Polymet’s Solutions for the Lumber Industry

Polymet’s hardfacing wires for the lumber industry have been engineered with one purpose in mind: efficiency. Polymet’s 100% dense, solid POLYSTEL product line utilizes the proprietary hot extrusion process to produce continuous spools of wire suitable for automated gas tungsten arc welding and plasma welding processes. This spooled POLYSTEL wire enables the customer to set up and automate the welding process. Welding automation has advantages such as reduced downtime due to switching out rod, diminished excess labor, and minimized waste of the valuable cobalt based consumable. Polymet also manufacturers small diameter POLYSTEL wire for TIG welding on ultra-thin kerf blades. This results in a more precise weld, eliminating the possibility of excess heat on the blade that causes warping.

Welding POLYSTEL wire onto saw blade applications improves surface finishes and permits significantly longer operational times.  For example, by tipping band saw blade teeth with POLYSTEL 12, the period in which the saw blade isoperation is extended considerably due to an increase in efficiency and dependability of the saw blade.

Our high quality POLYSTEL wire optimizes manufacturing capabilities and application performance. This is critical in an industry where constant attention is focused on wood waste reduction.  The lumber industry works with a valuable natural resource that must be sustained properly.

Typical Lumber Applications 

• Band saw blades
• Circular saw blades
• Frame/gang saw blades
• Ultra-thin kerf saw blades

POLYSTEL products demonstrate the necessary hardness characteristics and wear resistance properties to be used in lumber applications. Saw teeth that are tipped with POLYSTEL can endure shocks triggered by knots, nails, machine jams etc.  A durable and more reliable saw results in better productivity and less material waste.

Product Forms 

Polymet’s rapidly growing POLYSTEL product line supplies most of the hardfacing demands of the lumber industry. The POLYSTEL products are cobalt based alloys with a high chromium and tungsten percentage. They are available in continuous cast rod (3.2mm and up), extruded rod (0.9mm and up), and extruded spooled wire (0.9mm – 2.0mm). Please see the product offers for this industry. 

Hardfacing Wire Manufacturer Polymet Corporation to Expand its Capacity and Create New Jobs

Polymet begins work on several capital projects aimed at expanding its capacity to roll and draw specialty wire and adding jobs

Polymet Corporation, a leading producer of hardfacing wire, welding wire and thermal spray wire, has approved plans and began work to significantly increase its specialty wire rolling and drawing capacity.  Currently Polymet uses very specialized rolling and drawing techniques to produce high quality wire used in applications like aerospace and industrial gas turbines, nuclear power plants and sulfuric acid plants.  Polymet’s proprietary cleaning techniques and specialty processing have been incorporated into the specifications of many gas turbine and nuclear applications as the standard by which products are measured against.

Polymet’s plan to increase its capacity will enable the company to keep up with growing demand from current customers as well as seek out new business from companies in need of high quality wire solutions.

Capital Project Plans Include

• A new state of the art strand annealer

• A new rolling and drawing mill

• Upgraded pay-offs and take-ups for intermittent processing steps

Full implementation of the expansion is expected to be completed over the next 12 months, with parts of the plan falling into place as soon as the end of the year.  Polymet expects these investments to more than double their rolling and drawing capacity as well as the number of people employed in this area of their business.

“For years we have serviced a core group of very demanding customers with our unique attention to detail and ability to roll and draw hard to work alloys in ways that make our wire quality second to none.  We are very excited to be in a position to expand this area of our business and focus effort on offering our services to a wider range of customers.  We are very proud to be able to increase manufacturing capacity, spend money and add jobs here in the States in today’s global manufacturing environment.  Once in place our new capacity will enable us to offer better lead times to existing customers and attract new business opportunities.  It is very exciting.” – says Danny Newman, Hardfacing & Welding Wire sales manager at Polymet.

Polymet’s Solutions for the Valve Industry

Polymet’s industrial line of hardfacing and welding wire is utilized heavily in the valve industry. Hardfacing material is applied to the contact surfaces and moving areas of the valve to provide wear resistance and corrosion resistance. Our wire is used to hardface valves in markets such as nuclear power, oil & gas, chemical, mining, and refining.

Valve components are hardfaced with Polymet’s POLYSTEL wire. This cobalt-based material is hot extruded to produce rod and small diameter wire. The rod is used for Tungsten Inert Gas welding operations while the small diameter wire is typically spooled, suitable for automated and robotic welding. Automation has significant consumable advantages over traditional methods, allowing reduced downtime due to switching out material, diminished excess labor, and minimized waste of the valuable cobalt-based material.  The rod POLYSTEL material may also be coated and is then used for Shielded Metal Arc Welding processes.

Polymet’s POLYSTEL wire is primarily applied as an overlay for carbon steel, stainless steel, and nickel-based alloys.  For example, valve seats and plugs can be hardfaced with POLYSTEL 6, a cobalt-based material with nominal composition of Co (Bal), Cr (27), Cr (4), and C (1) that will produce a wear and corrosion resistant coating extending the life of the application. Many valves that involve high pressure, high temperature steam require alloys such as POLYSTEL to withstand their harsh operating environment.

Typical valve applications 

• Plugs
• Gates
• Seats
• Stems

There are various types of valves that consist of multiple components that can require hardfacing.  The most common are ball valves, gate valves, butterfly valves, and diaphragm valves.  The POLYSTEL products demonstrate the necessary hardness characteristics and wear resistance properties to be used in valve applications. Resistance to high temperatures is also a critical property of these hardfacing alloys.

Product forms 

Polymet’s rapidly growing POLYSTEL product line supplies most of the hardfacing demands of the valve industry. POLYSTEL products are ideal for adhesive wear, contact fatigue, corroision, and erosion. Their strength and ability to withstand these wear factors make POLYSTEL one of the most exceptional hardfacing consumables on the market. They are available in continuous cast rod (3.2mm and up), extruded rod (0.9mm and up), and extruded spooled wire (0.9mm – 2.0mm). Please see the product offers for this industry.

Importance of Cast & Helix: Wire Feeding Tips

The cast and helix are two physical properties that are extremely important when evaluating wire for MIG welding and thermal spraying.  These two properties affect the wire’s feedability, as well as weld accuracy, arc wander, consumable life, and contact current pickup.

Polymet prides itself on delivering wire that has excellent cast and helix that always meet specifications.  This allows weld operators and thermal spray operators to work more efficiently with minimal downtime.  Exceptional cast and helix also extend equipment life, minimizing expenses for operators.

Check out our video below to find out more about cast and helix and how it impacts processing.

Hardfacing with Tungsten Carbide for Wear Resistance

Hardfacing is a welding process of build-up deposits of alloys to resist corrosion, abrasion, high temperature, or impact.  Hardfacing increases a part’s service life and can thus directly affect machinery efficiency and reduce the amount of equipment that is scrapped.  When addressing wear resistance needs, high-deposit hardness material does not always provide the best overall wear resistance.  Rather, when choosing a hardfacing alloy for wear resistance, the presence of carbides must be considered in addition to hardness properties.

Alloys that are typically used for hardfacing include iron-base alloys, cobalt-base alloys, nickel-base alloys, and tungsten carbides.  Tungsten carbide is one of the most superior metal-to-earth abrasion resistant hardfacing materials.  When compared to a chromium carbide overlay, a machine part hardfaced with tungsten carbide can experience a 3 to 5 time increase in service performance.

Polymet offers two tungsten carbide wires, POLYTUNG NiBWC, with a Ni-B-Si-matrix, and POLYTUNG NiCrBWC, with a Ni-Cr-B-Si-matrix.  The matrix is responsible for roughly 35-40% of the deposit alloy while the tungsten carbide consists of the remaining 60% of the deposit alloy.  Both of these alloys have a macro crystalline carbide structure.  Some of the applications that are hardfaced using Polymet’s POLYTUNG wires are dredge cutter heads & teeth, ID elbows & pipes, oil tool bits, and bucket teeth.  Hardfacing with tungsten carbide materials can be applied to industries such as mining, oil & gas, and construction.

Farnborough Air Show Recap: Pictures & Video

Last month we had the pleasure of attending the Farnborough International Air Show in Hampshire, England.  It is the world’s most iconic aviation event and one of the most important exhibition in the aerospace industry.  We were very happy that we had a chance to be there.

For those who are not familiar with Farnborough – it is the largest, truly global event of its kind, boasting a platform of more than 1,400 exhibitors from the aerospace, defense, space, and security sectors.  The show is designed to enable unparalleled opportunities to meet, negotiate, and announce business transactions.  For five days, exhibitors showcase and demonstrate aircraft equipment and the latest aerospace technologies.

  

Some of the Farnborough Highlights

• This year air show had $72 billion of confirmed orders and commitments by airlines, leasing companies and manufacturers
• The event attracted just over 107,000 trade visitors and over 1500 exhibitors
•  The 787 Dreamliner was featured during the show with a flying display in Qatar Airways colors
• Airbus’s A380, the largest passenger plane, was displaied in Malaysian Airlines colors at Farnborough
• Richard Branson, Virgin founder, chose the show to debut the Virgin Galactic SpaceShipTow designed for space tourism

 

Check out the video below where Pete Humphries, Marketing & Sales Specialist of Polymet Corporation, shares his experience at the Farnborough Air Show.

Source: http://farnborough.com/airshow-2012

Polymet Streamlines Industrial Product Line

Polymet Corporation, a Cincinnati-based manufacturer of hardfacing, welding, and thermal spray wire, has announced its finalization on streamlining their rapidly growing product line of Industrial Hardfacing & Welding Wire.  This product line targets markets such as the lumber, valve, petrochemical, and mining industries.

To better serve their customers’ needs and requirements with a more focalized approach, Polymet has scaled back on its product offerings.  Danny Newman, Sales Manager for Hardfacing & Welding, has been at the forefront of the product line’s restructuring.  “Since our inception, we [Polymet] have been a company that serves very precise, niche markets and their customer’s needs,” Danny states.  “This allows us to provide excellent quality, efficiency, and customer service.  We wanted to take that same approach and apply it to this product line.”

Nickel and cobalt-based alloys now comprise the product line that was once filled with mostly iron-based materials.  Polymet’s two main nickel-based products are the POLYWEAR (equivalent to COLMONOY®) and POLYTUNG (equivalent to DURMAT®) alloys.  Typical applications for these materials are dredge cutters, elbows & pipes, and loader bucket teeth.  Representing the cobalt-based alloys are the POLYSTEL (equivalent to STELLITE®) alloys.  These alloys have been at the pinnacle of the industrial product line’s advancement and growth.  Typical applications include valve seats, saw blade tipping, and extrusion screws.

Polymet’s revitalized product line carries materials such as POLYSTEL 6 (STELLITE® 6), POLYSTEL 12 (STELLITE® 12), and POLYSTEL 21 (STELLITE® 21).  They also offer custom alloy development services to meet customers’ unique needs and application demands.  Alloys with special compositions can be manufactured in small batches with short lead times.

STELLITE ® is a registered trademark of Kennametal Stellite

DURMAT ® is a registered trademark of Durmat Inc

COLMONOY ® is a registered trademark of Wall Colmonoy Corporation

Polymet is a Part of Ohio’s Debut at Farnborough

Ohio, known as the birthplace of aviation, is regaining its reputation as one of the most important aerospace regions in the world.  The Ohio Aerospace & Aviation Council was formed to develop new ideas and strategies that will help grow the aerospace industry within the state of Ohio ensuring that the sate remains a key industry leader.

Check out the full strategic plan of The Ohio Aerospace & Aviation Council!

As a part of their strategy the State of Ohio will participate for the first time ever at the  Farnborough International Air Show in the UK.  Polymet Corporation, an Ohio-based manufacturer of wire for the aerospace industry will be a part of Ohio booth at the show.  Farnborough is the world’s most iconic global aviation event. This show brings together more than 1,400 exhibitors from the aerospace, defense, space, and security sectors.

We are extremely excited to be a part of the Farnborough Air Show and will be happy to share its news and events with our readers.  Stay tuned!

Here is an article where Polymet was featured as part of Ohio’s debut at Farnborough – Ohio makes its debut

       

      

Polymet Corporation Launches New Website

Polymet is excited to present it’s new website which contains great product resources and valuable industry information

Polymet Corporation, a leading producer of hardfacing wire, welding wire and thermal spray wire located in Cincinnati, is pleased to announce it’s newly renovated website, www.polymet.us.

The completely redesigned website, developed by Polymet’s team together with InfoTrust consultants, allows visitors to learn about Polymet’s product lines, markets and applications in depth.  The new site provides improved navigation, a full product catalog, direct access to product data sheets, useful industry related resources and an easy way to contact the company’s key departments.

“Our new website comes after a long period of analyzing customer’s comments and reviewing visitor’s behavior. The new website is functional and easy to use, it provides a lot of useful information about our products and industry in general.  We hope that it dramatically improves the experience of our customers and future prospects as they visit the site.” – says Mr. Mosier, president of the company.

Polymet’s new website welcomes visitors with modern, clean and colorful design.  The new website features all of the company’s news, accomplishments, product lines and technical resources for successful use of welding, hardfacing and thermal spray wires.

Polymet to exhibit at the International Thermal Spray 2012 Conference & Exposition in Houston, Texas

Polymet will be exhibiting at the International Thermal Spray 2012 Conference & Exposition in Houston, Texas on May 21-23. The ITSC 2012 is the world’s foremost international conference and exposition for thermal spray technologists, researchers, manufacturers and suppliers.

The conference includes three days of premier technical programming from the world’s leading thermal spray experts and an unparalleled exposition featuring the largest gathering of thermal spray equipment suppliers, consumable and accessory suppliers, vendors, and service providers. In addition, attendees will benefit from dynamic educational programs and networking events. Lectures will be given by industry experts Brian J. Fitzgerald (Exxon Mobil) and Mitch Dorfman, FASM (Sulzer Metco Fellow). 

Polymet will showcase their thermal spray/arc spray wire product line of iron, nickel, copper and aluminum-based alloys. These products are excellent for thermal spray coatings resisting abrasion, oxidation, and corrosion as well as allowing for dimensional restoration, electrical conductivity, and bond coats.  Polymet’s thermal spray products include both solid and metal cored wires in 1/16″ and 1/8″ diameters.

Bob Unger, sales manager at Polymet, states “The ISTC is a great way to network and exhibit in such a niche market such as Thermal Spray.  We are excited to be a part of the 2012 show in Houston, Texas.”

Please stop by Booth 215 so that we may introduce ourselves and say hello!