Automation within forges and heat-treating facilities often consists of individually controlled processes for individual pieces of equipment, such as furnace heating or press operation cycles. Individual processes can be controlled at a Level I protocol. Full cell automation consolidates these automated steps and implements a central Level II control system, which is designed using a combination of Windows services and model-view-controller (MVC) architecture.

In the hot and warm forging of steel, there is a clear trend to replace graphite-based die lubricants with synthetic lubricants. This is driven by the need for cleaner work environments, easier handling and to avoid graphite-induced galvanic corrosion of equipment.

Understanding the different hardness testing types and systems can be useful to determine an optimal solution. Hardness testing functionality has evolved, and now users can dial into world-class-caliber instrumentation that more closely aligns with their applications at hand.

Ovako Steel’s 2018 investment in a vacuum tank degassing (VTD) facility is a critical development for the Smedjebacken mill. Removal of hydrogen by a state-of-the-art vacuum process now enables Ovako to address the needs of forgers that require high-performance, reliable and cost-effective steel for demanding applications such as those in the automotive industry.

In today’s rapidly changing environment, finding the right marketing message and taking the correct actions can be challenging. As a result of the pandemic, the world looks much different than it did at the beginning of 2020. Manufacturers are trying to mitigate COVID-19’s economic fallout, ensure employee and workplace safety and keep supply chains moving.

This is a complete list of all the feature articles that appeared in FORGE, by month, in 2020. All articles are hyperlinked for your convenience.

Norton Winter AEON electroplated grinding wheels are designed for high-precision applications in the automotive, medical and aerospace markets.

Nucor Steel has an extensive special bar quality (SBQ) steel program that dates back to the conversion of its plants in South Carolina, Tennessee and Nebraska to handle the product decades ago. In 2002, the company purchased an idled plant in Tennessee that was dedicated to SBQ production.

The carbonitriding of fasteners is of critical importance to their functionality and one of the most common case-hardening heat treatments. Studying how the process works in this application will shed a great deal of light on all carbonitriding processes.

If you’re at all like me, you wonder which articles get the most attention on our website. Every year we publish around 25 feature articles, and at the end of the year we gather statistics to see which ones get the most page views. So, without further ado, here are the five most-viewed articles on www.forgemag.com based on page views. This ranking applies only to articles published in 2020.