Chromalloy

Chromalloy, an operating unit of Sequa Corporation, is the world’s largest independent supplier of advanced repairs, coatings, and FAA-approved replacement parts for turbine airfoils and other engine components for commercial airlines, the military and industrial turbine engine applications. The company supplies components, coatings and advanced manufacturing services to original equipment manufacturers, along with extensive engineering and component repair capability for commercial aviation, marine and land-based aero-derivative and heavy industrial turbine engines.

The company’s investment in research and development of coating, and repair and manufacturing technology led to the development of electron beam physical vapor deposition with ceramic materials, vacuum plasma, diffused precious metal / aluminide coatings, and vision-guided interactive laser welding and drilling for most advanced turbine engine components as well as many other advanced technologies. Chromalloy’s proprietary processes allow turbine engines to perform at improved efficiency levels, at higher operating temperatures and under severe environmental conditions.

Chromalloy’s historical timeline:

1950 Small group of entrepreneurs in New York City buys patent rights to a European invention – a process for depositing chromium on the surface of carbon steel at elevated temperatures to protect the steel from corrosion. Through this process, the outer layers of steel are converted to chromium alloy or ‘chrom-alloy.’

1951 Chromalloy American Corporation incorporated as a research and development company in the metals processing field.

1950s Chromalloy American Corporation enters gas turbine engine business, offering diffusion coating that provides oxidation protection for nozzle guide vanes in first generation commercial aircraft jet engines.

Early 1960s Chromalloy pioneers Richard Wachtell and Richard Seelig develop a broader technique that includes use of an aluminum-based coating to combat oxidation in certain hot sections components of the Boeing 707 engine1. By providing greater oxidation protection, the technique increased the life of the engines 100 times over the original hours of service. 1960s Chromalloy American Corp. expands as burgeoning jet age produces new aircraft and higher thrust turbine engines to power them.

1960s / early 1970s Chromalloy coatings incorporated universally into aircraft engines, allowing engines to burn hotter and produce more thrust.

1967 Chromalloy American Corp. opens Turbine Support division in San Antonio for repairs and coatings on compressors and combustion section of commercial jet engines.

1968 Chromalloy American Corp. opens a start-up technology center, the Research and Technology Division in Orangeburg, N.Y., for component coatings, repair techniques and manufacturing. In the decades that follow, the facility grows to become the largest operating site.

1969 As part of a continuing growth plan, a new facility in Oklahoma opens the same year. And, Chromalloy Israel Ltd. is established as a 50:50 JV with Israeli Aerospace Industries Ltd. (IAI).

1975 Chromalloy American Corp. opens a facility in Tilburg, Netherlands, providing repairs and service on engine cold section.

1976 Electron beam overlay coater purchased and Chromalloy American Corp. begins coating components, using metal alloys melted by electron beams in a vacuum chamber. The process enables blades to withstand higher temperatures, thereby allowing the combustion engine to burn hotter and produce more thrust.

1978 Company buys out Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) JV to become sole owner of Chromalloy Israel Ltd.

1980 Chromalloy New England formed in Manchester, Conn., for services on PW6 aircraft engine. Facility later expands to serve other thrust category powerplants.

1980s / early 1990s In the early 1980s deregulation fuels an increase in airline passenger capacity. At the end of the decade, a global oil crisis and economic recession necessitate airlines’ need to find new ways to reduce costs. Airlines look to Chromalloy and other suppliers for new technologies to improve engine performance and reduce cost.

1981 Dundee, Scotland, facility opens in the U.K. to overhaul industrial gas turbine engines. Facility services expand to aircraft engines.

1982 Sun Chemical Corp., formerly called General Printing Ink until its name changed to Sun Chemical in 1945, acquires 36 percent stake in publicly held Chromalloy American Corp. Also, indicative of growth and expansion around the world, Chromalloy American Corp.’s Aeroservices Ltd. is established at Eastwood, U.K.

Mid-1980s Chromalloy American Corp.’s Orangeburg, N.Y., operation develops the RT-33 Electron Beam Physical Vapor Disposition (EB-PVD) thermal barrier coating for turbine engine blades and components, an industry first. This technology becomes incorporated into OEM engine design, resulting in power systems that are more fuel efficient and produce more thrust, longer turbine life and significant operating cost reductions.

1986 In June, Sun Chemical and Chromalloy American Corp. discuss merging. The merger is finalized in December. During the same year, Sun Chemical is sold and the newly merged entity, which includes Chromalloy American Corp., is renamed Sequa Corporation. The company is run by Norman E. Alexander who operated Sun Chemical as president since 1957. It is classified as a diversified manufacturer and producer of a wide variety of industrial products. The Chromalloy business operates as Chromalloy Gas Turbine Corporation. During this same year, the company opens a Phoenix facility, Chromalloy Arizona, to supply AlliedSignal’s Engines, Systems & Services division with blade and vane coatings. The company also acquires Heurchrome in Paris, France.

1987 Sun Chemical changes its name to Sequa Corporation in May. Chromalloy Gas Turbine Corp. opens facility in Mexicali, Mexico – a satellite site to the Gardena, Calif., operation. It additional acquires Jet Air in El Cajon, Calif., a honeycomb seal and sheet metal assembly concern. This same year, Malichaud of Orleans, France, becomes a subsidiary, specializing in turbine and compressor airfoil machining.

1988 Chromalloy American Corp. enters the marine and industrial gas turbine and aero-derivative turbine component repair and coatings segment, providing services to operators of electrical power plants, cogeneration plants, and oil and gas offshore platforms, and for military and marine applications.

1989 Chromalloy Gas Turbine Corp. enters the casting business to add full manufacturing capability to its offering, acquiring Aerodyne, Inc. of Tampa. The company for the first time offers operators a “one-stop shop” for turbine service, repair, casting and coatings.

1990s through today Leading the industry in advanced metallurgical research and development for coatings for gas turbine engine components, Chromalloy operations develop aluminide coatings, platinum aluminide coatings, ceramic coatings and other unique coatings for all major aircraft and industrial gas turbine engine original equipment manufacturers. The coatings are part of the high performance engine design and enable power systems to burn hotter and produce more thrust, at a lower cost.

1991 Chromalloy Gas Turbine Corp. continues organic growth and growth through acquisition, acquiring Turbine Services Ltd., which originally began operation in the U.K. in 1976. This same year, the company establishes a repair and service facility in Thailand to serve operators in Asia Pacific region. Also, Chromalloy’s U.K. operation at the Clover Nook Derbyshire coating facility performs advanced coatings for OEM turbine parts.

1993 Chromalloy Gas Turbine Corp. continues to develop satellite facilities to its Gardena, Calif., operation, opening two Carson City, Nev., sites for turbine repair and service. Eight years later (2001), the company builds a casting furnace in Carson City, offering turbine operators two component casting facilities – Carson City and Tampa.

1995 Chromalloy Power Services in San Antonio opens for APU and small gas turbine engine repair, overhaul and testing.

Late 1990s In response to the need for an alternative to OEM high pressure turbine blades, Chromalloy Gas Turbine Corp. begins high pressure turbine blade Parts Manufacturer Approval (PMA) design and manufacture.

1998 BELAC Engineering LLC, a Chromalloy-led JV with commercial airlines, organizes in temporary space in Clearwater, Fla., with five employees.

1999 U.S. Air Force awards Chromalloy Gas Turbine Corp. contract for component repair on TF39 turbofan at Kelly Air Force Base, San Antonio. Shortly thereafter, Chromalloy Component Services established in San Antonio adjacent to Chromalloy Power Services facility.

2000 Chromalloy’s TRT Repair enters 50:50 JV with Rolls-Royce. In Glasgow, U.K., Turbine Services Ltd. is established by Chromalloy. The same year, BELAC LLC moves to a new Oldsmar, Fla., manufacturing operation. Turbine Services Ltd., an operating agreement between Chromalloy’s U.K. operation and Siemens Holdings plc., acquires 49 percent share in Masaood John Brown / MJB International Limited Co., located in the U.A.E., to perform industrial gas turbine field services and parts repairs. Also, Turbine Surface Technologies Ltd., a 50:50 joint venture, is established by Chromalloy and Rolls-Royce to provide coatings for Rolls-Royce engine parts. During this year, Chromalloy’s U.K. operation begins performing industrial gas turbine (IGT) repairs. The same year the operation inks its first major IGT repair contract, with the Saudi Electric Company.

2001 Carson City, Nev., casting facility goes online. During this same year, BELAC LLC also receives first FAA ISO/AS registered Quality Control system approval. During this same year, FAA approves first engine test plan for BELAC High Pressure Turbine engine blades. BELAC also applies to the FAA for Parts Manufacturer Approval (PMA) for CFM 56-3 HPT blades. The same year, TSTL Coating enters a 50:50 JV with Rolls-Royce.

2002 BELAC LLC, a Chromalloy-led JV with commercial airlines, receives first FAA letter for the manufacture of HPT blades. Also, BELAC sells first set of exported HPT blades, CFM 56-3, to Lufthansa Technique. And, BELAC sells first set of HPT blades, CFM 56-3, to United Airlines. Power Developments International, a Free Zone Company, was developed in the Jebel Ali Free Zone of Dubai, by Inology and Masaood John Brown / MJB International Limited Co.

2003 BELAC LLC, a Chromalloy-led JV with commercial airlines, submits First Source Approval Request to the U.S. Department of the Air Force to qualify CFM 56-3 HPT blades on DOD aircraft. In the industrial gas turbine segment, 49 percent of Chromalloy’s TSL business transfers to Siemens.

2004 U.S. Air Force grants BELAC LLC manufacturing approval for CFM 56-3 HPT blades.

2005 Chromalloy’s U.K. operation receives major contract from the U.K. Ministry of Defense to provide repairs and advanced EBPVD ceramic coatings for the RB199 turbine vane.

2006 BELAC LLC, a Chromalloy-led JV with commercial airlines, submits application to the FAA for Parts Manufacturing Approval (PMA) for CF34 first and second stage HPT blades.

2007 Sequa Corporation, a publicly traded company of which 54 percent of outstanding shares are owned by the Norman E. Alexander family, is purchased by the Carlyle Group, world’s largest private equity firm. Chromalloy Gas Turbine Corp. is Sequa’s largest business unit, accounting for 40 percent of revenues. This same year, BELAC LLC, a Chromalloy-led JV with commercial airlines, submits application to FAA for Parts Manufacturing Approval (PMA) for PW2000 first and second stage HPT blades.

2009 Chromalloy opens a new FAA compliance office in Burlington, Mass., to enhance communication with the agency. During the same year, the company adopts a single naming configuration for all units and locations in the company – Chromalloy – and expands its Tampa casting facility to offer additional services to operators in aerospace, marine and industrial segments. During this same year, BELAC LLC, a Chromalloy-led JV with commercial airlines, receives FAA approval for first stage HPT blades for PW4000 turbine engine.