According to material, geometry and loading profile the components e.g. for automobile or aircraft industries undergo heat treatment processes like hardening or annealing in atmosphere or vacuum furnaces. The vacuum treatment has the basic advantage, that the heat treatment process is executed in vacuum, which avoids grain-boundry-oxidation. This leads in general to higher performance and longer lifetime.

In dependence from the alloying of the material the hardening/quenching process can be executed under gas.The controllable gas-flow allows to minimize distortion effects.

Beside the metallurgical results the cost per piece is an essential factor. The atmosphere treatment represents the low-cost solution.