Case Study: Hatchable Preheat Oven for Ship Engine Shaft Couplings - K-PHB
Customer Background
| Company: | Multinational Ship Repair and Conversion Company |
| Part to be Preheated: | Ship Engine Shaft Couplings |
| Part Material: | Steel |
| Part Dimensions: | N/A |
| Part Weight: | 9 lbs each |
| Target Preheating Temperature: | 400°F |
| Number of pieces to be heated at one time: | 6 |
| Required preheat time frame: | None specified |
Project Background
At Keen, we strive to provide unique custom oven solutions for a variety of parts preheating applications. The Keen K-PHB is another example of a custom preheat oven suitable to fit through narrow hatches found on today's naval ships. There are a wide variety of welding applications that require preheating steel before welding, and this particular client needed to have tight control over the preheating of couplings before welding them to a steel substrate.
The logistical aspect of installing an oven at the location of welding on a ship can be problematic, so a custom oven is often requested to suit the specific part and the process. The welding engineers wanted to have the part preheated very close to the weld zone in order to prevent any temperature variance in the part after the oven is removed from the oven. The engineers were well aware of the importance in preheating and postheating (stress-relief) the part before welding, and that if the proper procedures were not followed that the coupling could cool too quickly resulting in stress fractures and cracking in the weld.
The K-PHB hatchable preheat oven needed to be hand-carried to the weld location, so had to be light enough to carry. For this particular preheating steel before welding application we designed a custom industrial oven from scratch and called it the K-PHB. This unit is outfitted with our unique dial-digital controller with extra bright-temperature display. The oven can be mounted on a bench for easy access, and is front-loading with flat interior shelves. The K- PHB preheating oven is front-loading. The K-PHB custom oven is useful for a variety of purposes, not just for steel couplings. The temperature range can be modified for any application.
K-PHB Industrial Oven Specifications
| Shelving Style: | Perforated Steel - One Lower Shelf / One Upper Shelf |
| Temperature Control: | Digital Dial-Adjustable |
| Voltage: | 120V |
| Cycle: | 50 or 60 |
| Wattage: | 500 Watts |
| Thermometer: | None |
| On/Off Light: | Yes |
| Insulation: | 2" |
| Thermostat Temp Range: | Ambient-550F |
| Interior Dims: | 18"L x 12"W x 10"H |
| Net Weight: | 100 lbs. |
Oven Construction
Exterior
This is an font-loading industrial oven that is positioned vertically, and can fit through hatches on ships. This digital dial thermostat is our standard digital unit with an ambient-550F temperature adjustment range. It's important to note that the door hinges on the K-PHB hatchable oven are tack welded to the oven frame and not screw mounted. This allows for a long product life. Always beware of any industrial ovens that do not have welded hinges. This oven is powder-coated - as with all our ovens - at our in-house paint facility and is highly durable for a wide variety of industrial settings. There are 2 locking draw pull catches to clamp the door closed when in use and to prevent the door from opening causing the parts to fall out. It is a rugged oven and can be used in a variety of applications.
Interior
The K-PHB custom oven is constructed of carbon steel and is insulated throughout. It has a 500W heating element installed at the bottom of the oven behind a perforated steel grate to prevent the ship couplings from coming in direct contact with the element, but at the same time to allow the heat to radiate into the oven chamber. There were shelves installed this oven as requested - one shelf is actually the perforated grate that covers the element. All our preheating ovens are made in the USA and feature a 1-year limited manufacturer's warranty. Parts are readily available. Click here to see samples of our Custom Batch Ovens.
Design And Build Your Own Custom Industrial And Welding Ovens
Each customer often has a specific process that requires the heat treating of parts, components or materials prior to assembly. Their parts are unique in size and shape, and a customized heat treatment oven specific to the part and application is often the only solution to streamline the process. Keen is your solution.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a preheat oven?
We use the term preheat oven to describe an oven that is used for preheating parts before they are used in some type of application. Most of our preheat ovens are custom-designed according to the specific application being performed by a client. Many processes require the preheating of weldments before they are bonded to some other type of metal. This preheating is required to change the property of the metal part and enable it to be installed onto another part. Our ovens are used in many applications. The K-450TL hatchable oven used on ships is just one example. We have designed ovens for bowl shafts, cylinder heads, cylinder blocks, military tank transmissions and for many other types of parts.
Why is preheating steel before welding a necessary procedure?
It depends on the application requirements. Many steel components for a variety of industries require preheating to prevent problems in the weld after the job is complete. Keen's custom preheat ovens are an excellent preheating solution to many welding applications. Rather than heat each part at a time, we often have customers that load an oven with many parts at once and leave the oven on all the time. This way they have parts ready whenever they need them, at the right temperature. Each welding application has its own thermal treatment requirements, so be sure to check what is need for your next procedure.
Can this hatchable oven be modified for other applications?
Yes, absolutely. Many of our custom ovens have resulted from client requests to modify an existing oven they have seen on our website, or to one of our standard welding electrode ovens that a client may be using for welding applications. The process usually begins like this: a client finds one of our ovens that has an interior size close to what can accommodate the parts that need to be preheated, and then inquires if modifications can be done. Our engineers get to work to provide suggestions to the client as to what modifications can be done. If the modifications are not suitable, we design a new oven from scratch to fit the users needs.
Do you provide CAD drawings for review?
Yes. Keen's custom oven design process typically begins with a discussion of the various solutions we are able to provide to the client. If the client wants to proceed, we then do a CAD drawing for review that clearly outlines the custom oven design for the client to review.
Do you manufacture gas-fired ovens?
No. We only manufacture electrical ovens with a maximum temperature range of 1000°F
Are your products made in USA?
Yes. We manufacture our ovens in Louisiana.
How long have you been in business?
Henkel Enterprises, LLC, manufacturer of the Keen brand of welding ovens, flux ovens, and custom preheat ovens has been in business since 1923.
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