In this article, Chapter 2 of this 3-part series, we break down the elements of an efficient refractory design.

Learn about gas heating technology for forging from our expert mechanical engineer and project manager, Tom Anderson, during FIA’s upcoming Heating Technology Workshop.

This is the first of three articles (chapters) we will publish over the next couple of months explaining how we built a smart, efficient forge furnace for a heavy steel plate manufacturer that will increase throughput while taking up limited floor space.

No doubt if you have been in the refractory business long enough, remarking that you sell “dirt in a bag” is a statement you’ve either made or heard at one point or another in your career.

Fortunately for all of us, that statement could not be farther from the truth. Quite the opposite, actually. (If not, we are paying way too much for dirt!) Onex, Inc. began producing precast shapes over 45 years ago. During those days, we couldn’t do much more than rectangles and square shapes. But through these years, as castable technologies improved, so did Onex. And so did our precast shape capabilities! We are proud to continue bringing advanced, state-of-the-art precast shapes to heat-intensive industries.

Spencer Johnson asks this question in his book “Who Moved My Cheese.” For 6+ years I have listened to this book on my way to work after the start of the new year. This past year, the quote become all too real. It’s a saying I remind myself of as I am faced with critical decisions.

2020 was a year of change for my family and I. It was a year for the history books, with so much hurt and pain felt throughout the world. It will be one that won’t be soon forgotten, though many wish that it was just a dream.