On Feb. 8, 2019, Arconic Inc. announced its decision to split itself into two separate companies: Engineered Products & Forgings and Global Rolled Products (GRP). The two businesses will focus on, respectively, the production of finished parts and the production of sheet. The company says it is considering the sale of operations and assets that do not fit its new organizational model. Also, it has reduced its dividend from $.06/share to $.02/share.

Derek Stake is the forge manager at Mid-West Forge Corporation of Cleveland, Ohio.

Direct metal deposition (DMD) is a powder jet additive-manufacturing (AM) technique that can be used for low-cost build, repair, hardfacing and reconfiguration of forging dies.

Are we starting to see the signs of an “extinction-level event” as future vehicle innovation accelerates?

Additive manufacturing (AM) has become a specific topic of interest in the general manufacturing community due to its novelty and projected abilities for ground-up automation.

Onex Inc. of Erie, Pa., designed and manufactured a front-loading forge furnace for a leading North American forging company. The furnace, one of the largest of its kind in North America according to Onex, has workspace dimensions measuring 26 feet wide x 20 feet deep x 14 feet tall. It features an engineered lintel system that provides a longer life than traditional refractory lintels. The furnace also has a combination module roof, which is less costly than a full polycrystalline lining and does not shrink like traditional ceramic-fiber containing zirconia.

To stay competitive, forgers must continuously integrate advanced manufacturing technologies into their production. Long gone are the days when forging was simply a means of shaping metal.

The forging industry has achieved an impressive place in the North American industrial economy by producing components with unique benefits that are difficult to duplicate by any other metalworking process.

Lefere Forge of Jackson, Mich., will be closing on or about Dec. 1 after 89 years in business. The family-operated company is ending operations due to financial and labor issues. Lefere Forge’s website has been deactivated, but according to local reporting the company sent out an email on Nov. 1 to its customers stating that “…the last several years have been challenging financially, and a continuing labor shortage has not allowed us to operate the plant efficiently.” Approximately 60 employees will be displaced.

SECO/WARWICK will supply a multipurpose sealed quench-chamber furnace to Kuznia Sulkowicie SA, a Polish manufacturer of matrix forgings, construction connectors and manual tools. The furnace is designed for heat treatment (such as gas carbonitriding and pure hardening) in a controlled endothermic atmosphere. The fully automated operation of the furnace is its unique advantage. Personnel are only required to load and unload the work after treatment. The cycle and product transfer is completely automated.