January 2012 Tube Products International
39
products & developments
Investing in quench and temper technology
MST Seamless Tube & Pipe is
a manufacturer of carbon and alloy
seamless cold-drawn pipe and tube
for a variety of industry applications,
including aircraft and aerospace; mining
and construction; automotive; and
agriculture.
The company operates a 320,000ft
2
manufacturing facility on 60 acres in
South Lyon, Michigan, USA.
MST is investing in its state-of-the-
art manufacturing facility by adding a
quench and temper heat treat line. MST
has produced quenched-and-tempered
products for many years, but bringing
the process in-house will result in
significant efficiencies and more control
of product quality.
“Adding the quench and temper line
gives us better control over the entire
process from order entry to truckload
delivery,” said Ted Fairley, vice president
of sales and marketing.
To quench and temper products, material
is heated to a uniform temperature
above the transformation range then
quenched with a liquid to achieve a high
level of hardness.
The material is then tempered as the
final step in the heat treating process.
MST’s custom designed and built line
will provide water quenching and will
enable better control of mechanical
properties of the finished material.
The $4.5mn capital expenditure will
create cost efficiencies for the quench
and temper process and enable MST to
improve delivery performance.
The company maintains a steady 98%+
on-time shipping performance each
month.
“The quench and temper line gives
us the ability to serve our customers
better because we can provide even
quicker response and delivery,” said Les
Whitver, vice president of operations.
Bringing the process in-house allows
for quick change over from order to
order, reduced lead times and the ability
to react to emergency repair situations
more quickly.
The company will purchase the new
heat treat line from Thermatool, and it
will be built to cover MST’s full range
of products, including size ranges
from 0.75" to 5" OD, and a variety of
grades including several carbon grades,
chrome moly grades and other high
chrome grades such as 9 chrome and
13 chrome.
MST Seamless Tube & Pipe
– USA
Pipe, fittings and flanges from Turkey
Unifit Fittings, a manufacturer
and wholesaler of seamless steel
pipe fittings and flanges formed in
2005, is playing an important part in
Turkey’s steel industry. Together with
sister company Burak Boru, Turkey’s
largest seamless carbon steel pipe
stockist, the company supplies an
extensive product range to provide a
comprehensive and expanding pipe
range to meet the highest quality and
standards, globally.
With new semi-fully automatic
induction machines for elbows, new
oil pressure cold forming tees and
reducing machines, plus cap forming
machines, production capacity has
increased to 800 tons per month.
Having recently invested in the
commissioning of new forging
machines, the company is now able
to produce a medium range of forged
steel flanges to suit most applications.
Eventually it will be able to offer a
complete range of ½" to 24" fittings and
flanges at highly competitive prices.
With state-of-the-art technology,
modern factory facilities and a
dedicated team of experienced
engineers, Unifit manufactures a
diverse range of branded products
to the highest possible quality and
industrial standards. All products are
manufactured in accordance with
Directive PED/97/23/EC – Annex I,
Chapter 4.3.
Burak Boru has invested heavily in
IFS (industrial and financial systems)
software in order to make its business
more agile and user friendly. The IFS
systems fundamentally streamline
the core processes, which include
service and asset, project and the
manufacturing and supply chain. This
effectively provides a dynamic time
management system.
The latest ERP (enterprise resource
planning) systems not only provide a
more cohesive financial and reporting
system between departments, but
also enhance the improvements that
automation can bring to production
and on-line stock control requirements.
With new machinery and systems in
situ, the company also offers equipment
able to meet the most common
standards, such as EN, DIN and ASTM.
The comprehensive and wide product
range includes seamless and welded
steel elbows, equal tees, reducing tees,
concentric and eccentric reducers and
caps.
When the flange test production is
complete, the company will start mass
production, in order to satisfy customer
needs, with a range of high quality
products.
Utilising standard Euro-pallets affords
maximum product protection, and
careful attention to detail and clear
marking during the packaging process
virtually ensures all deliveries arrive in
pristine condition. This is especially
important, as the company exports to
western Europe, middle-eastern Europe,
the Middle East and North Africa.
Unifit Fittings
– Turkey
Burak Boru
– Turkey
+90 216 593 04 09
