Heat treatment

Sheffield Forgemasters carries out in-house heat treatment to achieve critical mechanical properties in castings and forgings, using controlled furnace, quenching and cryogenic processes across a wide range of steel grades.

Heat treating capabilities

Heat treatment at Sheffield Forgemasters supports hardening, annealing, and solid-state hydrogen diffusion across carbon, low alloy, and specialist steels. These treatments are applied at different production stages to develop the required mechanical properties in castings and forgings. All operations are backed by rigorous quality assurance, with thermal modelling used where needed to safeguard structural integrity in demanding applications.

Precise
Process
Control

Large-Scale Furnace Capacity

22

Furnaces
Across Site

Quenching

Sheffield Forgemasters offers both oil and water quench areas to provide a range of cooling rates. These differences influence the final material characteristics. Our largest quench tank measures 7.4 metres wide and 5 metres deep, includes agitation jets for high turbulence, and holds 79,000 gallons of water, fed constantly with fresh cold supply during operation.

Cryogenic Hardening

Two cryogenic cooling tanks are available onsite, capable of reducing steel temperatures to -130°C. This treatment increases strength and hardness in the material being processed by refining its internal structure. Cryogenic hardening is used where increased strength and hardness are required for demanding applications, supporting specific material applications across demanding industrial environments.

Heat Treatment Hire for External Projects

Sheffield Forgemasters’ large-scale, computer-controlled furnaces support everything from precision components to ultra-large castings. Facilities are also available for third-party hire, offering flexible options for specialist treatments across a range of steel grades.

Discover Our Full Capabilities

Need detailed specifications? View and download our latest brochures, certification documents, and technical guides to see how we deliver the world’s most critical components.

FAQs

We offer a wide range of heat treatments including hardening, annealing and solid-state hydrogen diffusion, tailored to meet specific mechanical property requirements across various steel grades.
Our heat treatment facilities include 16 bogie hearth gas-fired furnaces, 4 top hat gas-fired furnaces and 2 vertical electric induction furnaces, with maximum dimensions up to 7,600 × 5,000 × 17,500 mm.
We operate both oil and water quenching facilities. Our largest water tank is 7.4 metres wide and 5 metres deep, with agitation jets and a 79,000-gallon capacity fed by fresh cold water.
Yes. We have two cryogenic cooling tanks that reach -130°C, providing increased strength and hardness to treated materials where enhanced performance is required.
Our facilities are available for third-party hire, with pricing set on a case-by-case basis depending on the specific furnace, quenching or hardening process required.

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