Components manufacturer PTC Industries — through its Aerolloy Technologies subsidiary — commissioned its new vacuum arc remelting (VAR) furnace, allowing it to produce titanium alloy ingots that potentially can be used for aerospace and defense applications.
The furnace has an annual melting capacity of 1,500 metric tonnes (t), turning out ingots up to 1,000mm in diameter and up to 10t in weight, the Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh-based company said on Wednesday.
PTC Industries acquired the VAR furnace in 2022, seeking to expand its position within the global titanium supply chain after the start of the Ukraine conflict that compelled some western companies to no longer source the metal from Russia's VSMPO-AVISMA.
The company did not disclose whether Aerolloy had begun the product qualification process with downstream consumers, a necessary step before the ingots can be accepted for commercial use. PTC currently supplies titanium casting parts to Safran Aircraft Engines and BAE Systems, among other domestic and international customers.
Starting up the VAR furnace, which PTC Industries touts as being India's first, brings the company closer to its goal of becoming an integrated supplier of titanium products throughout the metal's value chain. Aerolloy in late August acquired a hot-rolling mill for manufacturing plates and sheets, adding to its product mix that includes billets, bars and rods.
Argus last assessed US prices for 6Al 4V ingot at $11-11.75/lb fob US producer this week, down from $11.25-12/lb at the end of November. Domestic titanium mills have sought to maintain outflows, willing to seller lower in recent months, after a strike at aerospace manufacturer Boeing that halted aircraft production led to companies in its supply chain to reduce their ingot requirements in the fourth quarter.
