Company Profile & Technology
Centorr Vacuum Industries was incorporated upon the combination of two of the premier furnace companies in North America; Centorr Furnaces and Vacuum Industries, both having long histories in the development and manufacture of thermal processing solutions. Centorr Furnaces was founded in 1962 and provided a wide range of controlled atmosphere, high vacuum/high temperature furnaces for the processing of metals and ceramics, with specific product expertise in fiber optic cable drawing and gas purification. Vacuum Industries was founded in 1954 and focused its efforts primarily on larger production-sized units for the debinding, sintering and densification of variety of metals and ceramics. Over the years, the company has developed expertise in furnaces for Metal Injection Molding, Powdered Metal processing, Heat treatment, Vacuum Induction systems for Carbon/Graphite systems, annealing, and brazing equipment.
Centorr Vacuum Industries was acquired by the LOI Group, GmbH in December 1992 making it a member of the largest furnace company in the world. Membership in this group gave Centorr Vacuum Industries unmatched resources for continuing its product development and acquiring technical knowledge on a global basis.
Centorr Vacuum Industries was subsequently acquired by its management team from the LOI Group in January 1997. This change in ownership represented the next step in Centorr Vacuum Industries strategy to better meet its customers' needs. The managements' new role as owners and managers has provided for greater flexibility and motivation in creating and maintaining satisfied customers. Centorr Vacuum Industries is based in Nashua, New Hampshire, approximately 1 hr from Boston, MA.
TECHNICAL LEADERSHIP:
Centorr Vacuum Industries has achieved its position of technical leadership in this field by delivering innovative solutions to challenging high temperature materials processing problems. Standard vacuum processing furnaces for induction melting with precision casting capabilities, high temperature sintering, hot pressing for powder compaction or diffusion bonding, heat treating, precision brazing, thermal treatment, and chemical vapor deposition are augmented by specialized, custom-designed furnaces to accommodate new techniques for manufacturing advanced ceramics, processing injection-molded metal and ceramic powder components, and processing a wide range of metal and ceramic materials at various stages during conversion from raw material to finished product.
FACILITIES:
Centorr Vacuum Industries' manufacturing facilities have been repeatedly expanded and now include a group of integrated shops staffed and equipped for machining, metal forming, fabricating, electro-mechanical assembling, and operational testing of complete furnace and related processing systems. In addition to the 40,000 SF (3700 m2) main building, they recently added a 40'W x 40'L x 55'H (12m x12m x17m) high-bay tower facility with 5 ton (4500kgs) hook and crane for large scale furnace projects. A 10'x10'x10' (3mx3mx3m) pit in the main facility also allows for two story equipment simulation. With 800 amp available service and 350 KVA chilled glycol system, Centorr Vacuum Industries can design and build large custom vertical and horizontal furnace designs in-house, and can access to up to 2MW of additional electrical power when required.
APPLIED TECHNOLOGY CENTER:
In addition to maintaining its leadership position in the Advanced Ceramics and Particulate Material Markets, Centorr Vacuum Industries focuses on expanding its market by placing a greater emphasis on its Advanced Technology Center. The Advanced Technology Center is a fully equipped and staffed laboratory that performs high temperature firing of customer's parts to help with process development or troubleshooting. The lab is equipped with four high-temperature furnace configurations, and various metallographic support equipment to permit analysis and evaluation of a client's process requirements.
Process evaluation is an important aspect of customer service, enabling prospective users of high temperature equipment to test ideas and perfect operating procedures so that equipment can be properly specified to perform planned operations. The results of which are seen in our patent history. The laboratory is also available for toll processing of customer's parts while they are waiting for their furnace order to be completed.
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Market Achievements/Process Offering
Centorr Vacuum Industries' leading position has been achieved through high quality engineering and manufacturing to reinforce experienced product management for the application fields served. Centorr Vacuum Industries has introduced many furnace solutions over the years. which have included:
| Year | System/Equipment | Process/Product |
|---|---|---|
| 1954 | Retort Furnace, In-Situ Cooling Arc Melting Furnace Induction Melting Furnace Vacuum Hot Press Hi-Temp. CVD Resistance Furnaces |
Annealing titanium Nuclear reactor fuel alloys Nuclear reactor fuel alloys Ceramics composite research Pyrographite deposition |
| 1961 | 10 Meter Long Furnace with vacuum cooling chamber Semicontinuous Carousel Furnace with load lock |
Annealing Titanium Sintering tungsten carbide |
| 1964 | First Multipurpose Vacuum Furnace SYSTEM VII Physical Test Furnace |
Gen. Purpose - heat treat, melt, weld, braze Physical test of materials in controlled atmosphere and temperature |
| 1966 | Resistance Cold Wall Furnaces with gas quench | Production vacuum heat treating |
| 1967 | Crystal Growth Furnace | Adjustable gradient furnace |
| 1969 | Immersion Platen Diffusion Bonding Press | Aircraft components |
| 1975 | Fiber Draw | Fiber optic drawing furnace |
| 1977 | 30 Meter Long Horizontal Furnace | Thermal treatment - Inconel tubing |
| 1979 | Vacuum Induction Melt Semi-continuous | Equiax and directional solidification for investment casting |
| 1982 | Vacuum Sintering Furnace Belt Furnace |
PM tool steels Continuous operation above 1200°C |
| 1985 | Production CVD Furnaces | Advanced ceramics |
| 1987 | Injectavac™ Sintering Furnace Diffusion Bonding Hot Press |
PM injection-molded components Pour ram 42x42, 250 Ton-Turbine Blades |
| 1989 | Rotavac™ | Rotary furnace for refining powders |
| 1991 | Testorr™ Materials Testing Furnace | Materials mechanical testing |
| 1992 | Injectavac II™ | 500 kg. P/M parts - brazing |
| 1993 | Transparent Furnace Introduction | See-through furnace |
| 1994 | Tungsten Mesh Belt Furnace | Patent Awarded |
| 1995 | High Pressure/Temperature with Dilitometer Controlled Atmosphere Sealing Furnace |
Growth studies on high performance materials lighting industry |
| 1996 | High Capacity Graphitization Furnace Continuous Debind/Sintering of non-oxide ceramics in revolutionary design Pusher Furnace |
2600°C - 8'x10', Turnkey Installation 2500°C |
| 1997 | Fiberdraw 11 B/E Preform Consolidation |
Higher capacity fiber drawing with improved process control Glass consolidation for fiber drawing |
| 1998 | High Capacity CVI for CFC Fiberdraw for 80mm Preform Continuous tantalum capacitor sintering furnace Fiberdraw for low temperature applications |
2750°C - 50" x 52" Improved fiber quality and run length Improved quality throughput 350°C |
| 1999 | Metal Hot Zone MIM - Generation 1 design | Processing of high purity SS/Ti MIM |
| 2000 | Large 2300°C/300Ton Vacuum Hot Press Large 2300°C SiC Debind & Sinter design with high output thermal incinerator |
2300°C processing of non-oxide ceramics 2300°C processing of large SiC parts |
| 2001 | High Capacity 25 cu ft (0.73cm3) Tungsten Carbide Sinter Furnace | Uniformity of ±2.5°C |
| 2002 | Large Scale Crystal Growth Furnace Design | Processing of delicate materials in high volumes |
| 2003 | State-of-the-art CVD System for SiC/MTS Intellution HMI/PLC Control Strategy furnace designs |
New Liquid Injection Dosing system Executed for batch and continuous |
| 2004 | Vacuum Equipment for Nuclear Materials | Custom vertical and horizontal vacuum furnaces for proprietary applications |
| 2005 | 40' (12m) Hot Wall/Cold Wall Vacuum Furnaces for Tube Heat Treatment Remote I/O Design Strategy |
Difficult processing requirements Minimizes furnace wiring and installation times |
| 2006 | Commercialize 2nd Generation 'Modular' MIM furnace | Achieved ±0.5° uniformity with precision gas/vacuum control |
| 2007 | Provides 5 Armor Furnaces for non-oxide ceramics to 4 different manufacturers | Sizes varied from2 cu ft. to 50 cu ft. with debind and sinter capability |
| Six 2900°C heat treat furnaces provide for Carbon/Graphite work | 100 cu ft size with cold traps and fast cooling package | |
| Introduce new low-cost LF-15 Furnace for R&D Introduce new interchangeable hot zone Hot Press |
2000°C capability in low/high vacuum Used for metals and ceramics testing |
|
| 2008 | 90ft. (28m) Cold Wall Vacuum Furnace for Annealing Large 140 cu ft size Graphite Sintering furnace |
Large International Contract for China For diesel particulate filtration market |
| 2009 | 2900°C Production size Bottom Load heat treat furnaces provided for Carbon/Graphite work | 30" dia x 40" size with fast cooling package |
| Five (5) Ceramic Sintering Furnaces of various sizes for SiC sintering | CVI leads sales of equipment in Ceramics | |
| 2010 | 90ft. (28m) Cold Wall Vacuum Furnace for Tube Annealing Two (2) 600kgs Ceramic Sintering Furnaces for B4C Armor sintering |
Large International Contract for Japan CVI's proprietary gas system design is favored by Industry leaders. |
| 2011 | Sapphire Annealing Market Continued Growth in Ceramic Sintering |
Multiple unit orders for Asia and USA Larger size debind and sintering units sold |
| 2013 | Introduced 2nd Generation Workhorse furnace line Commercialized low cost HMI control system |
Improved design with lower pricing Based on Specview/Yokogwa Platform |
| 2016 | Offered new 2BAR gas quench Heat Treat Lab unit Commercialized low cost HMI control system Developed units for AIN Substrate business |
Sold to world leaders in Aviation Engine Market Based on Specview/Yokogawa Platform to support growsing LED market |
Customer Base
Users of Centorr Vacuum Industries' furnace equipment include leading government and private research organizations, universities, and manufacturing firms engaged in processing existing materials for improved properties or developing entirely new types of materials. With over 6500 systems installed, Centorr Vacuum Industries has an established reputation for supplying advanced design high-temperature vacuum and controlled environment processing equipment which is expertly crafted and field-proven for dependable operation. We look forward to the opportunity to work with you and be of service on your vacuum furnace opportunity.
Meet the CVI Team
Chief Executive Officer
William J. Nareski
Bill Nareski is the Chief Executive Officer and controlling shareholder of Centorr Vacuum Industries. He brings a distinguished career which includes both operational management and corporate development positions. His direct line experience includes engineering, sales, marketing, and finance. Bill has also managed the successful U.S. market introduction of vacuum related equipment for Ulvac Ltd. and served as an electrical engineer for the Missile Systems Division of Raytheon. Bill has an M.B.A. from Harvard University and B.S. and M.S. degrees in Electrical Engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.
Chief Operating Officer
Randy Fellbaum
Randy joined Centorr in 1997 as an Electrical Engineer and quickly rose to the Manager of the Electrical Engineering Department. Skilled in all instrumentation and controls technologies Randy lead CVI’s efforts into computer controlled HMI implementation in the early 2000’s. Randy had worked previously for Saint-Gobain Diamond Film where he headed the Furnace Deposition Team and gained years of practical furnace experience. He became COO of Centorr in 2023. Randy has a B.S. in Computer Science from Franklin Pierce College and two AS degrees in Industrial Electricity and Industrial Electronics.
Senior VP of Engineering
Ernie Morin
Ernie joined Centorr Vacuum Industries in 2015 as Director of Engineering. Knowledgeable in a variety of high-temperature applications, he has worked in the vacuum furnace industry since 2009 and has experience in crystal growth, gas pressure sintering, and a variety of Ceramics and Metals processes. Ernie has a degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Massachusetts, Lowell, and an MBA from Plymouth State University. He is a member of the National Fire Protection Agency (NFPA).
Operations Manager
Justin Fannon
Justin has been with Centorr Vacuum Industries since 2016. He started in the Manufacturing group doing Furnace Assembly for 2 years, and then moved into Field Service where he worked until 2022 performing job start-ups, in house testing, in field troubleshooting, and customer Preventative Maintenance Services. As Operations Manager he is involved in every phase of vacuum furnace construction from initial design to final manufacturing, while overseeing the entire manufacturing process for Centorr Vacuum Industries.
Senior VP of Manufacturing and Purchasing
Vincent Massua
Vinny has been with Centorr Vacuum Industries since 1974, having started as a sawyer in the manufacturing department. He is involved in every phase of vacuum furnace construction from initial design to final manufacturing and oversees the entire manufacturing process and Purchasing functions for Centorr Vacuum Industries.
Vice President of Finance and Administration
Kellie J. Daneau
Kellie has been with Centorr Vacuum Industries since 2002 and has a B.S. degree in Accounting/Finance from Southern New Hampshire University. Kellie worked in the human resource management industry for 13 years prior to joining Centorr. In 2023 she was promoted to the Vice President of Administration including Human Resources and IT, and is the company Controller.
Purchasing Manager
Brianna Kim-Levesque
Brianna started with Centorr Vacuum Industries in 2015 in the purchasing department, and in 2017 was promoted to Purchasing Manager. She has her BA in Business Management from University of Phoenix and her MBA from University of Phoenix. Brianna is responsible for the Purchasing department and oversees all facets of the ordering process for CVI.
Manager - Field Service Nelson Ramirez
Nelson completed his education in the US Virgin Islands, with a focus on Supervisor and Leadership training. He has worked for Centorr Vacuum Industries since 2016 in the Field Service group and was promoted to Manager of the Department in 2022. Nelson has been involved in the vacuum furnace industry since 2004 in Field Service support, and in management of a Field Service Department since 2010.
Aftermarket Sales - Centorr Line
Alan A. Fostier
Alan graduated from Franklin Pierce College in Rindge, New Hampshire and holds a degree in Public Administration. He started with the Aftermarket Services Department of Centorr Associates in 1987 and continued on with Centorr Vacuum Industries in 1990. Alan is responsible for Aftermarket sales and service for the Centorr product line.
Aftermarket Sales - Vacuum Industries Line
Joe Pelkey
Joe has been with CVI since 2014, initially as the QC Coordinator in Quality Control. In 2016 he transferred into the Purchasing department as the Aftermarket Sales Buyer/Planner and in 2022 moved into the Aftermarket Sales department handling Spare Parts sales and retrofits for the Production Vacuum Furnace line for Centorr Vacuum Industries, as well as responsibility for the Applied Technology Center Toll Laboratory. Joe is working on his Associates Degree in Business Administration from SNHU University.
Market Manager - Laboratory/Fiber Optic Furnaces
John B. Lariviere
John has spent 25 years in Mechanical Engineering before transitioning to Technical Sales. He has a degree in Mechanical Engineering from NHTI and has worked in the High-Temperature Vacuum furnace industry since 1994. John is responsible for Laboratory furnaces for a variety of applications in Ceramic sintering, Optical Fiber Drawing, and Metals Processing industries, as well as CVI’s line of vacuum hot presses for powder compaction and diffusion bonding.
Market Manager – Laboratory / R&D Furnaces
Sean P. Murphy
Sean attended Alfred University's SUNY College of Ceramics with a degree in Materials Science and has an MBA from Southern NH University. He joined CVI in 2024 and has 15 years experience in the manufacturing of advanced ceramics for the automotive electronics industry and will be responsible for over thirty (30) different product lines used in laboratory settings for the metals, ceramics, and carbon/graphite/composites industries. Sean has experience with a number of different vacuum furnace technologies including Hydrogen sintering, spark plasma sintering, and annealing, and he is a member of the American Ceramic Society, MPIF, APMI, and MIMA.
Market Manager - Ceramics/PM
Scott K. Robinson
Scott attended Alfred University's SUNY College of Ceramics with a degree in Ceramic Engineering. He has been with Centorr Vacuum Industries since 1999 and has worked in the furnace and refractories industry since 1984. He handles the Production sized batch and continuous furnaces for Ceramics, Hardmetals, Carbon, Graphites & Composites, Nuclear materials, as well Metals processes including Brazing, Annealing, Heat Treating, PM Sintering, and Metal Injection Molding. Scott is a member of the American Ceramic Society, Keramos, MPIF, APMI, and MIMA.
In 1954, the vacuum furnace manufacturer Vacuum Industries, Inc. was founded in Somerville, MA. In 1960 the firm was sold to GCA Corporation of Boston, MA, and in 1991, VI merged with Centorr Furnaces, Suncook, NH into a new entity named Centorr Vacuum Industries, Inc., of Nashua, NH, forming one of the largest manufacturers of custom high-temperature vacuum and controlled atmosphere furnaces in North America.
If you have a Centorr Furnace, Vacuum Industries, or GCA Corp. equipment and would like information on Aftermarket spare parts or field service assistance with your current equipment, please contact us at:
[email protected] | (603) 595-7233
Thank you for visiting www.centorr.com
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800.962.8631
603.595.7233
