Whether or not you choose to invest in bespoke or a second-hand process equipment will depend on your budget and operations. If you find a used atmosphere oven or furnace that meets your requirements, and you are confident in its reliability/compliance, then this can prove cost-effective in the short term.
For most operations, however, a bespoke oven or furnace will be the superior choice, offering operators the ability to design and run a machine tailored to their precise process requirements. When you consider the costs associated with poor efficiency, downtime and non-compliance, it can really pay to invest in new, bespoke equipment you can rely on.
To help you make the right choice for your operations, let’s look at how.
The most obvious benefit of a bespoke atmosphere oven or furnace over a second-hand option is your ability to customise it. Used models are unlikely to conform with the precise needs of your operations, while a bespoke item will be made to your exact requirements, with all the production benefits that entails. (See ‘Improving operational efficiency, below.)
VFE offers custom-made atmosphere ovens and furnaces in temperature ranges from 100 to over 2,000°C, enabling you to optimise your production lines and hit your targets with purpose-built ovens or furnaces designed with the exact capabilities your operations require.
Our ovens and furnaces can also be designed to offer:
a choice of natural gas or electric heating for our ovens, or, argon, helium, nitrogen or hydrogen (partial pressure) for our furnace offering
digital temperature controller
accurate and stable heat control
all bolted construction (so easily modified or moved)
galvanised and stainless steel construction
high-density mineral wool insulation
fully insulated heater chambers and fans
air seal system
internal door release
For more information about the range of features and options you can choose from, download our Atmosphere Ovens and Furnaces specifications sheet now.
There are several ways in which purpose-built atmosphere ovens and furnaces drive better performance.
You are accountable for the efficiency of your operations, and yet, your ability to improve efficiencies is governed in large by the suitability of the equipment available to you. By designing and installing an oven or furnace that meets your process requirements, you can expect to benefit from:
shorter cycle times
higher quality products
much simpler maintenance and calibration (let us handle everything in one visit)
increased reliability of process equipment (see ‘Reliability and compliance’, below)
It’s easy to look at the higher price tag on a bespoke machine and opt for the used version, but when you look ahead, the costs saved by running a more efficient operation will outweigh the initial investment price and continue to deliver savings, year after year.
Related read: 6 Different Types of Industrial Ovens to Optimise Your Heat Treatment Process
Downtime and compliance-related issues are two of the biggest costs to any production line. Bespoke atmosphere ovens and furnaces are more reliable than second-hand machines and are designed to conform with all the latest industry regulations, so you can worry less about the cost of scrapped products or interrupted productions.
All our bespoke atmosphere ovens and furnaces are fully compliant with all the relevant safety and environmental legislature and can be C.E. marked and approved. (Find out more about our Quality Assurance policy.)
Structurally, they can be built to include ample explosion-relief panel work, as well as external mounted fabricated steel doors. A range of adaptable control systems (for ovens and furnaces) and electronic over-temperature protection devices are also available to improve control and safety.
Related read: 7 Advantages to Using an Autoclave Management and Control System
There’s a lot to think about when planning for a new oven or furnace, not least of which — where will it go? With a second-hand machine, you are limited by its existing size and dimensions. Comparatively, a bespoke option allows you to design the oven or furnace to suit your floor plan, maximising your site layout and availability of space.
Our custom atmosphere ovens and furnaces can be designed and built anywhere from 0.5m cubed up to 5m squared by 50m long to suit your site layout as required. Additionally, this huge choice of scope gives you the option to design especially large or small ovens and furnaces, depending on your operational needs.
In all cases, we offer full on-site installation and an exceptional support service, from the first design stages right through to ongoing oven/furnace maintenance and calibration. In short – we’re here when you need us.
For more information about our bespoke atmosphere oven and furnace capabilities, get in touch. Whether you’re based in the UK or overseas, we partner with a range of strategic partners throughout the UK and Europe to meet our customers’ manufacturing needs and are confident we can help you to design the solution you’re looking for to improve production and keep your operations running.
To talk to us about your bespoke atmosphere oven or furnace requirements, click the image below and one of our team will get back in touch with you.