In this Issue:
- THERMBOND: Delivering Value in Difficult Times Part III
- Sale of the Month: Aluminum Application in Brasil
- Stellar Materials Welcomes Alexandre Leme to the Thermbond Sales Team
- Happy Birthday to Our CEO, Bernie Mintz!
- Application Report: Titanium Rotary Kiln Repair
Testimonial from a Maintenance Manager at a Gulf Coast Power Generation Facility:
"We have had a local contractor gunite Thermbond Formula 6-AG for 2 years now to do all of our burner throat repairs as well as new refractory throats. Thermbond Formula 6-AG holds up better than any other refractory to our knowledge because of its bonding capabilities and the ability to start the unit up rapidly."
THERMBOND: Delivering Value in Difficult Times
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by Tom Atkins, Vice President Worldwide Sales
Part three in a series:
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Most everyone is familiar with the time-saving benefits of Thermbond. Less time to mix, less time to cure, and less time to fire-in are the immediate value Thermbond delivers. For our customers, that value is easy to measure. Time savings are tangible and payback is instantaneous.
With thousands and thousands of units of Thermbond installed in hundreds of applications worldwide, the secondary value of Thermbond, performance, is now being realized.
The early pioneers took a leap of faith that Thermbond would perform well, either because nothing else worked in their application, or because they chose Thermbond exclusively on the value of saving time. In many cases, performance was a calculated risk, a “cross your fingers and hope it works” benefit. Many readers can relate to this scenario because that is exactly how they came to try, and use Thermbond!
Because Thermbond bonds to existing refractories, is thermal shock resistant, and is non-wetting to molten metals, Thermbond has now proven to deliver long term performance value to our customers.
Today’s critical decision-making process to consider using Thermbond Refractories is based on both time savings and performance characteristics.
When excess capacity exists, and lost production time may not have as much apparent value as before (please refer to part two of this series), refractory performance may be the key consideration in today’s decision making process.
Remember, Thermbond delivers value both in good times and in bad.
Testimonial from a Plant Manager in the Power Industry:
"There are 96 gas fired burner throats that we have repaired as well as new installation of burner throats using Thermbond Formula 6-AG for gunning an overlay and new throat linings. We have also used Thermbond Formula 15-R for overlay repairs installed by handpacking that have bonded to the existing refractory and has lasted over 18 months and is still in service."
Thermbond Application in Brasil
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Sales Director- Mexico, Caribbean
and Latin America, William O'Connell |
Stellar Materials has secured another large order for Thermbond materials for an aluminum plant in Brasil. The customer purchased Thermbond for preventive maintenance in all furnaces of the plant.
William O'Connell, Sales Director for Latin America traveled to Brasil for this installation.
Stellar's high-abrasion resistant, Formula 2104 L is scheduled to be used as a laminar in the belly-band areas of two round top furnaces. 336 units of this material shipped out last week for this installation.
96 units of Formula 4 L will be used as a laminar in a 60 MT reverb and 96 units of Formula 5 L will be used to repair the burner throat tiles in all of the furnaces at this plant.
The customer has placed another order for a 20' container of Thermbond materials for use later this year.
Look for a follow-up report on this application in a future Thermbond Bulletin.
Testimonial from a Customer in the Petrochem Industry:
"I have used Thermbond successfully in TLE's and different applications where conventional refractories were failing. Thermbond has performed as promised, and I will continue to use Thermbond in the future."
Stellar Materials Welcomes Alexandre Leme to the Thermbond Sales Team
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Sales Manager- Brasil
Alexandre Leme |
Stellar Materials is pleased to announce that Alexandre Leme has agreed to join Stellar Materials as Sales Manager for Brasil. Alex will be responsible for Thermbond sales in Brasil and other South American countries as required. Alex’s specific start date has not been set as details of how Stellar Materials will operate in Brasil are still being worked out.
Alex comes to us from Pyrobras, a subsidiary of Pyrotek, where he specialized in the sales of Thermbond and refractory construction in the Brazilian foundry, primary, and secondary aluminum industries for the past eight years. As part of his role in the sale of refractory construction, Alex also managed projects as required for Pyrobras. Prior to Pyrobras, Alex was a metallurgical engineer for two of the largest primary aluminum producers in Brasil.
Upon the hiring of Alex, Tom Atkins, Stellar's Vice President of Worldwide Sales noted “We have been looking to hire someone in Brasil for some time now. The Brazilian industrial market holds real promise and with our growing presence there, Stellar Materials needs an employee working directly for us to support our strategic partners and key end-users. With Alex and Bill working together, the potential for continued growth is significant.”
Alex is based in Sao Paulo, Brasil and will report to William O’Connell, Sales Director for Latin America.
Click here to contact Alex or any of the Thermbond Sales Team
Testimonial from a Production Manager in the aluminum industry:
"On the service side of things, they have proven themselves to be extremely reliable. With their Thermbond products the time necessary for curing the installation is minimal and this allows for quick turnaround of the furnace."
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Happy Birthday Bernie! |
Please join us in celebrating Stellar's CEO, Bernie Mintz's 80th Birthday! Bernie celebrated his Birthday on March 8, 2009 surrounded by friends and family who traveled from near and far.
Bernie founded Stellar Materials Incorporated in May 1990 along with Jean Tremblay and two of his sons, Neil and David. He was later joined by his third son, Brian. Together they nurtured the company, and in 1997 and 1998, Stellar was ranked in Inc. Magazine's 500 fastest growing companies.
Bernie shares the secret, "My formula for a long and productive life, keep your mind and body active, enjoy your friends and family, treat your business relationships with honesty and respect and don't get run over by a truck."
Happy Birthday Bernie, from all of us here at Stellar Materials. You are our inspiration!
Testimonial from a Casting Coordinator in the Aluminum Industry:
"Thermbond Formula 2104L was installed as a repair to the most severe wear furnace hearth. Refractory repairs to this hearth area have been very unsatisfactory in the past. Formula 2104L was installed and has provided "amazing" ability to withstand the abrasion and mechanical abuse that no other refractory has been able to provide."
Application Report
Titanium Rotary Kiln Repair
Industry: Titanium Plant, Germany
Equipment and Operating Conditions: Rotary Kiln for Ti02-Production operating at 1,000 degrees Celsius with heavy abrasion and thermal shock from titanium feed.
Problem: Thermal shock and abrasion leads to cracks and premature wear in the conventional refractory lining. Average life was 30 months with conventional refractories.
Solution: Place Thermbond in the area of the outlet ring, close to the combustion chamber where thermal shock and abrasion are severe.
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Combustion Chamber and Rotary Kiln |
Rotary Kiln in Process |
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Outlet ring after 33 months in service! |
Outlet ring after 33 months in service! |
Product Being Replaced: Low-cement castable with stainless steel fibers.
Advantages Using Thermbond: The fast setting characteristics of Thermbond allows the quick removal of forms so rotating and strip casting the kiln is very fast. A shorter heat up procedure is possible because of Thermbond's fast fire capabilities. Longer life is obtained because of Thermbond's good thermal shock properties and excellent abrasion resistance.
Products Installed: 140 units Thermbond Formula 5 L with 2% 310 stainless steel fibers.
Method of Installation: Cast in place behind wooden forms.
Equipment Used: Pan mixer and pencil vibrator.
Scope of Work: Replace worn or broken stainless steel anchors and reline a length of the 2.1 meter diameter kiln by strip casting 12 sections with each section 200 mm thick x 800 mm long.
Installation Date: May 2006.
Follow Up: The inspection of the ring in February 2009 showed that the Formula 5 L was in excellent condition and had given outstanding performance after 33 months!
If you would like additional information regarding this application report, please contact Stellar's Installation Manager for Europe, Burckhard Vitt: Mobile: +49 (178) 4 10 38 19, Email: burckhard.vitt@thermbond.com
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Stellar Materials Incorporated is a privately-held corporation headquartered in Boca Raton, FL with manufacturing facilities in Whitmore Lake, MI, stocking warehouses worldwide, and wholly-owned subsidiaries in Rotterdam, NL and Abu Dhabi, UAE. |
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Stellar Materials Incorporated
7777 Glades Road, Suite 200
Boca Raton, Florida 33434
USA
(561) 330-9300 |
Stellar Materials International, LLC
Nieuw Mathenesserstraat 39 - 41 Unit 1 B
3029 AV Rotterdam
The Netherlands
+31 (10) 2460264 |
Stellar Materials M.E. FZE
P.O.Box No 10559
Ras Al Khaimah
United Arab Emirates
+971506891327 |
Thermbond and Phoscrete are registered trademarks of Stellar Materials Incorporated.
Copyright 2009 Stellar Materials Incorporated. All Rights Reserved.
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