburizing, while allowing for neutral heat treatment with a production capacity up to 4,000 pounds/hour. This high-capacity furnace line is part of Gallos’ expansion and modernization project, which has more than doubled the existing plant square footage, increased capacity and added automation.” Back in 2009 Service Continuous (part of Service Heat Treating in Milwaukee) was acquired by Gallos Metal Solutions Inc, a company owned by James Gallos. James had been Vice President/General Manager of Service Continuous for a number of years. 

From McLaughlin Furnace Group we have this press release; “McLaughlin Furnace Group of Avilla, Indiana, USA is pleased to announce the successful installation and start up of a 9,000 CFH Endothermic Generator at Volvo Powertrain in Hagerstown, MD, USA. The two retort Tru-Mix unit is supplying a McLaughlin pusher furnace and has a turn down ratio of 8:1.”.

Cremer is a German furnace builder whose equipment is generally only found in companies doing sintering of PM Parts. We have run across their furnaces at auto parts supplier Stackpole in North America but that is pretty well the only time we have seen their equipment. This press release tells us they have developed a 2500C furnace; “CREMER Thermoprozessanlagen GmbH, Düren, Germany, has completed its EU-funded CARBIDE2500 project. The project launched in May 2018 and is reported to have met its objectives, developing the first 2500°C industrial furnace, enabling higher efficiency and the production of tungsten carbide with up to five times higher material strength than otherwise possible. CREMER specialises in pusher furnace systems with graphite coatings which operate at extremely high temperatures, above 2000°C. These systems are used in the carburising process for carbide powders such as tungsten carbide (WC). According to the company, at the time of the project’s launch in 2018, the economic downturn and subsequent recovery in Europe had resulted in increasing demand for higher strength materials.”

We next look at a company in the UK adding vacuum furnace capacity. Chromalloy, a global company which services gas turbine engines is adding capacity to their Alfreton, UK facility. As you can see below the company just received a “Titan” vacuum furnace from Ipsen and are hoping to have it up and running in the very near future.

There are a number of companies in the US that are finding business to be good enough to warrant adding heat treat capacity or invest in an in house heat treating department. These include Jagemann Munitions Components out in Wisconsin, Prescription Manufacturing LLC in Iowa and Holte Manufacturing in Oregon. It’s very encouraging to see as much investment in the industry as there actually is.

We don’t run across used Vacuum Carburizing systems that often but for some reason we are aware of two on the used market. The first (pictured below) is located at a piston manufacturer in the Midwest. It has been on the market for a number of months and it is being sold because the vendor is going the route of a different heat treating technology-Plasma Nitriding of all things. The second very impressive ECM system will be hitting the market any day now and looks to be a multi chamber system.

And to round things out we have this press release from chemical distributor Hubbard-Hall whose banner ad can be found on the right hand side of this page;  “Hubbard-Hall Inc., is pleased to announce the promotion of Ted Saltzman to Business Development Manager and the hiring of Andre Depew, as Product Manager of Metal Coloring. These strategic appointments will support the company’s growth in its lines of specialty chemicals for surface finishing and the ability to offer process expertise to its manufacturing customers. 

In the newly created role of Business Development Manager, Saltzman will be responsible for managing corporate accounts and selling a full range of products in the U.S. and Mexico. Saltzman joined Hubbard-Hall in 2017 as a Territory Sales Manager where he provided consultative sales presentations in the Texas area.

The newest addition of Depew comes when Hubbard-Hall is expanding its sales and applications expertise in the metal coloring line. Depew is responsible for expanding the business plan for the metal coloring product line, including Black Magic® (offering the darkest and fastest black coating) and Mi-Tique® (antiquing). Depew will also support customers in phosphate conversion coatings and heat treatment. 

With Hubbard-Hall as the only major supplier to offer hot black oxide and room temperature black oxide, Depew’s 30 years of expertise in metal finishing, machining, and heat treating will be of value. Depew’s prior positions have developed his skill set to work with customers in a consultative manner, providing them with the best products for their process. Depew has serviced customers throughout the Midwest and Southeast”.

Did you like this article? Click here to subscribe to The Monty.

Have surplus equipment? Click here to get help selling it.