As part of its strategy to better serve its North American customers, the SECO/WARWICK Group, the parent company of SECO/VACUUM and SECO/WARWICK USA, has committed to expanding its manufacturing capacity in Pennsylvania by relocating a portion of its manufacturing and a metallurgical lab for vacuum furnaces from its headquarters site in Poland to Crawford County.

Solar Atmospheres’ newest acquisition, Solar Atmospheres of San Diego, is pleased to announce the addition of Chris Constable as their new Vice President of Operations.  Chris brings with him nearly 25 years of Heat Treating experience that includes quality, operations, management, plant safety, business development, and sales. 

NGC Gears, one of the world’s largest wind power gearbox manufacturers, has completed the installation of two additional EndoFlex generators from UPC-Marathon, a Nitrex company, at its new facility in Jinhu, China location. This acquisition brings the total of generator sets to five since 2022, collectively generating an impressive 800 m³/h (22,252 ft3/h) capacity of endothermic gas supplied to carburizing and hardening furnaces used for processing various gear components. The latest installations in February and March of 2024 support the heat-treating operations of the company’s wind energy gearbox production.

Solar Atmospheres, Inc. is pleased to announce its most recent acquisition, Certified Metal Craft (CMC) located in El Cajon (an East County suburb of San Diego). With nearly 55 years of serving the Southern California region, CMC and the Wiederkehr Family have established themselves as a trusted and dependable source of heat treating and brazing services.

Nitrex welcomes the newest member of the Nitrex Turnkey Systems Team: Marcin Krajdocha. Marcin steps into the new role of Technical Sales Manager responsible for Nitriding Systems in the DACH region and the Vacuum furnace product line in Europe.

Solar Atmospheres Greenville, SC facility is pleased to announce it has been awarded Lockheed Martin Space Systems approval. With this approval, now all five Solar Atmospheres facilities are an option for our customers with Lockheed Martin requirements for thermal processing services.

Solar Atmospheres of Western PA recently commissioned their third car bottom air furnace manufactured by Heat Treat Equipment Inc. This large Class 2 air furnace with a maximum operating temperature of 1350°F measures 60-in. wide x 38-in. high x 168-in. deep. The newly installed equipment joins two other HTE car bottom furnaces that are 14-ft. long and 20-ft. long respectively.

Solar Atmospheres of Michigan has successfully relocated from the old Fraser and Warren facilities to a new, state-of-the-art location in Chesterfield, MI. All ten furnaces (both new and existing) are fully operational at the Chesterfield plant, heralding a new era of efficiency and productivity. 

The American branch of Seco/Warwick has decided to expand its presence on the continent. Mexico is an important market for Seco/Warwick USA; hence, the decision was made to open a sales and service office in Monterrey. The new Seco/Warwic, Mexico division will occupy about 2,000 square feet of office space in a high-rise business park, including garage parking and controlled-access reception.

Solar Atmospheres in Souderton, PA, recently commissioned a new vacuum furnace capable of utilizing high-pressure gas quenching at 20-Bar (about 300 PSI) to meet demanding cooling rate specifications for the heat treatment of nickel-based superalloys.