Heat Treatment Automation and Robotic Furnace Loading

Heat treatment automation is robotic or mechanized handling that loads and unloads a furnace, moves each load to quench or cooling, and recovers and identifies every sample; AMD Machines engineers it around the furnaces a laboratory already uses.

The furnace keeps its own program, temperature control and safety functions, and the automation coordinates door access, transfer timing and the sample record. AMD Machines supplies the robot or transfer mechanism, grippers, carriers, cell controls and guarding, or quotes a specifically defined integrated system when a laboratory wants one supplier for the whole cell. Heat treatment automation from AMD Machines is intended for university research groups, national laboratories, shared research facilities and industrial materials R&D teams that heat treat solid samples, coupons and small parts, from a single laboratory furnace to a pilot heat-treat cell. A project starts with a review of your furnace, samples and procedure.

Robotic furnace loading from AMD Machines at a glance:

Furnace tending, as AMD Machines uses the term, means loading, unloading and transferring samples or parts at a furnace, not skimming or cleaning a molten-metal furnace. Furnace handling is one of several automated research workflows; the others are described under custom laboratory automation systems for research laboratories.

What does heat treatment automation cover?

Heat treatment automation covers every handoff in a furnace workflow: staging, identification, automated furnace loading and unloading, monitoring, transfer to quench or cooling, recovery and the sample record. AMD Machines can automate each handoff on its own or as one coordinated sequence, while the furnace and your procedure keep control of the heat treatment itself.

Which steps move to the automation, and which stay with the furnace?

The order above is generic, and AMD Machines reviews your actual sequence with you before any handling is designed. The same handling steps serve annealing, normalizing, hardening, solution treatment, aging and tempering; what changes is whether a quench follows, how quickly the load must be transferred and how it cools.

How are heat treatment experiments automated for materials research?

AMD Machines can automate heat treatment experiments by loading coupons, specimens and small parts from staging trays, running repeated furnace steps, and recovering the samples in order with a record for each one. An experiment can also span more than one furnace or oven, with each step's identity and times kept in the same sample record.

In a larger multi-station, automated or self-driving materials laboratory, the furnace cell is one station among several. Exchanging sample identity and step status with the system that schedules the experiments can be defined in the integration scope; AMD Machines does not supply that scheduling software or an AI research platform.

How do you automate furnace loading and unloading?

Furnace loading and unloading is automated by staging samples in carriers outside the hot zone, then using a robot or a dedicated transfer mechanism to open or request the door, place the load, confirm placement and clear the opening. AMD Machines coordinates each move with the status signals your furnace provides and records the time of every step.

Should a robot or a dedicated mechanism load the furnace?

An industrial robot inside guarding usually suits furnace loading with several moves or stations; a dedicated mechanism often suits one fixed move, such as pushing a tube-furnace boat or lowering a load into a quench. The choice is made in the design review for your furnace, not by assumption:

Can a furnace we already own be automated, or do we need a new one?

No new furnace is needed when a review confirms door access, usable status signals and safe reach: AMD Machines can then automate loading and unloading around the furnace a laboratory already owns. The review checks each condition:

• Door access. The door, hearth or tube end can be opened automatically, or its position confirmed by a signal.
• Status signals. The controller provides usable status signals, or they can be added as an approved furnace change.
• Safe reach. The load can be reached and removed safely, with the robot, gripper and cables kept within the temperatures their manufacturers allow.

Where an existing furnace fails one of these conditions, or a laboratory wants one supplier for the whole cell, AMD Machines can quote a specifically defined integrated system instead. Two more answers shape the scope: whether your procedure sets a maximum furnace-to-quench transfer time, and how many unattended hours your facility allows.

Which laboratory furnace types can be loaded and unloaded automatically?

Chamber, tube, bottom-loading, vacuum, atmosphere and integral-quench furnaces and ovens can all be reviewed by AMD Machines for automatic loading. Laboratory furnace automation usually starts from a furnace built to be loaded by hand, and each type opens and holds its load differently:

Keeping a tube or vacuum chamber sealed while a sample moves needs a load lock or a mechanism that works inside the atmosphere or vacuum, which is treated as a separate scope. Pump, valve and transfer sequencing for vacuum furnaces and sealed tubes is covered under vacuum system automation.

How does a robot open a furnace door, and what happens to the heating elements?

A robotic furnace cell opens the door by requesting a powered door from the furnace controller, driving an actuator added to a manual door, or operating the door with a robot tool. Many laboratory chamber furnaces cut power to the heating elements through a door switch when the door opens, and AMD Machines designs the automation to work with that switch, never to bypass it.

An added actuator modifies the furnace and how it is operated and guarded, so AMD Machines reviews it with you, your facility's safety staff and, where required, the furnace manufacturer, including its effect on the furnace's warranty.

An open door costs heat and, in an atmosphere furnace, atmosphere, so the cell keeps the opening short: the load is staged next to the door, placed in one motion, and the door is released as soon as the robot has cleared it.

Which signals does a robot need from the furnace controller?

A robot needs signals that tell it when it may open the door, when a load may enter or leave, and when something is wrong: typically ready, at temperature or program step complete, door open and door closed, cycle running, cycle complete, and alarm. AMD Machines defines the actual use of each signal for your controller in the functional specification; typical uses are:

Some furnace controllers expose these signals as discrete inputs and outputs, others over a network protocol or a serial link, and some expose very little. What your controller makes available, and whether it accepts an external start, decides how much of the sequence the automation can coordinate, so AMD Machines reviews the interfaces on your actual furnace and controller before the handling is designed. Where the controller supports it and that scope is agreed, the automation can select or start a stored furnace program.

The exchange resembles the door, clamp and cycle-complete handshake of robotic machine tending cells for CNC machines, but the hot load and the timed transfer change the design.

How does a furnace cell confirm each handling step?

A furnace cell confirms each handling step with its own sensors as well as the furnace and quench status: a sample present in its nest, a carrier seated on the hearth, the gripper closed on a load. Sensors sit where they survive, usually at the staging position and on the gripper rather than in the hot zone, and any independent measurement, such as a thermocouple on a carrier or a quench temperature reading, is defined with its use in the integration scope.

What determines whether hot samples can be handled robotically?

Whether hot samples can be handled robotically depends less on the robot than on the conditions at the furnace door: the sample temperature at pickup, radiant heat at the opening, the gripper or fork design, how the sample behaves when hot, and what happens on a loss of power. AMD Machines reviews each point with you:

• Sample temperature at pickup, and how long it is held. A short contact at the door is a different design from carrying a hot load across the cell.
• Radiant heat at the opening. The robot wrist, cables, sensors and gripper must stay within the temperatures their manufacturers allow, which can call for heat shields, protective covers, or a longer tool that keeps the wrist back from the opening.
• Sample behavior when hot. Some samples soften, scale, oxidize or become fragile at temperature, so the grip has to tolerate scale and must not mark or deform a surface that will be tested later.
• Loss of power or air. A hot load must not drop, so grippers are chosen to keep their hold on a fault, and the path avoids carrying hot loads over people, cables or anything combustible.
• Cool-down. Where your procedure allows it, a load can rest at a heat-tolerant parking position until it is easier to handle. Where a quench limit applies, it cannot wait.
• People nearby. A hot load is a reason to keep people out of the transfer path, even where a collaborative robot would otherwise be acceptable.

What gripper or fork materials work for high-temperature sample handling?

Gripper fingers, forks and tongs for high-temperature sample handling are commonly made of heat-resistant alloys, sometimes with ceramic or insulating coatings, and may be shielded or cooled between cycles. In AMD Machines' design review, the tooling's material, thermal mass and cooling are chosen for the pickup temperature and how often the tooling enters the furnace.

Lifting the carrier or crucible on a fork, or gripping a handling feature designed for the fingers or tongs, rather than holding the sample itself, avoids marking the sample and gives a consistent grip. The carrier leaves the furnace as hot as the samples, so the tooling is designed for its temperature; only a handle or push rod that stays outside the hot zone, as with some tube-furnace boats, stays much cooler. General tooling options are explained in the guide to robot end effectors and grippers.

Can furnace loading, heat treatment and quenching be coordinated in one sequence?

Yes. AMD Machines can coordinate furnace loading, heat treatment and quenching as one sequence: the cell loads the furnace, waits for the furnace to report the end of its step, transfers the load to the quench and records the time of every step. The time at temperature (the dwell or soak) stays with the furnace program; the transfer is where automation matters most.

What is quench delay and how is it measured?

Quench delay is the time a load spends between the furnace and the quench; in aluminum heat treating it is commonly measured from the moment the furnace door first opens to the complete immersion of the load. Specifications set a maximum quench delay so the solution-treated load does not cool too much on its way to the quench. SAE AMS2770, which covers heat treatment of wrought aluminum alloy parts, is one specification that sets maximum quench delays. AMD Machines designs a furnace cell to record each load's actual transfer time against the maximum your specification sets.

In steel hardening, a slow transfer lets the load cool in air before it reaches the quench, and in a given steel the cooling rate decides how much of the structure transforms to martensite: slower cooling produces bainite or ferrite and pearlite instead.

How do you keep furnace-to-quench transfer time consistent?

A robotic furnace cell keeps furnace-to-quench transfer time consistent with a short, fixed path to the quench, loads staged so each is picked in one motion, and a timestamp at every step. AMD Machines designs the cell to record the actual transfer time of every load and to flag any transfer that exceeds your limit.

The limit itself comes from your procedure or governing specification, not from AMD Machines; the cell timestamps the door opening and the quench entry, and which event ends the measured transfer is agreed to match your specification. The design review first checks whether it can be met with your furnace, load and quench layout and says so before the design is agreed if it cannot; where it can, the cell is designed and tested against it, and a late transfer is flagged for your review rather than passed silently.

How does an automated quenching cell handle oil, polymer, water and gas quenches?

A robotic furnace cell with automated quenching immerses, holds and withdraws the load in an oil, polymer, water or brine quench, places it for air or controlled cooling, or only loads and unloads a furnace that gas quenches internally. What the design review covers depends on the quench, from fire risk at an open oil tank to steam at a water quench:

Hung or partly submerged loads, an oil level that is too high or too low, and water in the tank are recognized causes of oil quench fires, which is why a robotic furnace cell treats immersion as one continuous move and checks tank status before every transfer.

How are samples cooled and recovered after the quench?

After the quench or cooling step, a robotic furnace cell holds the load at a recovery position until it can be handled, then returns samples to a tray or carrier for tempering, aging, cleaning, inspection or testing. So that samples come back in the right order and undamaged, AMD Machines can design the cell with a separate position for each sample, drain and drying positions so quench residue does not travel with the carrier, and a second identification read before samples leave. Samples bound for mechanical testing can be returned in whatever tray the next step needs; automating that step is covered under materials testing automation.

What happens if a furnace cell loses power or stops mid-sequence?

AMD Machines designs a furnace cell so that after a power loss, emergency stop or fault, the location and history of every sample are known, a hot load is held in the safe state agreed in the risk assessment, and affected samples are flagged as deviations for a researcher to judge rather than repeated automatically.

Recovery is designed first, not at commissioning, because interruptions are where a furnace cell can lose a sample or put a person at risk. For each cause (a power loss, an emergency stop, a furnace or quench alarm, a door fault, a robot fault, a dropped or misplaced sample, a transfer that misses its limit, an identification that fails to read), the design answers three questions:

1. Where is every sample, and what has happened to it? The cell keeps each sample's step, location and times, so its state is known after a stop, not reconstructed from memory.
2. What is the safe state? On an emergency stop or a loss of power, motion stops and the gripper keeps its hold. Holding a load partway into an oil quench or in an open furnace door is itself a hazard, so those moves get a stop behavior and protection set in the risk assessment with your facility's safety staff. A load inside the furnace normally stays there under the furnace's own control; after reset, a load in the gripper is completed into the quench or placed at a recovery position, by rules agreed in advance and confirmed by the operator from the recovery screen.
3. Who decides whether the sample is still valid? An interrupted sample is marked as a deviation with its step times, and a researcher decides whether its result can be used. The cell does not repeat a step on its own.

Recovery is guided from the operator screen, and any work inside the cell follows your lockout procedure under OSHA's control of hazardous energy standard (29 CFR 1910.147). The agreed responses are written into the functional specification and can be included in the factory acceptance test.

How are samples identified through a furnace and quench when labels burn off?

Samples are identified through a furnace and quench by marks that survive heat, such as an engraved or dot-peened Data Matrix code, or by a code on the carrier plus each sample's nest position. Labels and ink marks rarely survive a furnace and a quench, and scale can hide even a deep mark, so AMD Machines designs identification together with the heat treatment, not afterward.

Data Matrix error correction lets a partly damaged code be read, but the mark is still chosen for the scale, quench and cleaning it will see. A sample whose identity cannot be confirmed is set aside for a person to resolve, not assigned by guesswork. Mark methods and verification are covered under AMD Machines' marking and traceability systems, and a dedicated marking station under part marking and traceability systems.

What does a furnace cell's sample record contain?

A furnace cell's sample record links each sample's identity to its handling history: carrier and position, the furnace program as reported by the furnace where available, the time of each step (door open, load placed, unload, quench entry and exit, recovery), and any alarm or deviation. The record is delivered as a file, a database table or through an interface your laboratory specifies; AMD Machines' data connectivity options include OPC-UA, MQTT, and REST API interfaces, as well as direct database writes. AMD Machines does not supply a laboratory information management system (LIMS) or an electronic laboratory notebook (ELN); if your laboratory uses one, a connection to it can be defined in the integration scope once its interfaces are reviewed.

Which carriers and contamination controls does a furnace cell need?

A furnace cell needs carriers, such as trays, boats, crucibles or fixtures, that keep their shape, locating features and sample separation through repeated heating and quenching, suit the furnace atmosphere and give the gripper a feature to hold, plus drain, wash or drying positions that stop quench residue from reaching the furnace. AMD Machines designs carriers, trays, nests and gripper fingers together with the cell.

Which carrier materials suit which furnace atmosphere?

Carrier material for a furnace cell follows the furnace atmosphere: crucibles, boats, trays and setters in technical ceramics or heat-resistant alloys are reviewed for the atmosphere and any liquid quench, while bare molybdenum or TZM hardware belongs only in vacuum or a protective atmosphere because it oxidizes in air at elevated temperature.

According to the International Molybdenum Association, molybdenum's strength and stability at elevated temperature make it attractive for high-temperature furnaces and their fixtures and tooling, but uncoated molybdenum and its TZM alloy oxidize and lose weight in air at elevated temperature. Ceramic and heat-resistant alloy carriers are also reviewed for how they distort, scale or crack over repeated cycles.

AMD Machines reviews carriers and furnace supports in technical ceramics or refractory metals as a separate scope; custom laboratory parts and research fixtures explains how molybdenum, TZM, tungsten and alumina differ.

How is contamination kept out of the furnace?

A robotic furnace cell keeps contamination out of the furnace by stopping quench residue from riding back on carriers and grippers and by keeping incompatible materials apart. Your cleanliness requirement is reviewed against your process and written into the scope:

• Quench carry-over. Oil, polymer or water residue on a carrier or gripper can travel back into a furnace; drain, wash or drying positions between steps, and separate carriers for each quench medium, prevent it.
• Sensitive materials. Where carbon or oxygen pick-up matters, everything that enters the furnace with the sample counts: the carrier, the setter and any surface the gripper touched.
• Gripper contact surfaces. Fingers that touch clean samples are kept free of lubricant and are easy to clean or replace.
• Mixed alloys. Samples that should not share a carrier or a furnace run are separated by the staging logic, not by memory.
• Vacuum furnaces. Materials placed in a vacuum furnace affect its pump-down, so they are reviewed with the pump and valve sequencing.

AMD Machines does not claim a contamination class or cleanliness level for a furnace cell.

What does AMD Machines supply for a furnace cell, and what stays with you?

AMD Machines supplies the handling, the cell controls and their interfaces to the furnace and quench, guarding, safety documentation and agreed acceptance tests. Your laboratory keeps the furnace and quench equipment it already owns, with their programs and calibration, and always keeps the process requirements and the resulting material properties.

For an integrated system quoted as one scope, the furnace and quench equipment, their specifications and which party is responsible for their process performance are set out item by item in the proposal, not assumed.

Who designs, builds and supports a robotic furnace cell?

AMD Machines (Advanced Manufacturing Development LLC) designs and builds custom automation and robotic systems: founded in 1996, 30+ years in business, 2,500+ machines delivered across North America. Engineering, in-house parts machining and assembly sit together in Querétaro, Mexico, under AMD Machines' vertically integrated build model, and sales and service run from Chicago, IL. AMD Machines is ISO 9001 certified and a Universal Robots Certified Integrator; neither is a partnership with, or an authorization from, a furnace, quench or vacuum equipment manufacturer.

Every machine ships with full documentation: mechanical drawings, electrical schematics, PLC program documentation, spare parts lists, and maintenance procedures. On-site training for new equipment installations is included with most AMD Machines system purchases, and support after installation is described under maintenance and support.

How is a robotic furnace cell tested when the furnace stays in your laboratory?

When the furnace stays in your laboratory, an AMD Machines furnace cell is tested in two stages: the factory acceptance test (FAT) at AMD Machines' facility in Querétaro, Mexico, runs on simulated furnace and quench signals, and hot handling is proven at the site acceptance test (SAT) with the real furnace and quench. AMD Machines states: "Every project includes a formal FAT at our facility and SAT at yours, with agreed-upon acceptance criteria documented in the purchase order."

SAT here is the site acceptance test, not the system accuracy test that SAE AMS2750 pyrometry also abbreviates as SAT. The guide to how custom automated machines are designed describes both test phases.

Which US safety standards apply to a robotic furnace cell?

In the US, four sets of requirements usually apply to a robotic furnace cell: NFPA 86 for the furnace, where it applies; ANSI/A3 R15.06 and ISO 10218-2 for the robot application; UL 508A and NFPA 79 for the cell's electrical build, as you specify them; and OSHA general industry rules such as machine guarding (29 CFR 1910.212) and the control of hazardous energy (29 CFR 1910.147). AMD Machines treats each as a design input for the automation; the furnace's own compliance stays with its owner.

How does NFPA 86 apply to an automated furnace?

NFPA 86, the National Fire Protection Association's Standard for Ovens and Furnaces (current edition 2027), covers a furnace and its safety controls where it applies. The furnace owner and the authority having jurisdiction determine whether and how it applies, which depends on the furnace's heat input rating and what is heated in it; AMD Machines designs the automation to work within those controls and never bypass them. NFPA 86 groups ovens and furnaces into four classes by hazard:

• Class A: ovens and furnaces with a potential explosion or fire hazard from flammable volatiles or combustible materials being processed or heated.
• Class B: ovens and furnaces in which no flammable volatiles or combustible materials are being heated.
• Class C: ovens and furnaces with a potential hazard from a flammable or other special atmosphere used for treatment.
• Class D: an oven or furnace that is a pressure vessel operating under vacuum for all or part of the process cycle.

Which class applies depends on the furnace, its atmosphere and what is heated in it, so confirm it with your furnace supplier and your safety staff; the class shapes the safety controls the furnace carries.

AMD Machines does not certify furnaces. Fire protection of a quench tank, ventilation and the room itself remain the facility's responsibility, and the automation adds its own interlocks, such as holding a transfer when the quench reports that it is not ready.

Which robot and electrical standards apply to the automation in a furnace cell?

AMD Machines risk-assesses the robot application in a furnace cell against ANSI/A3 R15.06 and ISO 10218-2, and builds control panels to your specified UL 508A requirements and machine electrical systems to your specified NFPA 79 requirements. OSHA has no robot-specific standard, so the robot application in a furnace cell is risk-assessed against consensus standards: ANSI/A3 R15.06, the US robot safety standard, and ISO 10218-2, which covers industrial robot applications and robot cells. The guarding, interlocked access and safety functions of the furnace cell follow from that assessment, and hot loads, an open quench tank and radiant heat at the door are the furnace-specific hazards it adds.

AMD Machines states: "We deliver complete safety documentation packages with every system: risk assessments, safety circuit drawings, verification test records, and operator training materials." The guide to robot safety standards explains risk assessment and collaborative operation in more depth.

What determines the cost and lead time of a robotic furnace loading cell?

The cost and lead time of a robotic furnace loading cell depend on the furnace interfaces, the hot-handling design, the quench type and its interlocks, the number of sample geometries, the identification and data scope, and the guarding and acceptance requirements. AMD Machines prices each laboratory project from its scope:

AMD Machines delivers simple machines in as little as 6 weeks and complex systems in 24–26 weeks, vs. 40–42 weeks typical for overseas builders; the lead time of a specific furnace cell is set at proposal from its reviewed scope. AMD Machines also publishes budgetary ranges for custom automation by system type, and the custom automation lead times guide explains what drives each lead time.

What does heat treatment automation not cover?

Heat treatment automation, as AMD Machines uses the term, covers furnace loading, quench transfer and sample recovery for solid samples, coupons and small parts. Heat treating parts or samples for customers as a service is not part of heat treatment automation, and joining plastics with heat, CNC machine tending and factory conveyors are covered on other pages:

• Joining plastic parts with heat, such as ultrasonic, hot plate, vibration or spin welding and heat staking, is a different process from heat treatment. The welding methods are covered under thermal joining systems.
• Loading and unloading CNC machines is covered under robotic machine tending.
• Conveyors and factory material flow belong to material handling.

What should you send to get a quote for a robotic furnace loading cell?

To quote a robotic furnace loading cell, AMD Machines needs the make, model and controller of each furnace and quench tank, the samples, today's manual steps with their timing requirements, throughput, identification needs, acceptance criteria, target date and site conditions. The first step is a feasibility assessment and budgetary quote, at no cost.

For a carrier, furnace support or replacement part on its own, send the drawing and revision or an approved reference, the exact material grade, the quantity, the critical dimensions and the operating environment, as described on the custom laboratory parts and fixtures page.

AMD Machines is currently NOT compliant with International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR). No email address, form or file upload on this website is approved for ITAR-controlled or other export-controlled information. If a project may be ITAR sensitive, tell AMD Machines only that, and send nothing until AMD Machines confirms in writing how it is to be handled, as the ITAR notice explains.

Heat treatment automation: frequently asked questions

Can staff change the furnace recipe or set up a new experiment without reprogramming a furnace cell?

Yes, within limits agreed in the design, staff can change furnace recipes and set up new experiments without reprogramming an AMD Machines furnace cell. Recipes stay in the furnace controller with its setpoints and safety functions. The operator screen can let staff choose samples and nests, the order of runs, the number of cycles and, where the controller supports it, a stored furnace program; the functional specification records which settings staff may change. Motion paths stay fixed, and a new sample geometry usually needs its own nest or gripper fingers.

Can researchers still use an automated furnace by hand?

Yes, researchers can still use an automated furnace by hand if manual use is designed in, which shared laboratory furnaces often need. The functional specification of an AMD Machines furnace cell defines where the robot parks, how the operator area is guarded or released, who may switch modes, and how the furnace is confirmed empty before an automatic run starts. These rules are checked in the risk assessment for the cell.

How long is our furnace out of service while the cell is installed?

Your furnace is taken out of service for installation and commissioning, including any furnace change you approve such as a door actuator or added status outputs, and for the site acceptance test. The factory acceptance test in Querétaro, Mexico runs on simulated furnace and quench signals instead, so it does not need your furnace. AMD Machines sets the length of the on-site window in the installation plan, from that scope and the site information in your quote request.

Can a collaborative robot be used near a furnace?

Yes, if the risk assessment allows it, but hot loads, an open quench tank and radiant heat at the furnace door can point instead to an industrial robot inside guarding with interlocked access, as in AMD Machines' robotic cells. AMD Machines integrates FANUC CRX, Universal Robots UR10 and UR20, Yaskawa HC, and Doosan cobots when the floor plan, part weight, and risk assessment support it. Either way, people stay out of the path of a hot load.

Can we start with one furnace and add a quench step or more furnaces later?

Yes, if the first furnace cell is designed with the later steps in mind. A common progression is one furnace with manual quenching, then a coordinated transfer to the quench, then more furnaces served by the same robot, for example on a linear rail, where reach and transfer limits allow. Planning space, controls capacity, carriers and the sample record for later stages avoids rebuilding the first cell, and AMD Machines reviews each added furnace's door and signals the same way as the first.

Can a furnace cell run thermal cycling on the same solid samples?

Yes. Thermal cycling of solid samples runs as a programmed sequence: an AMD Machines furnace cell can repeat heating and cooling steps on the same samples and record each cycle against each sample, with temperatures, hold times and cycle counts from your procedure. Long runs put extra demands on carriers (distortion over many cycles), identification (marks degrade with repeated scaling), the furnace door (far more openings than manual use) and unattended operation, which your facility's rules must allow.

Can heat treatment automation scale from a laboratory furnace to a pilot or production heat-treat cell?

Yes. A pilot or production heat-treat cell raises the same questions as a laboratory furnace cell: how the furnace opens, how hot the load is when handled, how long the transfer may take, how the quench is controlled and how each load is identified. Production cells usually handle heavier baskets or fixtures, run more loads per shift and connect to conveyors and plant systems as part of a heat treatment line. AMD Machines defines the performance of a pilot or production cell in the proposal for that scope.