Rising energy prices and growing OEM pressure on delivery times have put many automotive suppliers under double pressure: cut costs and ship faster. One US auto parts factory discovered that its biggest hidden drain on both energy and takt time was the old box-type heat treatment furnace sitting between machining and final inspection.

Pain points: expensive kilowatt-hours and an unbalanced line

The legacy furnace was causing two major issues:

• High energy consumption per finished component
  Outdated insulation, non-optimized heating elements and long warm-up times drove up gas or electricity usage. Even at partial loads, the furnace consumed nearly the same amount of power.

• Slow, batch-based operation that disrupted line flow
  While upstream machining and downstream washing/inspection had been automated, the heat treatment furnace still operated in large, slow batches. Parts waited in queues, WIP grew and overall line takt time was limited by the furnace cycle.

Custom 580kW Tube Type Heat Treatment Furnace: designed for takt and efficiency

To address both cost and throughput, the plant implemented a 580kW Custom Heat Treatment Furnace based on a tube type design:

• Continuous or semi-continuous loading allowed the furnace to run closer to the natural takt time of the machining cells.

• Optimized refractory and insulation package reduced heat losses and improved the effective use of the 580kW installed power.

• Recipe-based control enabled quick adjustments between part families without repeated manual tuning.

The furnace’s 1100°C capacity gave the company headroom for more demanding processes without overtaxing the system or prolonging cycles.

Results: lower cost per part and a faster, smoother line

After integrating the Custom Heat Treatment Furnace into the line, the factory reported:

• Reduced energy cost per good part, thanks to better insulation, shorter idle time and more efficient heating cycles.

• Improved takt time and less WIP, as heat treatment no longer forced large, slow batches; parts move more continuously through the line.

• Better use of labor, with operators focusing on monitoring and quality instead of manual loading and troubleshooting.

For this US auto parts factory, a 580kW, 1100°C Custom Heat Treatment Furnace became a strategic tool: not just a replacement furnace, but a key enabler for a leaner, more energy-efficient production line.