Thermtech

What Thermtech does

ThermTech, Inc. is a privately held, family-owned commercial heat-treating company founded in 1982 and headquartered in Waukesha, Wisconsin. The company provides specialized thermal processing services that alter the mechanical and physical properties of ferrous and non-ferrous alloys for industrial customers. Its service portfolio spans hardening (oil, polymer, water quenching, and age hardening), surface treatments (flame hardening, carbon restoration, carburizing, carbonitriding, gas nitriding), annealing, vacuum treatments, press quenching (die quenching) up to 48-inch diameter parts, salt processing (austempering and marquenching), and ancillary services including cryogenic treatment, normalizing, straightening, stress relieving, and metallurgical lab work.

Operationally, ThermTech runs two production campuses in Waukesha totaling 160,000 square feet — the Travis Lane campus (75,000 sq ft) and the Pearl Street campus (85,000 sq ft) — housing furnace lines up to 10,000 lb capacity, three press quenching presses, and automated salt-to-salt processing. The company holds ISO 9001:2015, AS9100D, API Q1 (first commercial heat treater approved), ABS, NADCA, and Ford/GM supplier approvals, which qualify it for aerospace, defense, oil & gas, and automotive die insert work.

The business model is a quote-based professional services operation: customers submit RFQs or use downloadable work order sheets, jobs are priced per part specifications, and delivery is supported by a company-owned truck fleet across Southeastern Wisconsin and Northern Illinois plus a 24/7 Bluestreak customer portal. Named enterprise customers include Caterpillar, Northrop Grumman, Halliburton, Cameron, FMC, National OilWell Varco, and Kemper Valve. The company employs approximately 140 people across its two Wisconsin campuses and remains under Wiberg family ownership, currently led by siblings Steve Wiberg (President) and Mary Wiberg Springer (Vice President).

Name

Thermtech

Legal name

ThermTech, Inc

Website

https://thermtech.net

Company type

Private

Founded year

1982

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

ThermTech is a family-owned commercial heat-treating company in Waukesha, Wisconsin, providing specialized thermal processing services — including hardening, annealing, press quenching, and vacuum treatments — to industrial customers in aerospace, defense, oil & gas, automotive, and tooling.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Metal Heat Treating Services

NAICS

Metal Heat Treating (332811)

SIC

Industrial Process Furnaces & Ovens (3567)

akta.pro primary industry

Thermal Processing Equipment (Furnaces/RTP/Anneal) (HDAHAEAE)

Keywords

• Commercial heat treating
• Metal heat treatment
• Vacuum furnace services
• Press quenching services
• Aerospace heat treating

Headquarters

HQ city

Waukesha

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices5 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Supply Chain, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Heat Treating Services: Commercial heat treating services billed per job/parts processed. Services include hardening, annealing, surface treatments, vacuum treatments, press quenching, and salt processing for various metal components. Pricing is quote-based, customized per project requirements and specifications.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

ThermTech is a commercial heat-treating service provider that thermally processes ferrous and non-ferrous metal components for industrial customers. The company offers hardening, annealing, surface treatments, vacuum treatments, press quenching, and salt processing services from two Wisconsin campuses, with pricing determined per job via RFQ and pickup/delivery supported by an in-house truck fleet serving Southeastern Wisconsin and Northern Illinois.

Product overview

ThermTech is a privately held commercial heat-treating company offering a comprehensive portfolio of heat treatment services for ferrous and non-ferrous alloys. The company operates as a service provider rather than a software platform, delivering specialized thermal processing to alter the physical and mechanical properties of metals. The service portfolio includes hardening processes (oil quenching, polymer quenching, water quenching, age hardening), surface heat treatments (flame hardening, carbon restoration, carburizing, carbonitriding, gas nitriding), annealing services (full annealing, solution annealing, sub-critical annealing), vacuum treatments, press quenching, salt processing (austempering, marquenching), and additional services (blast cleaning, cryogenic treatment, mechanical testing, normalizing, straightening, stress relieving). Quality and technical support services include quality management, metallurgical lab services, and a customer portal for order tracking. The company serves diverse industries including tooling, defense, oil & gas, mining, construction, medical, forging, foundry, heavy equipment, machining, and general metal manufacturing.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Oil Quenching / Oil Hardening Heat treatment process using oil as the quenching medium to harden steel forgings, machined parts, gears, and tooling; reduces crack risk versus water or polymer quenching for a broad range of alloys.
• Polymer Quenching Controlled cooling rate quenching using light polymer solutions that bridge the gap between water and oil quenching; provides uniform cooling for intricate parts and steels with specific hardenability demands.
• Water Quenching / Water Hardening Rapid cooling quenching method for low alloy steel grades requiring very rapid quench rates to achieve desired hardness; uses batch-type furnaces for optimum process and lot control.
• Age Hardening / Precipitation Hardening for Aluminum Low-temperature heat treatment process that increases strength and mechanical properties of aluminum alloys through formation of dispersed precipitants in the microstructure.
• Surface Heat Treatments Metallurgical processes that modify surface layer properties (hardness, wear resistance, corrosion resistance) while leaving the core unchanged; includes flame hardening, carbon restoration, carburizing, carbonitriding, and gas nitriding.
• Carbon Restoration Specialized heat treatment that returns the surface of investment castings to nominal carbon content by exposing parts to a carbon-rich atmosphere at high heat to replenish carbon lost during decarburization.
• Carburizing Case hardening process that introduces carbon into the surface layer of steel components, creating a hard martensite exterior with a ductile core; used for machined gears, parts, and stampings requiring enhanced wear and fatigue resistance.
• Carbonitriding Case hardening process using a carbon and nitrogen rich atmosphere followed by oil quench; enhances wear resistance and surface hardness for plain carbon steels, heavy gauge stampings, low alloy machined parts, and gears.
• Gas Nitriding Heat treatment that introduces nitrogen into the surface layer of steel using ammonia gas atmosphere at elevated temperatures; provides superior wear resistance, optimized fatigue life, and minimal distortion for case-hardened components.
• Annealing Services Thermal processes that soften alloys by changing microstructure to softer phases; includes full annealing, solution annealing, and sub-critical annealing for steel and aluminum.
• Press Quenching / Die Quenching Heat treatment using controlled cooling and mechanical force to minimize distortions in gears and bearings; achieves dimensional accuracy with tight tolerances (gear tooth taper, flatness, and out-of-round specifications), accommodating parts up to 48 inches in diameter.
• Vacuum Treatments Heat treatment conducted in a controlled low-pressure vacuum environment that reduces oxidation, provides precise temperature control, and ensures uniform heating; includes vacuum solution annealing, vacuum stress relieving, and vacuum hardening.
• Vacuum Solution Annealing & Homogenization Solution annealing and homogenization of stainless steel castings in vacuum furnaces meeting AMS 2769 standards; high-pressure quenching up to 15 bar mimics liquid quench rates for enhanced corrosion resistance, suitable for parts used in food or chemical industries.
• Vacuum Stress Relieving Stress relieving in vacuum furnace ensuring uniform heating and cooling, eliminating oxidation and decarburization, with enhanced depth of penetration and reduced distortion risk.
• Vacuum Hardening Tool Steel Hardening of tool steels, stainless steels, and high nickel-based components in vacuum furnaces; ensures minimal oxidation, bright clean surfaces, and enhanced corrosion resistance with uniform heating and cooling.
• Salt Processing Services Heat treatment using salt as the quenching medium or controlled heat transfer medium; includes austempering and marquenching processes for distortion control.
• Austempering Two-step heat treatment heating steel to the austenitic phase then quenching in molten salt bath (400°F to 750°F) to transform austenite to bainite; produces a tougher microstructure than martensite at the same strength levels; also used for Austempered Ductile Iron (ADI).
• Marquenching Interrupted quenching process using a hot molten salt bath (375°F to 500°F) instead of oil or polymer; reduces distortion and cracking while achieving equivalent microstructure for alloy-grade steel components.
• Other Heat Treatment Services Additional heat treatment services including blast cleaning, deep freezing/cryogenic treatment, mechanical testing, normalizing, straightening, stress relieving, jig tempering, and final stress tempering.
• Mechanical Testing In-house and outsourced mechanical testing services including tensile testing, Charpy testing, hardness testing (Vickers, Knoop, Rockwell), and metallurgical consultation; outsourced testing through A2LA-accredited ISO 17025 laboratories.
• Quality Management Quality management system with ZERO DEFECTS policy covering all customer products and quality management system activities; includes process controls and documentation for aerospace, agricultural, mining, heavy truck, oil field, railroad, and tool & die industries.
• Lab Services Metallurgical laboratory services including case depth analysis, microstructural analysis, Vickers and Knoop microhardness testing, photographic documentation, PPAP services (Caterpillar 1E0106 and ME1010), and metallurgical consultation.
• Automated Salt-to-Salt Furnace Line New automated salt-to-salt furnace line dedicated to austempering and marquenching of castings, stampings, and springs; certified to AMS 2750 Rev E Pyrometry standards.
• Customer Portal (Bluestreak) Online portal providing 24-hour access to real-time order status, parts logistics inventory tracking, shipment details, certifications, quotes, invoices, payments, and credits; free access for customers.

Quantifiable outcome

• Dimensional accuracy: Gear tooth taper under .005", Flatness under .003", Out-of-Round under .005", Step alignment within .003"
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers7 records

Segments7 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered supporting and core.

• External ISO 17025 Certified LaboratoriessupportingOthersStrategic partnerships with external laboratories that maintain ISO 17025 certifications, allowing ThermTech to offer mechanical testing and broader services beyond in-house capabilities.
• Seco/Warwick Corp.coreTechnology or IntegrationEquipment supplier for advanced furnace systems including 10-bar high-pressure quench furnace, three-chamber vacuum furnace (CaseMaster Evolution T12), providing low-pressure carburizing technology.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves9 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Bodycote: The world's largest commercial heat treating services group, offering hardening, annealing, surface treatments, vacuum processing, and press quenching across dozens of countries. Most direct competitor to ThermTech in commercial heat treating services.
• Paulo Products: Privately held commercial heat treater headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri, providing brazing, annealing, carburizing, and specialty heat treat services to industrial customers across the Midwest — overlapping with ThermTech's regional base and customer verticals.
• Solar Atmospheres: U.S. commercial vacuum heat treating specialist with multiple regional facilities, serving aerospace, medical, and defense customers. Comparable to ThermTech's vacuum treatment and AMS-certified processing capabilities.
• Advanced Heat Treat Corp. (AHT): Midwest-based commercial heat treater offering induction hardening, nitriding, and through-hardening services. Comparable mid-sized competitor with similar focus on industrial component processing.
• Nitrex (now part of Bodycote): Commercial nitriding and heat treating service provider offering controlled atmosphere and vacuum processing to aerospace, automotive, and industrial customers. Overlapping process portfolio and customer segments with ThermTech.
• Metlab Corporation: Mid-Atlantic commercial heat treater offering carburizing, nitriding, induction hardening, and metallurgical lab services. Comparable service mix and customer profile to ThermTech's Tool & Die and General Metal Manufacturing segments.
• Stack Metallurgical Group: Pacific Northwest commercial heat treating and thermal processing group serving aerospace, medical, and industrial customers with vacuum and atmosphere processing. Comparable service breadth and certification-driven go-to-market.

Broad incumbents

• HEF Group: French-based global surface engineering and heat treatment group offering a broad portfolio that includes thermochemical treatments, PVD coatings, and specialized industrial services. Overlaps with ThermTech on certain heat treatment processes but operates at significantly broader scale.
• Ellwood Group / Ellwood National Forge: Integrated steel and forging group that also operates commercial heat treating capacity serving defense, oil & gas, and industrial customers. Overlaps with ThermTech on heat treating for heavy industrial components, though embedded within a larger metals platform.

Regional players

• Wallwork Heat Treatment: UK-based commercial heat treating services provider serving aerospace, motorsport, and energy customers in the UK and Europe. Comparable service portfolio but operates in a different geography than ThermTech.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/thermtechinc
• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/ThermTechInc
• Facebookfacebook.com/thermtechinc
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/therm-tech-of-waukesha-inc

Compliance10 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Thermtech