SECO/VACUUM News

SECO/VACUUM Awarded Vacuum Furnace Contract for Nuclear Energy Applications

On the eve of its 6th decade in business, SECO/WARWICK Group’s three American divisions are proud to have participated in delivering technologies that support emerging energy markets, keeping North America’s lights on and its utilities humming.

The latest contract to a leading energy firm is just the most recent of the Group’s combined experience supporting the metallurgical needs of the nuclear power industry and related sciences.

The Vector 6VP-9912 horizontal-loading furnace has a workload size of 36” x 36” x 48” deep and a 3,300-lb capacity, and is designed with a 6-bar high-pressure gas quench and all-metal hot zone, allowing for rapid quenching and deep vacuum heat treating applications.

Experience Wins Out for Manufacturer of Nuclear Energy Components

The customer has existing in-house heat treating but is looking to upgrade their capabilities with vacuum furnace technologies. This will be their first furnace from SECO/VACUUM. SECO/VACUUM was awarded the contract due to their proven expertise in nuclear applications and in manufacturing furnace systems that meet the customer’s strict processing requirements.

“Our pitch was built on experience the others didn’t have, and when it has to be reviewed for approval by the DOE, I think that experience will certainly work in their favor”, said Piotr Zawistowski, SECO/VACUUM Managing Director.

It Runs In The Family

SECO/VACUUM also recently completed the largest of their contributions to nuclear energy research to date, a heat-treat furnace for General Atomics’ contribution to the superconducting central solenoid magnet for the ITER fusion reactor.

Retech Systems LLC’s Plasma Arc Centrifugal Treatment (PACT) furnace supports waste vitrification for the reclamation of low-level nuclear waste. Retech has also worked with customers producing alloys optimized for radiation shielding and nuclear reaction moderation.

SECO/WARWICK supplied the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology a custom 12-meter vertical rotary retort furnace for heat-treating gyrotron parts as their contribution to the ITER experimental fusion reactor.

Whether it is vacuum heat treating, atmospheric heat treating, or melting -- collaborating on nuclear medicine, atomic energy, or radioactive waste reclamation, applications is second nature for SECO/WARWICK Group companies. Each of their divisions has demonstrated expertise in supporting customers in a variety of nuclear science-related fields.