PWS High temp furnaces_2026.05.27.docx

Performance Work Statement (PWS) for High Temperature, Controlled Atmosphere Furnace Suite 27 May 2026

1.0 Background

The Composites Engineering Laboratory at Naval Air Warfare Center Weapons Division (NAWCWD) China Lake designs, prototypes, and fabricates composite structures using a variety of methods, striving to remain on the cutting edge of composite materials innovation, new application design, and system prototyping capabilities. Many high temperature, extreme environment materials require heat treatment under careful, fine control of chamber temperature and atmosphere. Different furnace designs are suitable for certain materials processing requirements. Factors such as chamber size and shape, materials used in furnace construction and insulation, power supplies, cooling systems, and furnace element type all influence the final capability of each furnace. The furnace suite features specified in this PWS will fulfill materials processing needs for high temperature composite materials, enabling novel material research and development (R&D), particularly for efforts to develop ceramic and metal composites materials suitable for hypersonic radomes, nozzles, leading edges, and other components. These furnaces are critical material processing tools for the workflow of prototyping additive manufacturing (AM) parts made of ceramic and metal composites. AM material development enables more efficient use of materials, greater capability to test small batches of research materials reducing initial risk, decreased environmental impact through reduced material waste, more complex geometry potential and more consistent composite part production due to AM layer-by-layer build process, and increased potential to successfully transition developed R&D materials and processing methods from lab scale to full scale production.

1.1 Scope

NAWCWD intends to procure a suite of high temperature, controlled atmosphere furnaces in support of current and future capability for metal and ceramic-based composite materials research, development, testing, processing, and production. The furnaces will heat treat metal and ceramic composite test articles and small- to mid-scale proof of concept parts. The Composites Lab routinely prototypes parts of different composite materials and requires high temperature, controlled atmosphere furnaces within its laboratory workflow.

2.0 Requirements

The contractor shall provide a High Temperature, Controlled Atmosphere Furnace Suite that meets the following:

2.1. Furnace Suite Design/Product Specifications and Performance Parameters

2.1.1. Suite shall consist of 2 furnace chambers, 2 vacuum systems, combined chiller, and combined or stacked combination cabinet(s). Every component that is combined shall be capable of being switched between one furnace or the other and have an included switching mechanism that directs its function to the active furnace chamber. There will not be any instance that both furnace chambers will operate simultaneously.

2.1.2. For the 2 furnace chambers: The first shall be designed to operate at max temperature of 1300 degrees Celsius, have an interior chamber size able to physically fit a part of 14.8” x 11.8” x 11.8” and the second shall be designed to operate at a max temperature of 2200 degrees Celsius and have an interior chamber size able to physically fit a part of 12” x 12” x 12”.

2.1.3. The furnace elements within each furnace chamber shall be selected to support good corrosion resistance and thermal conductivity under high temperature operation. The elements shall be of materials and a design that can be readily replaced under current industry standard practices.

2.1.4. Each furnace chamber shall be designed to have integrated radiation and heat shields surrounding their elements to reduce power consumption.

2.1.5. Both furnace chambers shall be designed to have copper water-cooled power feed-throughs delivering power to their elements. There shall not be any water-to-vacuum joints in the power feed-through.

2.1.6. The furnace chamber hot zone shall be designed to maintain consistent temperature within +/- 10 degrees Celsius in the uniform temperature zone. Inside the interior chamber, the uniform temperature zone shall occupy at least 85% of the x-y dimension and at least 40% of the z dimension.

2.1.7. The furnaces chambers both shall be top loading chambers with integrated lift platforms capable of raising and lowering to fully accommodate placing a sample on the chamber hearth work plate and lowering the sample into the chamber without the operator having to reach into the chamber.

2.1.8. The stability and anti-vibration of the lift platform shall be such that a high aspect ratio part can be placed on a “short” surface with a “long” dimension standing perpendicular to the lift platform and be consistently and fully lowered and raised into the chamber without the part toppling. As an example for concept, a high aspect ratio item like a ball point pen should be able to be stood on its cap end on the lift platform and be fully lowered and raised into the chamber without falling over due to platform motion.

2.1.9. The furnace chambers both shall be stainless steel, double-walled, water-cooled, and electropolished inside and out for improved vacuum pumping and integrity.

2.1.10. Both furnace chambers shall be mounted on powder coated steel frames that stabilize and support the chambers at a height above the ground for ease of operator use.

2.1.11. Both furnace chambers and lids shall be designed with mechanical system support to facilitate ease of opening, so the operator would not be required to physically lift any component of the furnace during any sample loading or unloading operations.

2.1.12. Each furnace chamber shall have a connected vacuum system capable of pumping the chamber to a pressure of at least 10^-5 torr and able to safely pump on a chamber filled with particulate typically generated under metal and ceramic sintering.

2.1.13. Vacuum systems on both furnace chambers shall include required O-rings, seals, supports, and other hardware and plumbing to connect the vacuum system to the suite. Vacuum lines shall be made of stainless steel.

2.1.14. Each furnace chamber shall have a connection (backfill and flowing) for two standard inert gases (argon and nitrogen) and shall be equipped to support nominal pressure operation up to 2 PSIG with safety interlocks and an over-pressure relief port and valve.

2.1.15. Gas system tubing and fittings shall be made of stainless steel.

2.1.16. On each furnace chamber, both gas lines shall have a solenoid controlled inlet valve, a mechanism to prevent backflow of gas from exit lines into the chamber, an integrated flow meter for flow control and monitoring, and a low-pressure switch for low flow inert gas.

2.1.17. Each furnace chamber shall be able to operate across its entire temperature range under vacuum condition down to 10^-5 torr and under inert atmosphere conditions to 2 PSIG. Each furnace chamber shall have at minimum: one mounted compound gauge reading no higher than 30 PSI and no lower than -30 PSI, two mounted capacitance diaphragm gauges with one ranging between 1000 to 1 torr and the other between 10 to 0.01 torr, one safety pressure relief valve which activates a 5 PSIG, and one leak check port with a manual valve that supports attaching a helium leak detector. Leak detector may be proposed but is not required to be supplied from the contractor.

2.1.18. Both furnace chambers shall be capable of pumping down to 10^-1 torr within 45 minutes or less and be able to maintain vacuum with a leak rate of less than 1x10^-2 torr L/sec.

2.1.19. Both furnace chambers shall be capable of safely backfilling from their maximum vacuum pressure to atmospheric pressure within 45 minutes or less.

2.1.20. Both furnaces chambers shall be connected to a shared water chiller system which can be switched to provide cooling service to one operating furnace chamber at a time.

2.1.21. The chiller system shall be a stainless-steel, closed loop, recirculating reservoir system, capable of maintaining cooling such that the exterior surface of either furnace chamber does not exceed 60 degrees Celsius during operation. The water connection to source water should be designed to handle up to 60 PSIG and a flow rate of 10 GPM or less. Valves between the chiller circuits shall be manually adjustable ball valves. Flow meters shall be integrated to support chiller system feedback and control, with at least 1 flow meter monitoring each critical circuit.

2.1.22. Each furnace chamber shall be connected to a NEMA-1 enclosed combination cabinet which shall be either combined or stacked to minimize suite footprint. The combination cabinet(s) shall include the power supply(ies), electrical wiring, programmable logic controller(s) (PLC), and touch screen human machine interface (HMI) control system(s).

2.1.23. The furnace suite power connection shall operate with 480V, 3 phase, 60 Hz, and no more than 60 kVA. The power supply shall be controlled by silicon-control rectifier (SCR) (thyristor) for power regulation and equipped with current limit protection.

2.1.24. Contractor shall provide required main circuit breaker to serve as a main power disconnect of the suite power supply and any required motor starters, fuses, circuit breakers, relays, and switches for each of the suite components.

2.1.25. The HMI system for each furnace shall display a graphical user interface (GUI) in English that supports intuitive user operation of the furnace and be fully integrated to work with the PLC.

2.1.26. The software providing the HMI GUI must not require licensing renewal or software updates to support continued furnace suite operation.

2.1.27. The HMI system (separate for each furnace chamber or shared and switchable) shall have the following minimum specifications: one 24” touch screen monitor, a Windows 10 (or newer) operating system computer with the contractor provided software control system preloaded and ready for user use, an integrated DVD/RW drive, a local area network (LAN) card or ethernet port, 3.8 GHz Quad Core CPU, 16 GB RAM, and a 2 TB SSD hard drive.

2.1.28. All of the furnace suite components must NOT have integrated Wi-Fi, live video streaming, video recording capabilities, or ability to have data transmitted wirelessly. These components all shall NOT require internet connectivity or cloud storage in order to execute programs, store data, or to attain software updates. Integrated LAN card(s) or ethernet port(s) shall be able to support isolated internal network connections such as for direct computer-to-computer transmission and shall not require access to external internet or cloud connections to sustain furnace functions.

2.1.29. The HMI shall be integrated with the PLC and support user access to programming furnace temperature and atmosphere recipes (with ability to store at least 8 programmed recipes), viewing stored data of previous runs, viewing data trends, selecting user security levels and system access, setting overtemperature controls, viewing and responding to furnace alarms (current and historical), adjusting proportional-integrative-derivative (PID) controls, and configuring system settings.

2.1.30. Information displayed on the HMI for each furnace during operation shall include the supplied current and voltage to the heating elements, current program stage from recipe, set point for temperature and pressure, actual temperature and pressure, inert gas flow/vacuum pressure, and chiller system water flow rate and temperature. This data shall be selectable for recording at a frequency the customer selects within a range of at least 1 sec to 30 min.

2.1.31. Both furnace chambers shall have, at minimum, two type C thermocouples, at least one for control and one for overtemperature control.

2.1.32. Type C thermocouple sheathing, gauge, and connection design can limit the safe operation temperature range below 2200 degrees Celsius. If the thermocouples of either furnace chamber are temperature limited for safe operation below their maximum operating temperature, they shall be designed to automatically withdraw from the hot zone upon reaching a preset temperature limit. When the type C thermocouple is withdrawn, the furnace chamber temperature shall be controlled by a two-color pyrometer aligned to take measurements through a sight window into the chamber.

2.1.33. The overtemperature control shall consist of a dedicated high limit controller and thermocouple set, one set for each furnace chamber and each set integrated for use and viewing on the HMI system.

2.1.34. The HMI and all furnace controls for both furnace chambers should be positioned on the combination cabinets for easy user access and system monitoring.

2.1.35. When assembled and fully connected, all suite components shall fit within a footprint of 5ft x 10ft and height shall be under 7ft.

2.1.36. Critical spare parts shall be included in the suite package, suitable for both furnace chambers and including, at minimum, for each furnace chamber: a set of extra heating elements, set of extra heat shields, kit of extra O-rings and seals, extra vacuum sensors, and set of extra control and overtemperature thermocouples. For each furnace chamber individually, critical spare parts unique to each chamber should also be included if needed.

2.1.37. Contractor shall provide a list of recommended spare parts, if any fall outside of the critical spare parts already included in the suite package.

2.1.38. Contractor shall provide a list of their factory acceptance criteria and defined metrics to be met.

2.1.39. Any suite components requiring compressed air shall operate up to 100 PSI.

2.1.40. Contractor shall make arrangements for and include cost for suitable suite packaging and shipping freight to NAWCWD in China Lake, CA 93555.

2.2. Safety

2.2.1. For lines plumbed between suite components, whether for gas, vacuum, compressed air, cooling water, or electricity, all lines shall be planned to minimize tripping hazards to operators and maximally route through conduits or along structural members, edges, or connection points of each suite component. Lines routed along the floor shall be in locations where a regular user walkway is not expected in the recommended suite arrangement.

2.2.2. Furnace suite shall have design considerations for safe operation of a high temperature, controlled atmosphere furnace within a closed building.

2.2.3. Furnace suite shall meet electrical certification from a Nationally Recognized Testing Laboratory (NRTL).

2.2.4. Furnace suite shall conform, at minimum, to National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) codes and standards 70 – National Electric Code:, 79 – Electrical Standard for Industrial Machinery, and 86 – Standard for Ovens and Furnaces.

2.2.5. No furnace suite component shall generate noise higher than 70dB.

2.2.6. Both furnace chambers shall be equipped with a heat zone contactor that only permits power to the heating elements when water flow, overtemperature alarm, and system interlock are activated for safe operation.

2.2.7. Both furnace chambers shall be equipped with an interlock mechanism that restricts opening the chamber while temperature conditions are unsafe for the furnace chamber materials and the operator.

2.2.8. If water flow interruption restricts cooling capability of the chiller for more than 5 seconds, the power supply to active heating elements shall be cut off to prevent overheating of suite components.

2.2.9. Control system shall include at least one readily accessible method to execute an emergency command to stop program run which deenergizes the heating elements in the active furnace chamber. This shall include at least a physical control switch or knob but may also include a stop program button on the touchscreen HMI.

2.2.10. The control system for each furnace chamber shall have an integrated uninterruptable power supply (UPS) capable of providing at least 30 minutes of power in the event of power failure.

2.2.11. Recommended maintenance schedules shall be provided by the contractor.

2.3. System Support

2.3.1. The contractor shall have demonstrated practiced capability in high temperature, controlled atmosphere laboratory furnace engineering design, delivery, and customer service support for at least 10 years. Documentation of the capability shall be verifiable, potential verification routes include published trade articles, documented research efforts, independent analyses, or testimonials from other research laboratory customers.

2.3.2. The contractor shall be responsible for developing and demonstrating checkout procedures to verify the machine meets the requirements of this Statement of Work before installation.

2.3.3. The contractor shall provide at least one physical copy and one digital copy of: assembly drawings with utility information, installation instructions, operation instruction manuals, drawings for recommended suite arrangement, maintenance manuals and schedules, and wiring diagrams to support the delivered unit.

2.3.4. The assembly drawings with utility information shall include location call outs of utility connection points on all suite components and be provided to the NAWCWD technical point of contact within 4-6 weeks of purchase order for review, feedback, and acceptance before suite is constructed.

2.3.5. Training shall be offered for up to 2 days at the contractor facilities by the contractor during government site visit prior to shipment of the unit.

2.3.6. The contractor shall provide on-site machine installation and set-up at NAWCWD.

2.3.7. The contractor shall train lab personnel at NAWCWD for up to 3 days in the proper use of the machine immediately after installation – to include safety, programming, and hardware operation.

2.3.8. The contractor shall provide the industry standard 1-year warranty against defects of material and workmanship from the date of commissioning at NAWCWD.

3.0 Deliverables

3.1. Machine shall be completed and ready to ship from contractor’s facility from receipt of order and deposit within 1 year.

3.2. High Temperature, Controlled Atmosphere Furnace Suite in accordance with Section 2.0

3.3. Assembly drawings with utility information in accordance with Section 2.3

3.4. Installation instructions in accordance with Section 2.3

3.5. Operation instruction manuals in accordance with Section 2.3

3.6. Drawings for recommended suite arrangement in accordance with Section 2.3

3.7. Maintenance manuals and schedules in accordance with Section 2.3

3.8. Wiring diagrams in accordance with Section 2.3

3.9. Training per Section 2.3

4.0 Special Considerations

4.1. The Government will be responsible for utility connections to the machine.

4.2. The Government will provide electricity, water, inert gas, and compressed air as needed for the suite. Natural gas and steam are unavailable at the installation site.

4.3. Shipping of deliverables is FOB Destination.