Large pit furnaces and quenching unit commissioned for turbine rotors

April 9, 2014
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Aichelin Holding GmbH, Austria., announces that Slovenian member company Bosio has successfully commissioned a 72-ft. pit furnace, a 72-ft. split type furnace, and a PLC-controlled spray quenching unit for the heat treatment of turbine rotors with a length up to 52 ft. and a rotor weight up to 175 tons. The furnaces are available with gas or electric heating for a temperature up to 2000°F. Different heating zones ensure a temperature uniformity of ±9°F.

The PLC-controlled spray quenching unit can adjust the quench speed by shutting on/off selected zones and switching between the quenching medias water, air, or air-water mixture.

For better uniformity, the parts can be rotated during quenching. A wireless transmitter ensures real-time temperature measurement during the rotation.

Bosio can also provide a simulation of the cooling process for specific applications.

This furnace technology is now also available in the United States  and will be built by the U.S.-based AichelinHeat Treatment Systems Inc., Plymouth, Mich.

www.aichelin.com,

Indiana home to new jet engine assembly factory

April 4, 2014
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GE Aviation, Cincinnati, will break ground on a new $100 million jet engine assembly facility in Lafayette, Indiana. It is the seventh new GE Aviation facility in the U.S. in the past seven years. The new 225,000 ft² facility will assemble the new LEAP engine of CFM International, a 50/50 joint company of GE and Snecma (Safran), France. CFM has logged total orders and commitments with airlines for more than 6000 LEAP jet engines—and it does not enter service until 2016. It will power new Airbus A320neo, Boeing 737 MAX, and COMAC (China) C919 aircraft for airlines worldwide.

Launched in 2008, LEAP is now undergoing development testing. As the engine transitions to the production phase, hiring at the new facility could begin as early as 2015. Within five years, the plant's workforce is expected to exceed 200 people with the capacity to do final assembly for the engine as well as the engine's hot section (compressor, combustor, high-pressure turbine).

"We are thrilled by the airline industry's enthusiasm for the new LEAP engine and its groundbreaking technologies," said David Joyce, president and CEO of GE Aviation. "Beginning in 2015, the LEAP engine will experience a dramatic production ramp-up for the remainder of the decade. We are grateful to the entire Indiana team for ensuring that our Lafayette assembly plant will be soon up and running."

"With a nod to our past and an eye on our future, Indiana is a manufacturing state, with decades of experience in building the items that power our world. But we are also a state of innovation, developing the technologies of tomorrow." said Indiana Governor Mike Pence. "GE Aviation's plans in Indiana fuse the two. By selecting Indiana for its new jet engine facility, the company gains a workforce skilled at both developing the big ideas and bringing them to life."

Final assembly of the LEAP engine involves using components and sub-assemblies from GE and Snecma operations and from their suppliers around the world. The engine will also be assembled at GE's existing engine assembly plant in Durham, N.C.

The new facility will operate a highly advanced assembly line incorporating several new technologies, including automated vision inspection systems and radio frequency parts management to easily spot parts on the shop floor. GE worked closely with the state of Indiana to secure the Lafayette location. The state of Indiana, the Indiana Economic Development Corporation (IEDC), the city of Lafayette, and Tippecanoe County provided technical support and incentives to ensure a smooth and successful start-up.

The plant is close to Purdue University, which has a long history of collaboration with GE Aviation and its parent, General Electric Co. GE employs more than 1200 Purdue University alumni, including more than 400 at GE Aviation. Over the past five years, GE has financed more than $2.5 million in research and development projects at Purdue.

"Purdue and GE are continuing to build a broad and strong collaboration in both research and talent recruitment," said Mitch Daniels, president of Purdue University. "In today's world, a strong research university is the best economic magnet a state can have, and today's announcement is a perfect example of that principle in action."

GE Aviation's Long-term Growth Outlook

The Lafayette facility reflects the growth at GE Aviation. Jet engine deliveries for GE Aviation and its partner companies (including CFM International) are slated to grow from 2442 jet engines in 2013 to about 2850 in 2016.

GE Aviation and its partner companies have the largest and fastest-growing installed base of jet engines in commercial aviation and a global services network to support them. GE and its partner companies have about 34,000 commercial jet engines in service, and that will grow to 41,000 engines by 2020. GE Aviation employs approximately 44,000 people and operates more than 80 facilities worldwide.

By the end of 2013, GE Aviation's multi-year backlog for equipment and services reached $125 billion, more than a 20 percent growth in one year. In addition to its seven new facilities over the past seven years, GE Aviation is making significant investments in its existing operations across the U.S., including investments of more than $350 million since 2012 in its southern Ohio operations in Cincinnati, Dayton, and Peebles.

Technologies in the CFM International LEAP engine

The CFM LEAP engine to be assembled in Lafayette will be among the world's most advanced jet engines, with carbon fiber composite fan blades and fan case (from Snecma), the latest thermodynamic design, higher bypass and compression ratios, advanced 3D aerodynamic design and greater use of advanced materials. The engine is targeted for a 15% improvement in fuel efficiency compared to its predecessor, double-digit improvement in noise and emissions, and the lowest overall cost of ownership in the industry. Other technology features of the LEAP engine:

Additive manufacturing

At its Cincinnati operation, GE Aviation is using a technology called direct metal laser melting (DMLM) to manufacture LEAP fuel nozzles directly from computer-aided design (CAD) files. The process actually "grows" parts, layer by layer, using metal powder and a high-powered fiber laser. The part maintains the same material properties and density as a traditionally manufactured piece, but the process allows for much more complex geometries than were possible in the past. The resulting part is 25% lighter than previous nozzles and five times stronger.

Advanced materials

The LEAP will be the first commercial jet engine with ceramic matrix composite (CMC) components in the hot section, representing a significant technology breakthrough for GE and the jet propulsion industry. CMCs are made of silicon carbide ceramic fibers and ceramic resin, manufactured through a highly sophisticated process and further enhanced with proprietary coatings. GE views CMCs as a differentiator for its next-generation aircraft engines. The ultra-lightweight CMC material supports extremely high temperatures in the high-pressure turbine. CMC benefits include: reduced weight, enhanced performance and improved durability that provides longer time on wing, translating into lower fuel and maintenance costs for customers.

GE Aviation invests $1 billion annually in jet propulsion research and development programs. This long tradition of commitment to new technology has helped GE maintains its leadership position within the industry with a proud list of "firsts" in both military and commercial jet propulsion, tracing back to 1942 with America's first jet engine. GE Aviation, an operating unit of GE, is a world-leading provider of jet engines, components and integrated systems for commercial and military aircraft. GE Aviation has a global service network to support these offerings. For more information, visit www.geaviation.com.

Steel Rolling Holdings Inc. achieves ISO 9001:2008 Certification

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Steel Rolling Holdings Inc. (SRH), Gibraltar, Mich., a leading steel processing center specializing in cold rolling, annealing and tempering steel coils, achieved ISO 9001:2008 certification. The certification is recognized by organizations worldwide as a quality management standard and indicates that an organization conforms to a quality management system, which can consistently provide a product or service that meets customer and applicable regulatory requirements. TÃœV SÃœD America, a global testing, certification, inspection and training provider accredited by ANSI-ASQ National Accreditation Board (ANAB), authorized SRH's certification.

"This certification is just one milestone along our journey of continuous improvements that solidifies our status as an efficient, reliable, and strategic partner for our customers," said Steve Swan, General Manager at Steel Rolling Holdings. "The formal third party recognition, in the form of ISO 9001:2008 certification, demonstrates our unwavering commitment to quality and our customers, and helps advance our status as a world class processor of flat rolled steel."

More information:
Steel Rolling Holdings Inc.

Materion adds martensitic nickel aluminum bronze bar to its product line

April 1, 2014
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Materion Performance Alloys, Mayfield Heights, Ohio, has added nickel aluminum bronze (AMS 4881 C95520) continuous-cast hollow bars to its product line of high performance alloys. It is a martensitic nickel aluminum bronze that offers higher strength and hardness than the other nickel aluminum bronze alloys.

Using a patented technology called EquaCAST, Materion is able to produce an extremely uniform, fine-grained microstructure with more consistent mechanical properties and better machinability to ensure the specified surface finish.

AMS 4881 C95520 is used primarily for aircraft landing gear and brake systems, as well as heavy equipment bearings, bushings, and wear plates. The alloy will be available from authorized distributors in the U.S., Europe, and China.

Materion Performance Alloys,  is a Materion Corporation business. Through its subsidiaries, Materion supplies worldwide markets with beryllium, electronic alloys, and precious metal products, as well as engineered material systems. Around the world, the company's engineered materials can be found in technically demanding end-use products within the telecommunications and computer, automotive electronics, appliance, industrial components, plastics tooling, optical media, oil and gas, aerospace and defense, and off-highway and mining equipment markets.

http://www.materion.com

Aichelin Group signs agreement with BSN to produce heat-treated press-hardened steel sheet

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Aichelin Group, Austria, has signed a cooperation agreement and license contract with BSN Thermoprozesstechnik, Germany, to produce press-hardened steel sheet for the automotive market. BSN has developed an innovative furnace whose walking beam technology allows it to heat laminated blanks or components to temperature within the shortest period of time, then convey them into the press with maximum precision.

Their common service portfolio comprises design, engineering, manufacturing, delivery, and start-up, as well as after-sales service.  

For a promising customer, a major supplier in the automotive sector, BSN and Aichelin are already working intensively on a technological solution as well as the actual design for four comprehensive plants.

"The particular challenge with this first project consists in the fact that the customer has demanded two plants for his sites in Europe, as well as one for China and one for the USA, which are to be supplied over 18 months," says Dr. Thomas Dopler, CEO of Aichelin Ges.m.b.H., Mödling, Austria, who will assume overall project responsibility as an operative parent company.

www.aichelin.com

10 kW direct-diode laser system delivers faster heat treating

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Coherent Inc., Santa Clara, Calif., introduces the HighLight D-Series direct-diode laser system with higher power, which translates into increased throughput for applications in metal cladding and heat treating. In these applications, the higher power and longer line beam of the lasers increase production speeds to new benchmark levels, allowing larger areas to be processed in a single pass.

The new HighLight 10,000D outputs 10 kW (at 975 nm), and can be configured to deliver a wide variety of interchangeable beam shapes (with widths from 1 mm to 12 mm, and lengths from 6 mm to 36 mm) to optimally match specific processing requirements.

The unique design of the HighLight D-Series' compact laser head enables a wide range of output beam size options that won't restrict application deployment.

When combined with Coherent's pressurized or gravity feed powder nozzles and systems, this increased power level enables higher deposition rate cladding (>20 lb/h), or the use of larger spot sizes for heat treating. In addition, Coherent offers a pyrometer for monitoring work surface temperature for closed-loop control of laser power during heat treatment and cladding.

HighLight customers have access to Coherent's applications development lab and engineering staff. This team helps to configure a system that matches each customer's precise requirements, and can identify optimum processing parameters for cladding, heat treating and welding applications.

Coherent's next generation direct-diode laser series, its HighLight D-Series, delivers both high power and an increased range of "smart" output beam shapes, making it the ideal source for laser heat treating, cladding, and welding applications-all at faster speeds, greater deposition rates and larger areas.

www.coherent.com

Ipsen reports increase in hot zone and retrofit orders

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Ipsen USA, Chery Valley, Ill., reports that in the first quarter of 2014, its Engineered Components Group has seen a large increase in vacuum and atmosphere furnace hot-zone and retrofit orders compared to the same period in 2013. Orders include 27 hot zones, 37 controls upgrades, and 23 mechanical retrofits, both domestically and internationally, in steel brazing, tool & die, medical, and commercial heat treating industry sectors.

Updating the hot zone can increase efficiency and improve cycle times. Ipsen provides high-velocity, one-piece plenum hot zones supported by a heavy-duty, double-wall steel plenum that allows for easy installation and maintenance, outstanding energy efficiency, and long-term reliability. By layering high-performance graphite-felt insulation under a carbon fiber shield to create a heat-loss barrier, Ipsen's all-graphite hot zones deliver superior thermal efficiency. For processes that are metallurgically sensitive to contamination caused by graphite, Ipsen offers an all-metal hot zone for increased control over demanding processes. Ipsen's proven, time-tested hot zone designs deliver superior, long-lasting results.

Upgrades to systems help to meet demanding industry standards, increase capabilities, save time, and be more energy efficient. Adding a SCADA system or a VPN router can save time on monitoring and maintenance. Upgrading to a new pumping system can decrease cycle times.

Planning ahead for upgrades and retrofits can help ensure minimal downtime and a smooth transition. Ipsen's Engineered Components Group works closely with customers to plan delivery and installation during plant shutdowns or other optimal times in order to avoid an interruption in production. As always, Ipsen maintains the quality fit, finish and reliability of all retrofits and upgrades regardless of the original equipment manufacturer.

www.ipsenusa.com