Poland continues to strengthen its position as one of Europe's key aviation production hubs. One of the pillars of this position is advanced heat treatment technologies, such as SECO/WARWICK solutions used by global component manufacturers. The latest example is the signed contract for the supply of a horizontal CaseMaster Evolution dual chamber vacuum furnace with oil quenching for the aerospace sector.
SECO/WARWICK is supplying its largest CaseMaster Evolution furnace to a Polish aerospace plant to boost heat treatment capacity for critical landing gear components. The project brings together:
/ The largest standard dual-chamber oil quenching furnace in the portfolio.
/ Flexible cooling capabilities in both inert gas and oil.
/ Expanded production capacity for global aerospace landing gear.
/ High energy efficiency and high process repeatability.
/ Support for Poland’s growing role in the global aviation supply chain
The largest standard CaseMaster Evolution
The new system will increase the heat treatment capacity of the Polish plant for aircraft landing gear components manufactured for the world’s largest civil and military aircraft producers. The CaseMaster Evolution furnace on order is the largest standard dual-chamber oil quenching unit in the SECO/WARWICK portfolio. It combines a heating chamber with a loading/unloading vestibule equipped with a quench tank, enabling cooling in either an inert gas or oil, depending on the requirements of a given part.
“This contract clearly shows how far Poland has come in the global aviation sector. From a supplier of simple components, we have become a significant producer of advanced landing gear and airframe structures, and our vacuum furnaces operate in facilities that manufacture parts for aircraft flying on every continent,” says Maciej Korecki, Vice President of the Vacuum Segment at SECO/WARWICK. “CaseMaster Evolution is a design that combines a large working space, reliability and high energy efficiency, which today is just as important as the metallurgical parameters themselves,” he adds.
The furnace enables the heat treatment of large dimension landing gear components while maintaining excellent temperature uniformity of the load. Graphite insulation and heating elements ensure stable operation in demanding serial production conditions, and the heating system provides fast, uniform heating across a wide temperature range, shortening the total cycle time. High efficiency oil circulation ensures excellent load penetration and fast, uniform cooling, both of which are crucial for the fatigue strength of critical components.
Technical parameters for the aerospace sector
A key distinguishing feature of this design is the ability to cool in inert gas inside the quench vestibule above the oil level, at pressures up to approx. 1.5 bar absolute, with forced gas circulation via a fan in the chamber ceiling. This allows the cooling path to be adjusted to the geometry and requirements of a given part — from classic oil quenching to combined sequences that minimize distortion while maintaining the required mechanical properties. A dew point sensor at the inlet of process gases eliminates the risk of moisture condensation and unwanted oxidation, while convection heating significantly improves efficiency during the heating phase.
“This Partner knows SECO/WARWICK solutions very well and has its own operational experience with CMe vacuum furnaces. On one hand, this facilitates technical discussions because we speak the same process language; on the other hand, it sets the bar very high, as each new investment must genuinely increase production quality, efficiency and production economics. The new unit addresses a specific operational challenge — the growing number of landing gear components that require heat treatment, with very high process repeatability. The additional furnace will increase the capacity of the existing hardening department, allow better workload distribution between lines, and create a safe buffer of production capabilities for new programs or peak order periods,” says Jędrzej Malinowski, Sales Manager at SECO/WARWICK.
Production economics while maintaining top quality
The proven design of the dual chamber oil quenching furnace with optimized energy consumption and ease of servicing, translates into lower long-term total operating costs, particularly given dynamic changes in energy prices.
The significance of this investment reaches far beyond the scope of a single facility. The entire European aerospace sector and defense industry is experiencing dynamic growth, with the sector providing more than one million direct jobs and several million additional positions throughout the broader economy. Thanks to hubs like Aviation Valley and numerous industrial clusters, Poland is becoming one of the key centers for aircraft component manufacturing on the continent with production valued at PLN 14.5 billion in 2022)[1], and a growing share in global exports for this industry. The contract between SECO/WARWICK and this Partner is therefore not just another delivery of a vacuum furnace, but also a clear example of how Polish technology is supporting global supply chains in one of the most demanding industrial sectors.
[1] Polish Aviation Industry “Potential and Development Perspectives,” April 2024
