At the FIERF 32^nd Technical Conference held last September in Long Beach, Calif., Weber Metals’ Justin Owen made a presentation about the process by which OTTO FUCHS (OF)/Weber Metals made the decision to invest $180 million in what they say is North America’s largest forging press. This became the largest single investment decision in company history.

Israel’s Bet Shemesh Engines Ltd. announced an agreement with Pratt & Whitney, a division of United Technologies Corp., to buy all the shares of Pratt &Whitney’s Carmel Forge for $58.5 million. Carmel Forge manufactures parts for aviation jet engines. As part of the deal, Carmel Forge has signed a long-term agreement, valued at $360 million over 10 years, for the production of forged metal-alloy components to be used in Pratt &Whitney’s new engine manufacturing projects.

Mettis Aerospace, Worcestershire, U.K., has been awarded a contract to supply steel alloy precision-forged components to Boeing’s first European factory in Sheffield, U.K. Boeing’s new facility will produce 7,000 actuation system components each month for the 737 and 777 passenger jets, which will be shipped for assembly in Boeing’s Portland, Ore., plant.

Arconic introduced an advanced titanium alloy called ARCONIC-THOR that is designed for higher-temperature applications in next-generation aero engines and adjacent structures. The new patented alloy is nearly 50% lighter than incumbent nickel-based superalloys, driving cost savings and fuel efficiency for customers and helping Arconic capture growing demand for advanced aero engine and airframe materials. ARCONIC-THOR can be produced as sheet, plate, foil, billet, rolled rings, forgings and extrusions. It is formable (cold, hot, superplastic), heat treatable, forgeable and weldable.

Bodycote signed a 15-year contract with Rolls-Royce’s Civil Aerospace business. Bodycote will provide thermal-processing services including specialized vacuum heat treatment and hot isostatic pressing (HIP) to support Rolls-Royce’s turbine blade casting facilities in Derby and Rotherham, U.K. The contract will be worth over $213 million in incremental revenues over the life of the agreement, and sales will ramp up over the next five years.

Allegheny Technologies Inc. announced that its board of directors approved an investment to expand its isothermal forging and heat-treating capacities to satisfy growing demand from the aerospace market. This self-funded, multiyear expansion of approximately $95 million represents ATI’s fourth isothermal press, which will be located at the company’s forging center of excellence in Cudahy, Wis. The associated heat-treating expansion will also be in Cudahy.

Bodycote entered into a long-term agreement with Safran, a Tier-1 supplier of systems and equipment in the aerospace market. Under the agreement, Bodycote will provide manufacturing services including heat treatment, hot isostatic pressing (HIP), electron-beam welding and thermal spray coatings to Safran companies and their strategic first-tier suppliers. Bodycote’s global network will support the agreement, operating initially from facilities in France and Belgium.

Arconic announced a multi-year cooperative research agreement with Airbus to advance metal 3D printing for aircraft manufacturing. The companies will develop customized processes and parameters to produce and qualify large, structural 3D-printed components, such as pylon spars and rib structures, up to approximately 3 feet in length. The deal combines Arconic’s expertise in metal additive manufacturing and metallurgy with Airbus’ design and qualification capabilities.

Allegheny Technologies Inc. (ATI) and Pratt & Whitney (P&W), a United Technologies Corporation company, entered into a long-term purchase agreement (LTPA) in which ATI will supply isothermal forgings and nickel-based powder alloys for P&W's next-generation jet engines.