Solar Atmospheres in Souderton, PA, is currently commissioning two additional 2-bar vacuum furnaces, expanding its capabilities to meet increased demand in the aerospace, industrial gas turbine sectors, and for specialized hydride/de-hydride processing of Titanium, Tantalum, and Niobium. These vacuum furnaces, produced by Solar's sister company, Solar Manufacturing, feature large working hot zones (45” x 45” x 72”) and are rated for operations up to 2400°F with a precise temperature uniformity of ±10°F.
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.
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 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.
ECM USA is excited to announce the addition of Dave Wolfe to our team as a Senior Sales Engineer. Formerly serving as an East Coast representative based in Pennsylvania, Dave brings a wealth of experience to our organization. His extensive sales background encompasses not only ECM vacuum furnaces but also spans 30 years of technical sales expertise, demonstrating a consistent track record in delivering customer-focused solutions for a diverse range of thermal processing equipment, including Photovoltaic/PV applications.
Quality control, EV components, energy consumption and material influences are just a handful of topics being discussed in heat treating today. New heat treat methods and global trends will be the topic of conversation later this year at Heat Treat 2023. Here’s a round-up of some stories circulating across key market segments.
Solar Atmospheres of California (SCA) successfully installed a brand new 14-foot-long car bottom Air Furnace with a total load capacity of up to 30,000 pounds. The furnace was surveyed in accordance with AMS2750 and is uniform within ±10°F (Class 2). The furnace has a working zone that is 60-inches square by 168 inches long and handles a workload up to 30,000 pounds. With a maximum operating temperature of 1450°F, this furnace accommodates not only the tempering of large tool steel components but also age hardening of 15-5 PH, 17-4 PH, 13-8PH and nickel-based alloys, and the annealing of Titanium Forgings.
Solar Atmospheres of Western Pennsylvania is pleased to announce the approval of a critical Boeing specification for the oil quenching of alloy steels in accordance with Boeing’s specification BAC 5617.
Solar Atmospheres of Michigan, formerly Vac-Met, has recently purchased 18,000 square feet of plant space on four plus acres in Chesterfield Michigan. The new building is 20 miles Northeast of the two existing Vac-Met facilities which are currently located in Warren and Fraser Michigan.
For the 2014 Orion launch, NASA introduced the Launch Abort System (LAS). This large manifold housing made from 6AL-4V titanium is designed to rapidly propel astronauts away from the main rocket in case of a catastrophic explosion or any other unexpected event. Once fired, the LAS will accelerate the astronauts away from the main rocket at forces up to 10 to 15 times normal gravity (“G’s”). This critical part of the safety system was once again vacuum heat treated by Solar Atmospheres of Western PA for their most recent launch.
Expertise, vision, information management, success, ethical conduct, human competence, and diversity: Ayla Busch had convinced the jury in all these categories and therefore received the German Leadership Award 2022.
A newly designed Vacuum Oil Quench (VOQ) furnace, purchased by Solar Atmospheres of Western PA, recently entered into full production after passing a vigorous start up protocol.
Ipsen recently installed the second Turbo2Treater vacuum furnace at Temprasud, a commercial heat treater in Fresagrandinaria, Italy.
Solar Atmospheres of Western PA (SAWPA) was recently awarded three years merit status for SHARP Accreditation. The Safety and Health Achievement Recognition Program (SHARP) is designed to recognize employees and employers for their effort in establishing and maintaining all elements of an effective safety and health program.
Summary
Many techniques have been developed over the years to control heat treatment distortion, including the use of different quenching medias, optimization of heat treatment cycles, altering the material chemical composition and even press quenching. Now, learn about Quenching in the 4th Dimension!
SECO/VACUUM's white paper discusses the new 4D Quenching technology, a safe and simple hands-off heat treatment process, minus the challenges of press quenching.
Solar Atmospheres’ new Low Torr Vacuum Carburizing furnace and services are now operating at Solar’s Eastern Pennsylvania ...