Own & Operate
Own & Operate - Vacuum Heat Treatment at First Hand
Plant Engineering and Service – a synenergistic production combination
The “New Technology” developed by ALD Vacuum Technologies GmbH in the early 1990’s for vacuum carburizing and high pressure gas quenching of casehardening steels was first used in the automobile industry and its sub-suppliers.
Soon it became evident that this technology was not easily accepted despite its advantages compared to conventional atmospheric processes.
A major problem for the industry’s experienced specialists were the physical conditions of the “New Technology” and the fact that some of the mechanisms were mounted differently.
Therefore, ALD decided to offer particular services to heat treat parts using these processes, in addition to selling plants.
At first, this was especially welcomed by well-known manufacturers in the field of diesel injection systems, which rapidly led to first installations.
ALD turned their original considerations in view of service into a strategy which is now called “Own & Operate”.
In addition to the conventional sale of plants, this strategy aims at heat treating parts for the customer in selected projects, using processes developed by ALD.
Therefore, the customer benefits directly from the know-how in view of process technology, thus leading to improved productivity, better products and reduced costs.
Also, the Own & Operate customer overcomes his inhibitions to introduce a new process technology and at the same time avoids the needed investment in their own facility.
The operating companies of ALD Own & Operate GmbH and ALD Vacuum Technologies GmbH benefit from this symbiosis, where the demands for process optimization and plant improvement are conveyed from the workshop to the parent company, leading to continuous further development of technologies.
The Own & Operate companies benefit from this “closed loop” relationship while ALD Vacuum Technologies GmbH always receives first-hand information about the market’s demands, thus maintaining the technological advantage.
ALD Own & Operate – a new commercial heat treater?
Of course, an Own & Operate company could be regarded as a commercial heat treater. Surely, companies do exist in the field of commercial heat treatment who specialized in various processes and provide their customers with these services.
Generally, conventional commercial heat treaters have a heterogeneous and large customer potential. This is not where ALD Own & Operate GmbH’s strategy sets in. Primarily, our interest lies in the process development to offer special solutions to a customer whose production volume holds adequate potential.
In addition to selling plants to the customer we also offer service jobs, always in conjunction with our process technologies, using our furnace systems. Own & Operate’s strategy also aims at products in the beginning of their life cycle and show potential for growth.
Therefore, in our opinion, the following basic requirements must be met in order for us to provide a successful Own & Operate installation:
- applicability of our process technologies to treat the customer’s parts
- advantages for the customer, such as quality improvement, cost reduction etc. by the use of ALD’s process technologies
- adequate production volume and growth potential which justify the installation of a (generally) new workshop for a certain customer
- medium- and long-term contractual agreements to heat treat the customer´s parts
If advantages arise for both parties – our customers and ALD Own & Operate (win-win-situation) - nothing stands in the way of a respective cooperation. ALD Own & Operate plans the project, makes the investment and if necessary, builds a new factory where the heat treatment jobs for the customer can be carried out.
It goes without saying that such a factory, once it is built, will also open their doors to other customers, provided their parts can be heat treated using the installed plants and processes.
What does ALD Own & Operate offering today?
After ALD had established the strategic approach by the late 1990’s, the first plant started to operate in 1999. Meanwhile, ALD Own & Operate GmbH operates in 4 locations in Germany, the United States and Mexico. The expansion of these sites is continuously pursued by concluding additional large contracts as well as expanding to other countries and regions.
VACUHEAT GmbH – the first center in Germany
In 1999, the first project in Limbach-Oberfrohna (Chemnitz), Germany was put into operation. VACUHEAT GmbH was established along with the Heat Group. Today, it is a 100 % subsidiary of ALD Own & Operate GmbH. There, primarily components for fuel injection systems are heat treated for our customers. In the meantime, however, other processes have also been established there, especially high temperature brazing of heat exchangers.
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1. Production facility Vacuheat - Limbach, 2. Production facility Columbia, 3. Production facility Port Huron, 4. Production facility Ramos Arizpe | |||||||||
ALD Thermal Treatment USA and Mexico
ALD Thermal Treatment USA with its head office in Columbia operates in 2 locations.
The plant in Columbia, South Carolina, was founded in 2001 as the first subsidiary in the USA. There, especially parts for fuel injection systems are heat treated for the American market. However, also users from the aviation industry and special transmission manufacturing are part of the client base.
In 2005 the plant in Port Huron, Michigan, began to operate. That installation was based on a long-term supply contract signed with GM Powertrain for the heat treatment of parts for new 6-speed automatic transmissions.
The highly developed ALD technology to quench parts in gas flow and therefore reduce distortion had a positive effect on the signing of this contract.
As a follow-up project to the order from GM Powertrain which was awarded to Port Huron, an additional plant was established in Ramos Arizpe, Mexico, which started production in 2008. ALD heat treats various modern 6-speed automatic transmissions for GM.
ALD Own & Operate – service and competence in new technology
ALD Own & Operate is the leading heat treatment specialist for vacuum carburizing and high pressure gas quenching, world-wide. By the year 2009, the following number of plants will be installed in the above mentioned sites:
- 10 DualTherm plants
- 12 ModulTherm plants with 65 treatment chambers
- 2 continuous plants for plasma carburizing
- vacuum brazing furnace
These plants offer process potential for heat treatment, vacuum and high pressure gas quenching of case hardening steels, low-alloyed steels, high-alloyed tool steels as well as for brazing processes.