HOWCO Group differentiates itself from conventionally organized machining and service centers by offering customers a flexible manufacturing process in which HOWCO Group  breaks down the production route and manages the main parts of the process itself to provide flexible response, customization, cost reductions and shorter lead times.

HOWCO Group’s transformation service is particularly cost effective with specialty materials such as nickel alloys. It enables the group to complete orders quickly from its inventory of basic pre-material that has the adaptability to be converted into long length customized sizes of bar and tubular products.

Transformation, machining or conversion of raw materials to provide the ‘right material’ in as near ‘net form’ as possible is a core competency of HOWCO GROUP. This production capability includes the following processes that are undertaken in-house by HOWCO’s production and technical departments:

• Technical vetting of melting practice and pre-material.

• Determination of production routing and QC / QA requirements.

• Preparation of primary materials – Ingots, Billets, Tube Hollows.

• Heat Treatment - Furnace charts - Times and Temperature verification

• Straightening

• Testing – Ultrasonic : Magnetic Particle : Dye Penetrant : Photomicrographs

• Machining - Deep Hole Boring : Machining - Trepanning : Machining - Honing : Machining - Turning and Boring

• Final Inspection – Quality and dimensional checks

• Documentation package

In addition to in-house processes, an important part of HOWCO’s customer service is the reworking of materials through a network of subcontract forging facilities. HOWCO acts as an interface between producing mills and the market particularly in the production of specialty materials where the company maintains an inventory of pre-materials purchased from primary metal producers and customized through GFM Forging.