How to become a Heat Treater

Personal requirements of a Heat Treater

• enjoy practical and manual activities
• able to work as part of a team
• enjoy working with mechanical equipment
• aptitude for working with computers.

Duties & Tasks of a Heat Treater

Heat treaters: • load items to be treated into the furnace and bring the metal to a specified temperature • use computer-controlled furnaces • use new technologies, such as advanced vacuum furnaces • check all gauges and controls during treatment to make sure they are working correctly • harden metal by heating it to the required temperatures (this varies with different metals) and dipping it in oil, gas, water, brine or other solutions • surface-harden metal components to improve their resistance to wear and abrasion • use special instruments to test the hardness and mechanical properties of treated metals.

Working conditions for a Heat Treater

Heat treaters often work in hot environments.