Aerospace & Defense

Challenge

A large aerospace manufacturer operating a high-temperature production process had been using a premium Watt-Flex® cartridge heater solution designed for their application. While performance was stable, the heaters were perceived as a higher upfront cost compared to alternative suppliers. In an effort to reduce spend, the manufacturer transitioned to a lower-cost heater supplier expected to deliver comparable performance.

Following the change, the process began to experience:

• Reduced heater life
• Increased failure rates
• More frequent replacements
• Increased maintenance interventions
• Unplanned downtime affecting production

While unit cost decreased, total cost of operation increased due to thermal instability within the process.

Solution

After a period of degraded performance, the manufacturer returned to the Watt-Flex® heater solution engineered for their application. This decision was driven by the need to restore controlled thermal conditions and predictable performance under load.

The reintroduced solution provided:

• Consistent heat transfer within the tool
• Durability under continuous operating conditions
• Predictable service intervals
• Reliable supply and application support

Rather than continuing to evaluate lower-cost alternatives, the manufacturer selected the solution based on demonstrated performance in their operating environment.

Results

With the engineered Watt-Flex® solution reintroduced:

• Heater life stabilized
• Maintenance frequency decreased
• Downtime was reduced
• Process consistency improved

The outcome extended beyond operational recovery. The evaluation criteria for heaters shifted from component cost to system impact.

In high-performance manufacturing environments, heaters are not interchangeable components. They directly influence thermal stability, which in turn governs process performance. A lower unit cost can introduce variability that increases maintenance, reduces uptime, and raises total cost of operation.

The relevant question is not:

“What does the heater cost?”

It is:

“What is the cost of instability in the process?”