Thermal processing sector overview

In almost all cases metals in any state require heat treatment to improve their properties, if components are to achieve desired levels of longevity and corrosion performance in use. Without heat treatment car engine components, for example, might last for hundreds of miles rather than the tens of thousands we expect. The use of the specialist surface technologies that Bodycote offers can further improve in-use characteristics, particularly in severe environments such as in aircraft engines and in sub-sea oil & gas applications. Hot isostatic pressing uses very high pressures in addition to high temperature to achieve engineering outcomes that are impossible by other methods.

We estimate the global market for heat treatment to be in excess of £20 billion pa, of which less than 20% is processed by sub-contractors such as Bodycote, with the balance being processed in manufacturers’ own in-house capacity. The market for surface treatments is even larger.

Bodycote is easily the largest provider of thermal processing services in the world, operating from more than 180 locations in all the major manufacturing regions of the world, from California to Japan and from Mexico to Finland. The group is able to provide a comprehensive range of services, covering the widest range of materials and sizes, backed up by unrivalled technical expertise. No other supplier of thermal processing services has such a comprehensive offering.