Issue 6; 2022 All Markets
Triton’s 36000/2 titanium submersible reached a depth of nearly seven miles.
Also In this issue: Bayne of Timet Outlines Titanium Supply Chain Dynamics and Challenges Caused by Pandemic Howmet Executive Tracks Improvements in Titanium Investment Casting Process High-Purity Vanadium Remains a Critical Material for Defense Applications, Economic Development Shih Urges Titanium Industry to Consider Value of Needed ‘Resiliency Investments’ Titanium Forging Process Ready to Embrace ‘Innovations Engineered for Era of Delivery’
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Rosen Shingle Creek Resort, Orlando, Florida, USA TOPICS PRESENTED: Aerospace & Defense | Supply Chain Management | Industrial Applications World Industry Supply & Demand Trends | Titanium in Medical Technology ITA is the global trade association of the world’s primary titanium metal producers who together account for over 90% of worldwide titanium production. ITA provides a forum for the exchange of ideas within the industry and educates the public on every aspect of using titanium metal within their design.
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All Markets EDITION
CONTENTS Meet the ITA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 Editorial: Bayne of Timet Outlines Titanium Supply Chain Dynamics and Challenges Caused by Pandemic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 As a Material of Choice, Titanium Allows Submersible to Reach ‘Full-Ocean Depth’ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 Howmet Executive Tracks Improvements in Titanium Investment Casting Process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 High-Purity Vanadium Remains a Critical Material for Defense Applications, Economic Development . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26 Shih Urges Titanium Industry to Consider Value of Needed ‘Resiliency Investments’ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34 Titanium Forging Process Ready to Embrace ‘Innovations Engineered for Era of Delivery’ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
Editorial Published by:
International Titanium Association www.titanium.org 1-303-404-2221 Telephone ita@titanium.org Email Editor & Executive Director: Jennifer Simpson EDITORIAL OFFICES
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Join this free distribution by emailing us at ita@titanium.org
From the Wire . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40 ITA Member Roster . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46 Advertiser Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49
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MEET THE ITA Board of Directors Executive Committee
Frank L. Perryman
President and Chief Executive Officer Perryman Company ITA President 2020-2022
Mr. Perryman graduated from Millikin University in 1986 with a Bachelor of Science in Industrial Engineering. In 1988 he co-founded Perryman Company with his father and brother. Since December of 2008 he has held the position of President and CEO of Perryman Company. Perryman Company is a fully integrated supplier of specialty titanium products. From melting through finishing, founded in 1988, Perryman Company is headquartered in Houston, Pennsylvania, with office locations in Philadelphia, Los Angeles, London, Zurich, Tokyo and Xi’an. Perryman is an integrated titanium producer from melting of ingot to finished products. The company’s product portfolio includes ingot, bar, coil, fine wire, net shapes, and hot rolled products. The Forge and Fabrication group offers medical device contract manufacturing in a range of materials including plastics and titanium. A titanium global leader, Perryman supplies and services customers in the aerospace, medical, consumer, industrial, recreation, additive/3D printing and infrastructure markets worldwide.
Dr. Markus Holz
Professor, ITA Academic Member Education Committee Co-Chair Titanium Europe Conference Chair ITA Vice President 2020-2022
Dr. Markus Holz is presently an industry consultant. Formerly President of AMG’s Engineering Systems Division and CEO of Vacuum Technologies GmbH from 2012 to 2019. He joined the ALD Management Board in October 2011. Dr. Holz graduated in Aerospace Engineering in 1986 and earned his PhD in 1992. Following his 10 years of service in the German Airforce, Dr. Holz began his career with ThyssenKrupp in 1992, where he assumed several executive positions mainly in the stainless steel and special metals branch. In 1999, Dr. Holz became Managing Director of ThyssenKrupp Titanium GmbH (formerly Deutsche Titan GmbH) and in 2002 he was appointed Managing Director of ThyssenKrupp Titanium S.p.A. (formerly Titania S.p.A.). Furthermore, he was responsible for Tubifi cio di Terni, Italien, from 2004 through 2007. From 2007 to 2009 he was CEO of the ThyssenKrupp Titanium Group (Germany and Italy). In January 2010 he joined the Managing Board of Hempel Special Metals, Oberhausen, Germany. He is Honorary Professor at University of Applied Sciences Anhalt Teaching Operations Management. 6
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Martin Pike
Vice President - Commercial ATI Specialty Materials ITA Secretary/Treasurer 2020-2022
Martin Pike is the Vice President - Commercial for ATI Specialty Materials with responsibilities which include international product management, sales, and long-term agreements with customers. Martin joined ATI in August 2001 and held several positions with increasing responsibility including Titanium Rolled Products, Product Manager and Director of Sales. Prior to joining ATI, Martin worked in manufacturing where he held various commercial positions including Regional Vice-President of Sales. His educational background includes a Bachelor’s Degree from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte.
Donald E. Larsen
President, KineTic Engineering ITA Past President 2020-2022
Donald E. Larsen is currently President of KineTic Engineering a consulting firm that provides expertise across the Titanium industry. Prior to this he spent over 30 years at Howmet Aerospace/Arconic retiring in 2018 as Vice President, R&D, General Manager Advanced Manufacturing for Arconic. In this role, he was responsible for leading R&D and production teams working on priority titanium technology projects, including 3D printing and advanced manufacturing activities. He also served as a liaison to the Arconic Technical Center (ATC) and Arconic’s Whitehall Technology Center. Don retired in Q3 of 2018 and temporarily took on the role of Interim Plant Manager Ti-Ingot Operation and Director of Special Projects. Don joined the Howmet Aerospace in 1988 and served in a number of roles focused on the research, development and production of titanium products. He has also held operational and sales and marketing roles with the company. Don has a master’s degree in metallurgical engineering from The Ohio State University, and is the holder of 11 U.S. patents. He has published more than 30 technical articles in the field of titanium.
ITA Directors
Mike Marucci
Edward Sobota Jr.
Phil MacVane
Sam Stiller
Brett Paddock
Michael Stitzlein
John J. Scherzer
Jennifer Simpson
Chief Technology Officer Kymera International
Vice President, the Americas PCC Metals Group Global Sales
President and Chief Executive Officer T.I. (Titanium Industries, Inc.)
Vice President – Medical Markets Carpenter Technology Corporation
President TSI Titanium
Vice President – Commercial Howmet Structure Systems
President Tricor Metals
Executive Director, Ex-Officio Board Member
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ITA Committee Chairs
Safety Education
Robert G. Lee President Accushape Inc.
Industrial Applications
Robert Henson
Manager, Business Development VSMPO-Tirus, US
Ti Today Contributor
Michael C. Gabriele
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Women in Titanium
Holly Both
Vice President of Marketing Plymouth Tube / Plymouth Engineered Shapes
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Bayne of Timet Outlines Titanium Supply Chain Dynamics and Challenges Caused by Pandemic By Andrew Bayne, Jr.
I
n a normal environment, balancing a titanium supply chain has its challenges, as is typical of supply chains seen in any other industry. And similar to other supply chains, the titanium market has been challenged by the pandemic over the last two years, and it has been particularly strained of late due to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Lockdowns and Labor Shortages The outbreak of COVID-19 brought on a marked shift in the cargo industry. Ships embarked en masse to deliver much needed medical supplies, but the affected countries were shut down and had either no one to reload the ships, nothing to export or both. Thus, thousands of shipping containers were essentially idled due to a combined shortage of goods and laborers. These same labor shortages left ports, ships, and the global trucking industry understaffed. The virus and the lockdowns caused another global shift: the manufacture and delivery of goods targeted homebound customers as opposed to experiences and services. Mattress, appliances, and other home goods—all predominantly sourced from Eastern countries—were in high demand; however, logistics companies could not keep pace with the consumers’ quick pivot due to the before-mentioned impacts on shipping containers and logistics infrastructure. Demand was up but availability of container space was at an all-time low and, as a result, 10
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freight costs soared and lead times lengthened. As of this writing in May 2022, the situation is showing signs of improvement, but remains imbalanced. COVID-19 outbreaks continue to drive uncertainty, particularly in China.
generation fell to historical lows. The titanium scrap market is in the early phases of the recovery, but it is an expensive one emerging from such a deep trough. The typical aerospace titanium recovery cycle begins with a ramp in melting. This ramp precedes Sponge and Shipping the scrap generation desired Routes to support the ramp in Titanium sponge melt, which typically drives producers globally increased sponge and alloy continue to struggle to demand. find containers and vessels When COVID-19 to ship sponge to U.S. hit, the majority of scrap melters at an adequate rate in the aerospace system to support the aerospace was forever lost to ferroramp-up. Inventories are titanium and other lean in the United States, sacrificial markets, as melt Andrew Bayne, Jr. and it will be critical for volumes fell and scrap sponge producers to find generators needed cash to survive. creative solutions enabling them to The remaining aerospace scrap saw deliver sponge on time. Additionally, subpar scrap segregation due to UKTMP in Kazakhstan is struggling employee turnover issues; this drove with importing ilmenite from quality levels down, making normally Ukraine and exporting sponge to acceptable scrap unrecoverable customers due to the geographical into aerospace. It has taken time to relationship to Russia and Ukraine. bring back proper segregation and Feedstock, freight, and energy cleanliness practices to ensure quality costs have increased as well, scrap returns to the aerospace supply driving up overall input costs in chain; this is beginning to improve as the supply chain. It is imperative bad practices are eliminated. melters proactively plan ahead and Further complicating the tightness to accommodate the longer than in the aerospace scrap market is the normal purchasing cycle to secure strength of the ferro-titanium market requirements. which, for the most part, has not been impacted by the pandemic like Scrap and its Death Spiral aerospace. Auto manufacturers have The scrap market continues to be not slowed production other than tight. Aerospace’s 2020 downturn some impact from semi-conductor led to severe cuts within aerospace chip shortages. Demand continues manufacturing and, thus, scrap to be strong, and ferro-titanium
Russia’s Invasion of Ukraine (continued)
producers continue to be busy. The overall lack of scrap generation, including off-grade scrap, is driving ferro-titanium producers to seek the same, higher pedigree scrap required to support the aerospace industry. Making the scrap shortage worse, Russia invaded Ukraine last February. Approximately 40 percent of the world’s ferro-titanium production comes out of Russia. With this capacity essentially unavailable, the demand has been driven to United States and European Union producers. Published prices of ferrotitanium more than doubled in a week’s time, and scrap prices followed along with it as producers scrambled to satisfy the new demand. The bottom line: the scrap market today is the most difficult it has been since the 2006 peak. The supply chain needs to be more creative with the scrap utilization and should utilize more sponge and alloy until scrap generation is back in balance with global demand. It is critical for OEMs to ensure that their supply chains are reverting scrap back to titanium melt shops to maintain a healthy supply chain as growth returns to pre-pandemic levels. Titanium Scrap
The supply chain needs to be more creative with scrap utilization and should utilize more sponge and alloy until scrap generation is back in balance with global demand. It is critical for OEMs to ensure that their supply chains are reverting scrap back to titanium melt shops to maintain a healthy supply chain as growth returns to pre-pandemic levels.
Master Alloys are in the same boat (or not – that’s the problem)! Elementals have also experienced supply concerns. The same logistics issues—long lead times, soaring freight, and rising material costs—exist for master alloy producers. Prices of almost all commodities have increased substantially, adding further pressure to titanium producer cost structures. Human Capital As if everything already discussed wasn’t bad enough, we are in the midst of what some have called “The Great Resignation.” The impact on the labor market post-COVID is difficult to understand. Sponge producers, scrap processors, master alloy producers, melters, downstream processors, etc. are all feeling the impacts of a tight labor market. From the smallest master alloy producer to
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Bayne: Titanium Supply Chain Dynamics and Challenges Caused by Pandemic (continued)
Titanium Inventory
the largest aerospace OEMs, human capital is keeping executives up at night. The theme seems to be a common one—there simply aren’t enough people to support the same production levels that existed prepandemic, and nobody seems to have the answers to solve it. Communication Will Be Key There have been obvious and significant disruptions in the industry. Planning this supply chain from a melter’s raw materials perspective is more difficult than I have seen in my nearly 20 years in the industry. Raw materials and labor are tight, demand patterns are shifting, 12
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downstream inventory and mix is difficult to ascertain, pandemic and geopolitical uncertainty persist, and transportation problems will make for some difficult times ahead as the industry attempts to ramp up from the 2020 shut down. Consumers need to be thinking further out into the future than in normal times, as lead times are extended. Forecasts and demand signals throughout the supply chain need to improve. Communication lines must remain robust, and the players need to be synchronized to optimize success. Producers need to be flexible in how they source raw materials and schedule production. Every link in the
chain needs to be asking itself: Will my hiring of manpower to increase rates synchronize properly with my incoming raw materials? Will my suppliers be able to ramp up to support my increased requirements? Do I have a plan B or inventory if my supplies do not arrive on time? If you can answer yes, make sure the tier ahead of you and behind you agrees. And if you cannot, communicate early and often. If not, titanium runs the risk of impeding the overall air traffic recovery. n (Editor’s note: Andrew Bayne Jr. is the director of global materials planning for the Titanium Metals Corp. [Timet])
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As a Material of Choice, Titanium Allows Submersible to Reach ‘Full-Ocean Depth’ By Michael C. Gabriele
I
n business, when individuals or companies achieve major milestones or stellar accomplishments, they’re praised for having reached great heights of success. However, in contrast to this lofty description, Triton Submarines LLC, Sebastian, FL, has have been lauded for its great depth of success. How deep? Triton’s 36000/2 titanium submersible reached a depth of 35,853 feet or “full-ocean depth” (nearly seven miles) in the Pacific Ocean’s “Challenger Deep” region within the Mariana Trench near the island of Guam—the lowest-known point on the Earth’s ocean floor. By way of comparison, the peak of 14
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Mount Everest is the highest point on the Earth’s surface at 29,000 feet. Jarl Stromer, Triton’s manager of class and regulatory compliance, said his company designed, built and delivered the titanium submersible in 2019 to accommodate explorer Victor Vescovo and his “Five Deeps Expedition” to journey to the deepest points in the world’s oceans. Stromer explained that Pittsburgh-based Allegheny Technologies Inc. (ATI) served as Triton’s “most-important vendor” and strategic partner in the project. ATI produced a titanium Grade 5 ingot at its Specialty Materials facility in Monroe, NC, and then created the two interlocking hemispheres of the Triton 36000/2
submersible at its Forged Products plant in Cudahy, WI. Initially, Triton and ATI considered using nickel steels, Inconnel 718 nickel-based super alloy, aluminum alloys, and titanium Grade 23 to build the Triton sub, but eventually selected titanium Grade 5 (Ti 6Al-4V), the workhorse aerospace alloy. Grades 23 and 5 are similar, with Grade 23 offering higher ductility and fracture toughness. Stromer said ATI’s titanium Grade 5 prevailed because of its mostfavorable combination of properties, including strength-to-weight ratio and excellent corrosion resistance to seawater. Stromer said the decision was
Titanium Allows Submersible to Reach ‘Full-Ocean Depth’ (continued) made not to weld the two 36000/2 titanium square-shaped hemispheres, but rather have them interlocked with “O” rings and utilize the enormous deep-sea pressures to keep the unit watertight. The sub was designed for multiple trips to the ocean’s depths. So far Trion has built only one 36000/2 (a sub designed to reach 36,000 feet and carry two passengers). Triton has also built two 1000/2 units and 10 3300/3 submersibles. Triton also builds submersibles with acrylic hulls. While the submersible represents a specialty “showcase” project, it does demonstrate the capabilities of titanium design and manufacturing, as well as survive extreme environments—perhaps opening doors for similar undersea projects or even applications for deep-water oil and gas drilling platforms. ATI, in an article posted on the “newsroom” section of its website (https://www. atimetals.com/newsroom), titled “The Perfect (Hemi) Sphere,” reviewed the production technology details of the Triton project from the perspective of the titanium industry. According to its newsroom article, ATI began its partnership with Triton years before the 36,000/2 project, with extensive research, development and trial runs that resulted in ATI helping Triton “to transform titanium into the perfect hemispherical shape that would withstand full-ocean depth pressure.” The challenge to engineer the Triton sub involved “forging a 90mm-thick pressure hull out of titanium within 0.1 percent of perfect sphericity necessary to ensure the homogenous microstructure and consistent mechanical properties enabling equal distribution of weight while maintaining integrity of the shape.” ATI used its 15,000-ton hydraulic press in Cudahy to forge the titanium hulls. “Relying on modeling and 16
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predictive technologies, each intermittent target shape was carefully engineered to refine the structure until a flat disc or ‘pancake’ was formed. This process was repeated to produce a second pancake with the same properties.” The two titanium pancakes were converted to a dome shape through precise control of the 20,000-pound open dies against the gravity of 15,000 tons of force. Triton is one of just a handful
of submersibles to reach full-ocean depth, but it’s only the first to be fully certified by DNV-GL and the first to reach full-ocean depth multiple times. (DNV GL, formed in 2013 through the merger of Det Norske Veritas (DNV) and Germanischer Lloyd (GL), is involved in maritime risk assessment and certification, according to the website Dolphin Charger: www.dolphin-charger.com/ news/dnv-gl-certification).
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Titanium Allows Submersible to Reach ‘Full-Ocean Depth’ (continued) Celebrated Hollywood filmmaker James Cameron made a dive in March 2012. A Navy expedition occurred in 1960. As stated on the Triton website (https://Tritonsubs. com), the 36000/2 “opens up to repeatable exploration the 70-percent of the world’s oceans hitherto beyond the reach of mankind. Equipped with a full science suite and ultrahigh definition filming capabilities, the 36000/2 is helping scientists and explorers uncover the mysteries of the most unexplored region on Earth— the ultra-deep. Reliable and repeatable exploration to full-ocean depth affords scientists the opportunity to compare rich data-sets spanning the full gradients of depth, temperature, salinity and other factors.” “In order to protect our oceans, we must first understand them. The key to understanding their global impact lies in the gathering, interrogation and interpretation of quality, scientific data. The challenge presented to Triton was to build a craft that would match these forebearers for depth, but be able to repeat the dive hundreds, if not thousands, of times. Such a vessel must serve a meaningful purpose; to exist not simply to set records, but to further human understanding through serious scientific research and to inspire a passion for our oceans.” Stromer said it’s expected that the Triton sub fleet will continue to explore the ocean’s depths in the coming years, looking to map the sea floor and document discoveries of never-before-seen aquatic life. Profile of an Explorer The New Yorker magazine, in its May 10, 2020 edition, published an article (“Thirty-Six Thousand Feet Under the Sea”) that described Victor Vescovo’s undersea adventures in the 36000/2, which resembled “a bulging briefcase, with a protruding 18
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While the Triton submersible represents a specialty “showcase” project, it does demonstrate the capabilities of titanium design and manufacturing, as well as survive extreme environments—perhaps opening doors for similar undersea projects or even applications for deepwater oil and gas drilling platforms. bulb at the bottom. This was the pressure hull—a titanium sphere, five feet in diameter.” In September 2014 Vescovo first contacted Triton Submarines and outlined his plan for the Five Deeps Expedition. The article described Vescovo as a former a jet and helicopter pilot, “familiar with the procedure-driven piloting of complex craft,” who made his fortune as a private equity investor. “It was the middle of summer, 2018, in South Florida, and Triton’s technicians were working 15 hours a day. Every major component of Vescovo’s submarine had to be developed from scratch.” The article also recounted a vivid
description of the dive. “After thirtyfive thousand feet, he began releasing a series of weights, to slow his descent. Nearly seven miles of water was pressing on the titanium sphere. If there were any imperfections, it could instantly implode.” The submarine touched the silty bottom, and the pilot, a fifty-three-year-old Texan named (Vescovo) became the first living creature with blood and bones to reach the deepest point in the Tonga Trench” (the second-deepest undersea trench, located in in the southwestern Pacific Ocean, and one of the target sites in the Five Deeps Expedition). n
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Howmet Executive Tracks Improvements In Titanium Investment Casting Process By Michael C. Gabriele
B
oyd Mueller, the vice president and general manager of technology and metals for the Engines Business Segment of Howmet Aerospace Inc., has seen steady, significant improvements in the field of titanium investment casting during the last five years—at his Boyd Mueller company and throughout the titanium industry at large. It’s a trend that will continue to gain momentum during the next five years. Titanium investment casting produces parts through the metallic replication of wax models. The resulting titanium parts have a very smooth surface that requires little finishing after the process. Because a wax model is created in the exact size and shape as the part, investment casting allows for high dimensional accuracy. Investment casting, or “lost-wax” casting, is a fundamental manufacturing technology for producing precision titanium parts for the aerospace industry, industrial markets, and oil and gas business sectors. Investment casting begins with the production of an exact wax model or pattern of the final product. This pattern is typically produced by injection molding, but it also can be produced by Additive Manufacturing (AM) printing. The pattern is then coated in a ceramic material to create a “shell” or mold. The mold is placed
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into a furnace where the wax is melted and drained from the shell, leaving behind an empty cavity in the shape of the final casting. The shell is then placed into a vacuum chamber to remove contaminants and ensure casting quality. Molten titanium is then poured into the ceramic mold, which fills the shell cavity. The titanium is allowed to solidify and cool. The ceramic mold is destroyed and removed from the component casting, revealing the final cast titanium part. Investment cast titanium is light weight, has high strength up to 1000°F and is corrosion resistant, which makes it ideal for many aerospace, defense, and subsea applications.
Aerospace Titanium Investment Casting
Mueller identified process management as a major area of
improvement for titanium casting, which he’s witnessed during the last five years. The thrust, he said, is to be pro-active to define potential problems on the front end of the casting process, rather than try to make adjustments on the back end. “Process management for casting has become much more engineering driven. It involves understanding the process and eliminating defects and rework. The goal is to improve casting integrity and have more consistent properties and quality in the cast parts.” Another advance cited by Mueller is the utilization of additive manufacturing (AM) in the investment casting process. As he explained it, an AM model or prototype is produced, rather than a wax pattern, for the lost-wax casting process. “We take a different approach for using additive manufacturing,” he said. “Using additive manufacturing, rather than a tooled wax pattern, cuts out time and expense to produce a cast part. We replace a traditional wax pattern with a printed, additive manufacturing pattern.” He added that using AM, rather than wax, has other advantages, as AM is suited to support the increasing complexity of cast parts, especially those where the geometry is difficult or impossible to tool. A third area of recent innovations for the casting process is the specification of higher-performance titanium alloys. Much of this is driven by demands from the aerospace industry to produce titanium parts
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Improvements In Titanium Investment Casting Process (continued)
with enhanced strength, temperature resistance, oxidation resistance and weight savings. For example, Mueller pointed to casting titanium aluminides for low-pressure turbine blades used in jet engines. Titanium aluminides yield significant weight savings and high performance compared with nickel-based superalloys for this application. Titanium alloys such as Ti-6242 (Ti6Al-2Sn-4Zr-2Mo-Si), a near-alpha alloy, and Ti-15333 (Ti-15V-3Cr-3Sn3Al), a beta alloy, offer high strength and corrosion resistance properties at elevated, in-service performance temperatures up to 1000°F/540°C, according to technical information posted online.
Five Years Ahead Regarding the evolution of the titanium casting process during the next five years, Mueller sees a continuation of manufacturing technology elements already in place. He expects the process to be more engineering intensive, designing complex integral cast components, which previously would have been composed of a number of elements welded or joined together. There will be more widespread use of process modeling and process simulation to optimize part configurations and compress the time to design and produce parts. As for expanded business opportunities, aerospace will remain a dominant market for titanium casting, with growth
Stereolithography Pattern for Titanium Investment Casting
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Aerospace Titanium Investment Casting
opportunities emerging in the entrepreneurial, commercial space market (Space X and Blue Origin) as well as the oil and gas industry.
Improvements In Titanium Investment Casting Process (continued)
Regarding the evolution of the titanium casting process during the next five years, Boyd Mueller sees a continuation of manufacturing technology elements already in place and expects the process to be more engineering intensive. There will be more widespread use of process modeling and process simulation to optimize part configurations and compress the time to design and produce parts. [The following company overview was provided by Howmet.] Howmet Ti-Cast, located in Whitehall, MI, serves the commercial and military aerospace industries and the medical industry. The TiCast operation, drawing from the rapid prototyping capabilities of the nearby Howmet Technical Center, is a modern facility of approximately 48,000 square feet of manufacturing space, housing modern equipment, and the staff of technical and production experts necessary for making high-quality products. Howmet’s Structural Casting Operation is a leader in the production of large superalloy and titanium aerospace structural components for the aero-engine, airframe and rocket industries. The Structural Casting Operations center has been located in Hampton, Virginia, since 1981, where it occupies more than 113,000 square feet of manufacturing space.
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Howmet Ti-Ingot, a 58,000-square-foot operation also located in Whitehall and part of Howmet’s Specialty Products Group, is a producer of standard, double- and triple-melt, rotatinggrade titanium ingots. Ti-Ingot manufactures products for the commercial and military aerospace, chemical-processing, medicalimplant and recreational industries. Ti-Ingot provides multiple benefits for customers such as the ability to toll melt permits maximum recycling of titanium scrap for a more costeffective ingot. The Howmet Research Corp. supports the worldwide activities of the Howmet Engines through materials and process research and development, manufacturing technology and various engineering and laboratory services. Materials and process research and development activities within the corporate technology laboratories address
both near-term production needs of the manufacturing operations and Howmet’s strategic plans to maintain its technological leadership. The work is funded internally and by contracts with customers and the U.S. government. Established in 1973 and located in the Operhall Research Center in Whitehall, the facility occupies 100,000 square feet. Howmet Aerospace Inc., headquartered in Pittsburgh, is a leading global provider of advanced engineered solutions for the aerospace and transportation industries and recognized as a global leader in the field of titanium casting. Howmet was formed in April 2020 when it separated from Arconic, Inc. n
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High-Purity Vanadium Remains a Critical Material For Defense Applications, Economic Development By Terry Perles
T
itanium alloys are alloys that contain a mixture of titanium and other chemical elements, such as vanadium. These alloys have very high tensile strength and toughness (even at extreme temperatures). They are light in weight, have extraordinary corrosion resistance and the ability to withstand extreme temperatures. The high cost of both raw materials and processing limit their use to military applications, aircraft, spacecraft, industrial applications, bicycles, medical devices, jewelry, highly stressed components such as connecting rods on expensive sports cars and some premium sports equipment and consumer electronics. The addition of vanadium to titanium alloys improves the strength of titanium alloys and promotes thermal stability. Several important commercial titanium alloys contain between 2.5 and 15 percent
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vanadium. Although “commercially pure” titanium has acceptable mechanical properties and has been used for orthopedic and dental implants, for most applications titanium is alloyed with small amounts of aluminum and vanadium, typically 6 percent and 4 percent respectively, by weight. (The most familiar example of this is the aerospace workhouse alloy Ti6Al4V.) This Terry Perles mixture has a solid solubility that varies dramatically with temperature, allowing it to undergo precipitation strengthening. This heat treatment process is carried out after the alloy has been worked into its final shape but before it is put to use, allowing much easier fabrication of a high-strength product.
The alloying of titanium alloys involves the melting of commercial pure titanium (typically referred to as titanium sponge) with master alloys containing the alloying elements. Typically vanadium bearing titanium alloys also contain aluminum. Vanadium/aluminum master alloys containing 50-80 percent vanadium are typically used to produce a variety of titanium alloys. The master alloy is typically crushed to ¼ inch by 65 mesh and blended with titanium sponge to form a consumable electrode which is melted in a variety of vacuum furnaces, depending upon the product and grade being produced. Vanadium aluminum master alloys have similar melting point and density as titanium sponge allowing for the production of homogenous titanium alloy ingots, plates and other physical forms. Given the critical nature of the applications of titanium alloys, the quality of the vanadium used in this application is critical. The titanium alloys must contain very low residual impurities and must be free of any high or low density inclusions to avoid catastrophic failure. Strict quality controls including ISO-9001 and AS9100 certifications are required for producers of vanadium to supply the titanium alloy industry. Roughly 90 percent of the vanadium produced globally is used in the production of high strength
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High-Purity Vanadium Remains a Critical Material (continued)
steels. In this application vanadium is a pure commodity—a typical addition rate is 0.05 percent vanadium in these steels. At this addition level any impurities present in the vanadium are not important to performance of the steel. As a result, 90 percent of the global vanadium supply base is set up to produce commodity grade vanadium at the lowest possible cost. This commodity grade vanadium is not suitable for titanium alloys and the titanium alloy industry relies on a relatively small number of producers of high purity vanadium to supply their needs. The production of vanadium master alloys utilizes vanadium oxides V2O5 and V2O3 as well as pure aluminum in powder and or granular form. A blend of vanadium oxides and aluminum are melted in an aluminothermic reduction process to generate an ingot of vanadium aluminum master alloy. The ingot is shot blasted and crushed in a controlled environment to limit any possibility of contamination. The crushed alloys is 100-percent
inspected by visual light for any foreign material, black light inspected to assure no contamination with slag, and X-ray inspected to ensure no contamination from high density refractory materials. The final product is packaged into drums with identifiable seals on each drum. The chain of custody of the final product is critical to ensure no contamination during storage or transport. According to VANITEC (www. vanitec.org) global vanadium production and consumption have shown high rates of growth in recent years. From 2016 to 2021 consumption of vanadium globally grew from 71,700 metric tons pure vanadium (MTV) to 120,375 MTV for a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 10.2percent. Vanadium production over this period has grown from 76,530 MTV in 2016 to 115,667 MTV in 2021 for a CAGR of 8.6 percent. Pre COVID-19 titanium alloy production consumed approximately 4 percent of the vanadium produced each year. During COVID-19
Figure 1: Global Vanadium Production and Consumption
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production of titanium alloys was drastically affected and in recent months production of titanium alloys as started to recover and we expect that by 2023 titanium alloy production will return to preCOVID-19 levels. Today there are three major sources of vanadium production. Approximately 68 percent of the vanadium produced each year is recovered from vanadium slag generated at steel mills in the Ural regions of Russia and in Sichuan and Hebei provinces in China. These steel mills process local vanadium bearing magnetite in the production of steel and generate a vanadium slag coproduct. Approximately 19 percent of global vanadium production is from primary vanadium mines. There are three primary vanadium mines in operation today: the Largo Maracas mine in Brazil; the Glencore Rhovan mine in South Africa; and the Bushveld Vametco mine in South Africa. These producers mine a vanadium bearing magnetite similar to the ore used in the steel mills that generate a vanadium slag, but in these cases, they do not monetize the iron in these ores. The final 13 percent of global vanadium production is based on recovery of vanadium from residues, ashes, spent catalysts and other waste materials that are a result of burning or refining vanadium bearing oil. Companies including US Vanadium take these industrial wastes and extract valuable vanadium from the materials and repurpose the residual solid materials into concrete and asphalt. The production process for vanadium is to bring the vanadium into an aqueous solution either via a caustic or acid based leaching circuit. The typical vanadium plant
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High-Purity Vanadium Remains a Critical Material (continued)
producing commodity grade vanadium will precipitate the vanadium from the pregnant solution as a salt and then typically calcine the salt to an oxide (V2O5 or V2O3). Producers of high purity vanadium like US Vanadium LLC utilize additional technology including ion exchange/solvent extraction and multi-stage growth type crystallization circuits to eliminate any impurities from precipitating in the vanadium oxides. Today vanadium is being utilized in vanadium redox flow battery (VRFB) systems used for grid level stationary storage applications. Massive growth in the demand for grid level energy storage is being seen around the world today and the VRFB is one of the technologies uniquely suited for this application. VRFB systems offer essentially unlimited life with no degradation of capacity over time, and no danger from fires. Demand for vanadium from these sources is expected to grow significantly in the coming years. Growth in vanadium supply over the past five years has been relatively high and this trend will have to continue in order for the new demand envisioned from energy storage systems to occur. Our projection shows growth in supply that will come from a combination of existing and new production facilities. Industry expectations anticipate a fairly balanced but quickly growing vanadium market in the next several years. Global Vanadium identified reserves are sufficient to supply current global vanadium demand for the next 125 years. Vanadium is more abundant in the earth crust than many other critical elements including lithium, cobalt, copper, and nickel. The future availability and price of vanadium will be dependent upon how fast the supply base can expand in the face of surging demand. 30
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Figure 2: Vanadium demand in VRFB Applications
Figure 3: Sources of Increased Vanadium Supply 2020-2025
Figure 4: Global Vanadium Production and Consumption Projection
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Challenges for Titanium Distribution (continued)
Figure 5: Availability of Vanadium
The addition of vanadium to titanium alloys improves the strength of titanium alloys and promotes thermal stability. Industry expectations anticipate a fairly balanced but quickly growing vanadium market in the next several years. Global Vanadium identified reserves are sufficient to supply current global vanadium demand for the next 125 years. The future availability and price of vanadium will be dependent upon how fast the supply base can expand in the face of surging demand. —Terry Perles
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Vanadium has been classified as a critical mineral by the European Union, the United States and other jurisdictions. High-purity vanadium is critical for various national defense applications including jet engines, airframes, ballistic missiles, and as a coating for night vision goggles. Vanadium is critical in the production of many basic chemicals and petrochemicals and as a pollution control catalyst. Vanadium consumption in these critical applications will continue to grow in the coming years and the supply of highpurity vanadium for these applications will continue to be important from a defense and economic development standpoint. n (Editor’s note: Terry Perles has 33 years of experience in the vanadium industry in roles including sales, marketing, strategic planning and senior management. Perles joined US Steel Corporation in 1980 as a Construction Management Engineer and held assignments at the company’s steel mills in Homestead and Clairton, PA. In 1988, Perles joined vanadium producer Stratcor and during his 20-year tenure held positions in sales, marketing and senior management. In 1998, he was appointed vice president of sales and marketing and charged with the responsibility to manage global vanadium sales to the steel, titanium and chemical industries.) In March 2010, Perles established TTP Squared Inc., a metals industry consulting firm serving both producers and consumers of vanadium chemicals and alloys. In December 2010, Perles established MoTiV Metals, LLC, a Pennsylvania corporation acting as a North America sales agent for metal producers supplying vanadium, molybdenum and titanium alloys and chemicals to steel, titanium alloy and chemical industries. In May 2012 Perles joined the senior management team of Atlantic Ltd., owners and operators of the Windimurra vanadium project in Western Australia. In 2019 Perles and a group of investors formed US Vanadium LLC for the purpose of acquiring Evraz Stratcor Inc. and the vanadium production facility in Hot Springs Arkansas. US Vanadium now operates the facility in Hot Springs producing high-purity vanadium oxides and downstream chemicals. Perles is a non-executive board member at US Vanadium. He has been an active member of the Vanadium International Technical Committee (VANITEC) from since 2004 and served as chairman of the VANITEC Market Development Committee from 2012-2014.)
Shih Urges Titanium Industry to Consider Value of Needed ‘Resiliency Investments’ By Michael C. Gabriele
W
hile there are mounting concerns over the “brittle” global industrial supply chain, compounded by disruptions caused by the Covid-19 pandemic and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the time has come for American manufacturers to consider investing in resiliency. Willy C. Shih, the Robert & Jane Cizik Professor of Management Practice at Harvard Business School in Boston, interviewed in May, said it’s time for companies in the U.S. titanium industry and others to begin thinking 10 years ahead to change their investment strategies with an eye on long-term resiliency. Shih, who spent 28 years working in industrial product development and manufacturing, aired his views in a March 6 online article for Forbes magazine (“The Titanium Chain for the Aerospace Industry Goes Through Russia”). “While Russia is mostly an exporter of resources like oil, gas and metals, one market where it’s a dominant player is for titanium and titanium forgings,” he wrote. “Many people are waking up to the potential consequences of a longer-term stoppage in the flow of these critical materials. We long ago pointed out the loss of forging capacity in the United States for large metal parts as a critical deficiency,” referring to his 2012 book Producing Prosperity – Why America Needs a Manufacturing Renaissance. In the Forbes article, Shih expressed his concerns for the U.S. titanium industry, and recalled the shuttering of two major domestic titanium sponge production plants in 2016 and 2020. “These 34
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operations faced cost pressures from foreign competition, as well as suffered through the aerospace manufacturing downturn that came with the pandemic. The terrible situation in Ukraine and Russia will put a lot of pressure on titanium supply chains, and Boeing warned Willy C. Shih about this in January. With all the grim news coming from that part of the world, this vulnerability hasn’t received widespread attention outside of the industry—yet.” Declaring that he “loves titanium” and its superior properties for strength and corrosion resistance, Shih acknowledged that many business leaders realize the critical questions regarding strains in an over-extended global supply chain. “The question is: what do we do?” He answered the question by underlining his thoughts on strategic moves needed to invest in resiliency. This could involve establishing cooperative manufacturing consortia, which are narrowly focused to capitalize on process technology innovations (like additive manufacturing). “Boosting productivity is tied to the core capabilities embodied in people when it comes to manufacturing technology.” He suggested that the titanium industry should continue to focus on the scale-up of additive manufacturing spherical powders to compete for applications currently occupied by stainless steel and aluminum as one path to boost productivity.
Shih readily acknowledged that, when it comes to a dialogue on investing in resiliency, the sticking points are: who will pay for it, and how might it upend current best business practices? Investments in resiliency might mean keeping idle production capacity at the ready in order to guard against potential supply chain problems. “But Wall Street penalizes companies for idle capacity,” Shih said. Other established business philosophies, such as maintaining low inventory levels and just-in-time delivery from vendors, would also need to be reconsidered. The lessons from the turmoil caused by the global pandemic and the war in Eastern Europe are that “unpriced risks” and supply chain disruptions are no longer a vague concern in the distant future; rather, they’re highly likely, near-term threats that are becoming part of the annual business cycle. Weighing the benefits of “reshoring” some suppliers is a complex endeavor and would involve finding ways to spur demand from domestic vendors compared with lower-cost offshore companies. Global competition is stiff in North America, Asia and Europe for manufacturing sectors such as aerospace and automotive. Given this environment, Shih urged business leaders in the titanium industry to identify their respective vulnerabilities and address the issues the long-range “value of resiliency” in the years ahead. n
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Titanium Forging Process Ready to Embrace ‘Innovations Engineered for Era of Delivery’ By Michael C. Gabriele As the keynote speaker at the March 2022 AeroMat conference held in Pasadena, CA, Dr. Markus Heinimann, the vice president of technology and quality for the Engineered Structures group of Howmet Aerospace, described his observations on “Innovations Engineered for the Era of Delivery.” Interviewed in May, Heinimann underlined the challenges for this “Era of Delivery” in the near term for the aerospace industry, citing the many disruptions in the global supply chain and the ongoing efforts for airlines to recover from the severe business downturn from Covid-19. Despite these concerns, Heinimann expressed confidence that, for engineered structures such as titanium forgings, Howmet and other companies will continue to
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make steady progress jet deliveries down on manufacturing significantly. Many technology by business analysts, focusing on front-end including those quoted process management in TITANIUM TODAY’s and research and previous features, development investments anticipated that it would to reduce costs and take at least until the enhance production 2023/2024 time frame for reliability. the aerospace industry to In his keynote recover. address, Heinimann However, many noted that, as of this indications are that Dr. Markus Heinimann year, aerospace industry the commercial backlogs are close aerospace recovery has to pre-pandemic levels, but parts accelerated faster than expected, but of the industry supply chain are there’s possible turbulence lurking considerably weaker than 2019. It’s in the months ahead. The New no secret that the global commercial York Times, in its May 16 edition aerospace industry collapsed during reported that, while business travel the pandemic years of 2020 and is showing positive signs and gaining 2021, with revenues, air travel and altitude, “Russia’s war in Ukraine,
Titanium Forging Process Ready to Embrace ‘Innovations Engineered for Era of Delivery’ (continued)
China’s zero-Covid lockdown, and the unpredictable path of the pandemic all threaten to stifle a widespread return to 2019 levels from happening anytime soon.” “The collapse of the commercial aerospace industry (during the height of the pandemic) had a major impact on our company, but we managed to stay profitable,” Heinimann said. “Our biggest concern right now is to keep pace with the recovery. It’s not that easy.” He explained that, because aerospace manufacturing isn’t highly automated, it takes time to hire and train skilled workers on complex equipment like forging presses, machine tools and melt furnaces. The focus for process management and research and development in the months ahead will involve removing costs from manufacturing systems while further enhancing quality. Part of that effort involves designing and producing parts from next-generation titanium alloys to achieve greater strength as well as resistance to in-service oxidation and 38
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higher temperature. One example is Howmet’s “THOR©” alloy, unveiled in July 2018 (under the Arconic name plate). According to a company press release, the patented THOR© alloy achieves up to a 30-percent weight savings “compared with nickel-based superalloys for higher temperature applications in aero engines and adjacent structures— driving cost savings and fuel efficiency for customers. Howmet’s THOR© alloy offers three times superior oxidation resistance, which enables it to operate at service temperatures higher than any other conventional titanium alloy available on the market, according to Heinimann. The company has completed successful development projects with commercial aerospace and defense customers, including a U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory project with partners Boeing and Honeywell.” In order to keep pace and prepare for existing production programs and new near-term business
opportunities, Heinimann said that the company’s recent thrust for capital investment has been to upgrade existing forging equipment rather than purchase new equipment. Howmet operates 50,000-ton, 33,000-ton and 15,000-ton forging presses at its Cleveland facility. The upgrades involved rebuilding structural components, valves, designing precision tool and die sets, and installing new control systems, all with the emphasis on improving quality and consistency in the forging process. New generations of software simulation tools allows Howmet and other companies to completely simulate the manufacturing process as well as track costs. The state of the art during the next five years will be achieving incremental improvements that result in a more robust, reliable and uniform forging of titanium parts. Howmet melts ingots and produces its own titanium billets for its forging, extrusion and rolling mill operations. n
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From the Wire
6K ADDITIVE ANNOUNCES COMMERCIAL EXPANSION INTO EUROPE TO HELP MEET THE DEMAND FROM OEMS AND STRATEGIC ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING CUSTOMERS As the first step to the expansion, the company appoints industry veteran François Bonjour as European Sales Director NORTH ANDOVER, Mass., June 29, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- 6K Additive, a division of 6K, the leader in the production of sustainable advanced materials for additive manufacturing and energy storage, announced today it is expanding commercial operations into Europe and has named EU industry veteran François Bonjour as the European Sales Director. The new expansion will also support the increased interest in 6K Additive powders from strategic EU customers and AM system manufacturers. “Over the last two years, we’ve established 6K Additive in North America as the go-to organization for highquality AM powder with environmental and sustainable benefits that no other powder manufacturer can offer. We’re excited to bring our powders to the European market where a high value is placed on technologies that can contribute to the circular economy and meet their stringent quality metrics,” said Frank Roberts, president of 6K Additive. “Having a leader like François on the ground in Europe who has the experience, knowledge, and reputation will be invaluable as we ramp up our EU commercial efforts over the coming months. This is especially important given the interest we’ve seen from the printer OEMs and strategic customers based in Europe.” 6K Additive’s mission is to provide a solution for global decarbonization in producing performance additive manufacturing materials that are critical to production in markets such as aerospace, medical and industrial applications. The company recently released results from an LCA study conducted by Foresight Management comparing the environmental impact of 6K’s UniMelt® microwave plasma technology to current atomization technologies to produce metal powders. The results showed a 91% reduction in energy use and a 91.5% reduction in carbon emissions when using the 6K UniMelt process. The independent studies can be download here. François joins 6K Additive, having spent the last ten-plus years working in the metal powder and alloys markets
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with organizations such as Powder Alloy Corporation, Tekna Plasma System, and TIG, where he was responsible for sales and business development in Europe. Mr. Bonjour also spent eight years at ThyssenKrupp, where he worked with leading aerospace companies such as GE Aviation, Airbus, Safran, and others. 6K Additive is the world›s first producer of AM powder made from sustainable sources and offers a full suite of premium powder including nickel, titanium, copper, and refractory metals such as tungsten and rhenium. The proprietary UniMelt system is the world›s only microwave production-scale plasma system, with a highly uniform and precise plasma zone with zero contamination and high throughput production capabilities. Companies interested in working with 6K Additive regarding their specific powder requirements are urged to visit 6K Additive›s website 6KAdditive.com 6K press releases are available here: https://www.6kinc. com/about/news/ About 6K 6K was founded in North Andover, Massachusetts, with sustainability at its core. The company has developed the UniMelt® technology, a proprietary advanced microwave plasma production system, to transform engineered materials into revolutionary products that advance industries across additive manufacturing, renewable energy, aerospace, consumer electronics, and more. 6K represents 6,000 degrees, both the temperature of the operation of UniMelt® and the temperature of the sun›s surface. The 6K Energy division is focused on the production of low-cost, sustainable, and domestically produced battery material, accelerating the pace of battery production and adoption of electric vehicles. The 6K Additive division specializes in sustainably sourced AM metal powder production and reclamation, using a proprietary milling and cleaning process that ensures contamination-free, high-quality powders. For more information, visit www.6Kinc.com and follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter.
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From the Wire (continued)
STUDENTS FROM LEHIGH’S SUMMER ENGINEERING INSTITUTE TOUR SOLAR ATMOSPHERES Souderton, PA - On July 6, Solar Atmospheres hosted over 40 high school students enrolled in the Summer Engineering Institute (SEI) at Lehigh University. The SEI program, under the guidance of Director Dr. Laura Moyer, is a two-week residential program, running two sessions back to back. Students are nominated by faculty of local high schools, and the program specifically targets under-represented groups including girls, first-generation students, and students who might otherwise have limited opportunities to study in the fields of science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM). Solar Atmospheres provided a tour of the campus, exhibiting materials and processes for intriguing applications in a variety of markets. The students experienced a manufacturing setting encompassing related topics from their curriculum, gaining a better understanding of heat treating and manufacturing, and how cutting edge technology reshapes centuries-old processes. For additional information, contact Mike Moyer, Director of Sales, Solar Atmospheres at 215-721-1502 x1207, or mikem@solaratm.com, and visit www.solaratm.com.
TITANIUM PROCESSING CENTER (TPC), A WORLDWIDE LEADER IN TITANIUM DISTRIBUTION, IS THRILLED TO ANNOUNCE THE LAUNCH OF ITS NEW WEBSITE – WWW.TITANIUMPROCESSINGCENTER.COM TPC has been operating since 1999. Created with the user experience in mind, the site will make it easier for its customers to understand what products TPC has in stock and what type of services it offers. The site also has a link to the online store. “Our primary goal during the redesign was to create a more valuable, user-centric and responsive resource across all platforms and devices. Specifically, we wanted to focus on making it easier for our customers to learn and locate valuable information about our inventory and make it easier for our customers to communicate with us” stated the President of the Company, Denise Zielinski-Kakos. For any questions, suggestions, or comments please contact us at sales@titaniumprocessingcenter.com 42
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Panel mechanical pocket milling, drilling and trimming
ACB
Part production facility Nantes - France +33 (0)2 51 13 84 00
DUFIEUX
Part production facility Grenoble - France +33 (0)4 76 09 67 44
CYRIL BATH
Part production facility Monroe - NC USA +704 289 8531
sales@aries-manufacturing.com wwww.aries-manufacturing.com TITANIUMTODAY
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From the Wire (continued)
PERRYMAN EXPANDS MANUFACTURING CAPABILITIES BY ADDING TITANIUM FORGING OPERATIONS Houston, Pennsylvania, June 7, 2022 – Perryman Company announced today it will broaden its manufacturing capabilities through the installation of a highly automated 4,500 ton open die forge press and finishing facility. The forge press will allow Perryman to internally support its existing product portfolio and be capable of producing all titanium products in house. It will be located on the Perryman Melt Campus, California, PA.
to support this growth,” commented Frank Perryman, President, and Chief Executive Officer of Perryman Company. The facility will support Perryman customers in the aerospace, medical, military, and industrial markets.
The investment in a forging facility is consistent with Perryman’s long term strategic plan to support our customers through providing a complete and fully integrated supply of titanium products. With these expanded capabilities, the company will be able to meet customers’ needs for an expanded size range of products capable of meeting a broad spectrum of technical requirements.
Founded in 1988, Perryman Company is headquartered in Houston, Pennsylvania, with office locations in Philadelphia, Los Angeles, London, Zurich, Tokyo and Xi’an. Perryman is an integrated titanium producer from melting of ingot to finished products. The company’s product portfolio includes ingot, bar, coil, fine wire, net shapes, and hot rolled products. The Forge and Fabrication group offers medical device contract manufacturing in a range of materials including plastics and titanium. A titanium global leader, Perryman supplies and services customers in the aerospace, medical, consumer, industrial, recreation and infrastructure markets worldwide.
“The decision to invest at this time reflects the confidence we have in our markets. Demand for titanium aerospace turbine and structural materials is predicted to strengthen in the next 2-4 years and we will be ready
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TITANIUMTODAY
Construction will begin this July. The equipment is targeted to be installed and fully operational by the second quarter of 2024.
International Titanium Association
ITA Member Roster 2022 ITA Member
WebSite
6K
https://www.6kinc.com/
A. M. Castle
https://www.castlemetals.com/
Abkomet Accushape Inc.
https://www.accushapeinc.com/
ACNIS ® International
https://acnis-titanium.com/en/
Advanced Metal Industries CO (AMIC)
https://www.tasnee.com/en
ALD Vacuum Technologies, Inc
https://www.ald-vt.com/
All-Met Recycling
http://www.allmetrecycling.com/
Alpha Resources
https://www.alpharesources.com/
American Titanium Works LLC
https://www.linkedin.com/company/american-titanium-works-llc
Aries Manufacturing
https://www.aries-manufacturing.com/
ATI
https://www.atimetals.com/
ATX Co.,Ltd.
http://en.atx.kr/
Bahco
https://www.bahco.com/int_en/
Banner Industries
http://www.supraalloys.com/
Baoji Sino-Swiss Titanium Co.,Ltd
https://titan-bolts.com/contact-us/
Baoji Titanium Industry Co., Ltd
http://www.chinatitaniumalloy.net/
Bodycote
https://www.bodycote.com/
Butech Bliss
https://www.butechbliss.com/
Carpenter Technology Corporation
https://www.carpentertechnology.com/
Consarc Corporation
https://consarc.com/
Coogee Titanium PTY LTD
https://www.coogeetitanium.com.au/
Dr. Markus Holz, Academic Member Duferco SA
https://www.duferco.com/
ELG Utica Alloys, Inc.
http://www.elguticaalloys.com/
Epoch Wire
https://www.epochwires.com/
Fort Wayne Metals
https://www.fwmetals.com/
FRIGGI N.A. Inc.
https://friggiamerica.com/
GfE Metalle und Materialien GmbH
https://www.gfe.com/home
Grandis Titanium
https://www.grandis.com/
Greystone Alloys, LLC
https://www.greystonealloys.com
Hempel Special Metals AG
https://www.hempel-metals.com/en/
HETRAN-B
https://www.hetranb.com/
HORIE Corporation
https://www.horieusa.com/
Howmet Aerospace
https://www.howmet.com/
ICD Alloys & Metals, LLC
https://icdalloys.com/
www.TitaniumResourceCenter.org 46
TITANIUMTODAY
ITA Member Roster 2022 ITA Member
WebSite
Independent Forgings & Alloys Ltd
https://independentforgings.com/
Industrial Metals International Ltd.
https://indmetal.com/
IperionX Limited (formerly Hyperion Metals)
https://iperionx.com/
KASTO Inc.
https://www.kasto.com/en/home-us.html
Keywell Metals LLC
https://keywell.com/
KineTic Engineering Kings Mountain International (KMI)
https://kmiinc.net/
Kymera International
https://www.kymerainternational.com/?locale=en
Laboratory Testing Inc.
https://labtesting.com/
Lomon Billions
https://www.lomonbillions.global/
M3 Metals
http://m3metals.com/
Medart Processing Technologies
https://www.medartglobal.com/
Mega Metals LLC
http://www.megamtls.com/
Metals & Alloys UK
https://www.metalsandalloys.co.uk/
MetCon Technologies, LLC
https://www.metconllc.net/
Metraco, FE Mottram and Eesti Titaan oü
https://metraco.be/
Michelle Pharand, Individual Member Monico Alloys, Inc.
http://www.monicoalloys.com
Neotiss
https://www.neotiss.com/
North American Alloys
https://north-american-alloys.webflow.io/
NSL Analytical
https://www.nslanalytical.com
Nu-Tech Precision Metals
https://nutechpm.com/
Oerlikon Metco (Canada) Inc.
https://www.oerlikon.com/metco/en/
Osaka Titanium technologies CO., Ltd.
https://www.osaka-ti.co.jp/e/
Perryman Company
https://www.perrymanco.com/
Plymouth Engineered Shapes
https://www.plymouth.com
President Titanium Co., Inc.
https://www.presidenttitanium.com/
Product Evaluations Systems, Inc (PES)
https://www.pes-testing.com/
Quantum Design Inc.
https://www.centrometalcut.com/
Retech Systems LLC
https://www.retechsystemsllc.com/
Rex Heat Treat
https://www.rexht.com/
Rolled Alloys Inc
https://www.rolledalloys.com/
Ross Precision Manufacturing
https://rossprecisionmfg.com/
S+D Metals / Bibus Metals
https://www.sd-metals.com/
Sandvik Materials Technology Product Unit
https://www.materials.sandvik/en/
www.TitaniumResourceCenter.org TITANIUMTODAY
47
ITA Member Roster 2022 ITA Member
WebSite
Service Steel Aerospace
https://www.ssa-corp.com/en/
Shasta Services LLC
https://www.shastainc.com/
Simonds Saw LLC
https://simondssaw.com/
Solar Atmospheres
https://solaratm.com/
Specialty Metals Company Specialty Metals Processing Company
https://www.specialtymetalspro.com/
Sumitomo Corporation of Americas (SCOA)
https://www.sumitomocorp.com
Timesavers International B.V.
https://www.timesaversint.com/
TIMET, Titanium Metals Corporation
https://www.timet.com/
TITAN Metal Fabricators, Inc.
https://www.titanmf.com/
Titanium Engineering
https://www.titaniumengineers.com/
Titanium Fabrication Corporation
https://www.tifab.com/
Titanium Finishing Company
https://www.titaniumfinishing.com/
Titanium Industries, Incorporated
https://titanium.com/
Titanium International Group SRL
https://www.titanium.it/
Titanium Processing Center
https://www.titaniumprocessingcenter.com/
Toho Titanium America Co., Ltd.
https://www.toho-titanium.co.jp
Tricor Metals
https://tricormetals.com/
TSI Titanium
https://tsititanium.com/
Ulbrich Stainless Steels & Special Metals
https://www.ulbrich.com/
United Alloys & Metals Inc
https://uametals.com/
United Performance Metals (UPMET)
https://www.upmet.com/
United Titanium
https://www.unitedtitanium.com/
Uniti Titanium
http://www.uniti-titanium.com
US Vanadium
https://usvanadium.com/
VSMPO AVISMA
https://www.vsmpo.ru/en/
Weber Metals Inc.
https://webermetals.com/
Weldaloy Specialty Forgings
https://weldaloy.com/
Westbrook Light Alloys Ltd
https://www.wbrl.co.uk/
Xi’an Metals & Minerals Import & Export
http://www.xianminmetal.com/
For complete company profiles, products and services, visit
www.TitaniumResourceCenter.org
Advertiser Index
Company Titanium Industries, Incorporated
Pg 2
https://titanium.com/
ITA Conference Ad
3
Ulbrich Stainless Steels & Special Metals
5
http://www.TitaniumUSA.org
https://www.ulbrich.com/
United Performance Metals (UPMET)
https://weldaloy.com/
9
Company
Pg
Rolled Alloys Inc
19
Kymera International
35
Tricor Metals
21
Laboratory Testing Inc.
37
ALD Vacuum Technologies, Inc
39
Alpha Resources
41
Aries Manufacturing
43
Edge International
45
Butech Bliss
50
https://www.rolledalloys.com/
https://tricormetals.com/
Titanium Finishing Company
23
Quantum Design Inc.
25
Retech Systems LLC
27
Product Evaluations Systems, Inc (PES)
29
https://www.titaniumfinishing.com/
https://www.retechsystemsllc.com/
13
https://www.pes-testing.com/
TIMET, Titanium Metals Corporation
15
Solar Atmospheres
17
Perryman Company
https://www.perrymanco.com/
https://www.timet.com/
https://solaratm.com/
Pg
https://www.centrometalcut.com/
https://www.upmet.com/
Weldaloy Specialty Forgings
Company
North American Alloys
https://north-american-alloys.webflow.io/
31 33
https://www.kymerainternational. com/?locale=en
https://labtesting.com/
https://www.ald-vt.com/
https://www.alpharesources.com/
https://www.aries-manufacturing.com/
https://www.edgeintl.com/
https://www.butechbliss.com/
TITANIUMTODAY
49
Butech Bliss delivers excellence in melting equipment repairs That’s why when it comes to the design and manufacture or the repair and reconditioning of crucibles, molds, and hearths for your ESR, VAR, EBM, or PAM installations, we draw on our more than 130 years of design, engineering and manufacturing excellence to ensure that your copper-based melting equipment is operating at peak efficiency.
A reputation for quality work and on-time delivery. Our staff of expert millwrights, welders and machinists can tear down, assess, repair and test your valuable melting equipment. Additionally, our manufacturing capabilities are fully supported by our staff of over 50+ engineers. Our services include: • Machining, welding, straightening, and sizing of stainless steel, copper, nickel, aluminum, bronze, and carbon steel • Preventative maintenance, including cleaning, re-sizing, straightening and seal replacement • Crucible diameter and size modifications • New crucibles, molds, base assemblies, water jackets, etc. To learn more about our rebuilding and manufacturing services,call (330) 337-0000, visit www.ButechBliss.com or email cu@butech.com.
We Build Things. Better. 550 South Ellsworth Avenue, Salem, OH