There is an ever-increasing demand in industries such as aerospace, medical and motorsport, for high quality welded titanium components. Often, welding has to be carried out in an environment under 50 parts per million throughout the welding cycle.
Metal glove boxes were previously a big success, however with a lack of flexibility, heavy weight and high cost to purchase, industries have looked to a more economical alternative. The Flexible Welding Enclosures® designed by Huntingdon Fusion Techniques HFT® provide a low cost option, delivering a fast purging time down to a few parts per million.
The use of Flexible Welding Enclosures® has also increased during development of the Wire Arc Additive Manufacturing process, providing an inert gas shield around the titanium and other reactive alloy components.
Georgia Gascoyne, CEO for HFT® said: We have built a large number of different shapes and sizes, mostly to customer specification. Each one has its own identity with a variety of glove ports and dimensions. Some can accommodate a complete robot system internally. Inert gas such as argon is used to fill the enclosure and expel the air until the oxygen content is below 50 parts per million (ppm). It is essential when producing metallic components from alloys of titanium, zirconium and other reactive materials that the welding zone is purged of oxygen to a level lower than 50 ppm.
Courtesy of Huntingdon Fusion Techniques HFT.