Ellwood Specialty Steel

Our commitment to long-term relationships and attention to customer service make ESS the supplier of choice for the tool, mold and die industries.

Mold and die making is a competitive business. Your reputation depends on delivery, and so does ours. Ellwood Specialty Steel (ESS) is a fully integrated producer of tool steels for plastic molds, die cast dies, forging dies and other tooling applications. We utilize ASEA-SKF primary melting, refining and degassing equipment along with ESR and VAR processes to manufacture premium steel ingots.

State-of-the-art forging, heat treating and machining equipment is used in completing the tool steel manufacturing process to ISO 9001 standards. We’re committed to providing quality and service and deliver on that commitment with the world’s most advanced steel making equipment. Ellwood Specialty Steel, the #1 choice in North America for fast service and delivery, is backed by a 100+ year tradition of technical knowledge, unsurpassed product quality and the highest level of customer service.

STEELMAKING CAPABILITIES

Combining our skilled workforce with the world’s most advanced equipment gives you an exceptionally reliable product, backed by the best warranty in the business.

Our products are used in applications that demand the most stringent requirements for cleanliness, strength, fatigue and impact toughness. We manufacture our steel using a state-of-the-art 50-ton electric arc furnace (EAF), ladle refining, and vacuum degassing equipment. The EAF is dedicated to fast melting, and the ASEA-SKF split secondary steelmaking unit is used only for refining. Advanced ladle metallurgy techniques produce ultra-clean steels with minimal chemistry variation in all grades.

This tight control in the melt shop means we can produce custom-designed chemistries for special applications. The very low sulfur and oxide content allows for excellent machining and polishing characteristics. Supplemental VAR and ESR re-melting are also available for applications demanding an even higher level of quality.

THE PROCESS

First, scrap is loaded into clam-shell buckets and charged into an ultra-high powered (UHP) eccentric bottom-tapping (EBT) electric arc furnace. After the scrap is melted, carbon and phosphorus are removed under an oxidizing slag. Steel is then tapped slag-free into a preheated ladle. During tapping, deoxidation and alloy additions are charged, followed by a reducing top slag.

The ladle is transferred to one of two refining stations for alloy adjustment and refining. Arc heating and induction stirring at this step ensure homogenous mixing and interaction of steel and slag.

The ladle is then transferred to a vacuum degassing station whereby hydrogen can be removed to a level of less than 1ppm. Combined induction and argon gas bubbling are used during vacuum treatment.

Heats are sent to teem at a consistent pre-designated temperature. All ingots are bottom-poured at a controlled rate of rise. A teeming car is used to enable faster turnaround. Argon shrouding is employed to minimize reoxidation and pick-up of nitrogen and hydrogen.

FORGING CAPABILITIES

Our forging facilities comprise four hydraulic presses, automated forge heating furnaces, manipulators, and auxiliary equipment. Knowledgeable, dedicated employees oversee every aspect of the manufacturing process to give you predictable, precise products manufactured in a fraction of the time normally required.

HEAT TREATING AND MACHINING

Under the watchful eyes of skilled operators working to meet your exacting specifications, thermal treatments maximize the properties of forged steel. Employing a sophisticated workflow model, steel is cycled through the thermal treatment process required to meet the metallurgical demands of your final application. This can include quenching in agitated water or polymer baths, tempering, annealing, normalizing, and stress relieving. We maintain one of the industry’s most extensive selections of machining equipment and systems to ensure that you get the degree of finishing you require.