Cincinnati Radiator, a leading American manufacturer of radiators and cooling products, has expanded its production capabilities at its Fairfield, Ohio facility with the addition of a new Ipsen Vacuum Aluminum Brazing (VAB) furnace. This investment enables Cincinnati Radiator to perform in-house radiator core brazing, reducing reliance on overseas suppliers and significantly improving lead times for their customers.
The decision to onshore production came after months of vendor delays for parts processed in China, which extended lead times up to four months. “We knew that we needed a way to make cores here. When customers had to rely on cores processed in China, it could mean a four-month lead time. If we had our own furnace, we could operate a just-in-time production,” said Prasenjit Ray, Cincinnati Radiator general manager.
Cincinnati Radiator’s leadership team selected Ipsen’s VAB furnace for its proven performance and domestic support network. “We went with John Pease (Ipsen Regional Sales Representative) and Patrick McKenna (Ipsen USA President & CEO) to California to see a company operating two Ipsen VAB furnaces. Our team knew that, once we saw them in operation, we wanted to work with another company within the United States. Ipsen could offer great aftermarket support, and the delivery was worth the wait.”
The new furnace, a model AL-38x40x90, boasts a weight capacity of up to 2,000 lbs. and offers versatile processing capabilities. “This furnace has so many recipes for us to use. We were planning to test it out for two months, but we weren’t expecting to get production-quality within those two months,” Ray said.
“What shocked and surprised me was that the first cores that came out were perfect. We’ve produced 10 (in the first month) and it runs like a new Cadillac,” Ray said.
More info: www.ipsenglobal.com/vab
