Spotlight On Heat Treatment
by Mike McNulty, Editor
Machinery’s Handbook defines heat treatment as a combination of heating and cooling operations applied to a metal or alloy in a solid-state condition to obtain desired conditions or properties. For springs and wire formed parts, this means that heat treating is done to achieve things like stress-relief as well as changes in softness, hardness, ductility or strength. In addition to treatment of finished parts, the wires that springs and other formed parts are made from undergo some heat treating before they are processed.