Main products and services
History
ELTERMA has always focused on the manufacture of heat treatment equipment for metals – it is what we were doing when the company was established in the middle of the last Century, and it is what we are still doing today, as part of the global SECO/WARWICK holding company.
Operating in 35 countries, our products combine high quality with reasonable prices, enabling them to successfully compete against their rivals. This great combination of outstanding quality and great value has been the case since the very early days, even though a great deal has changed in the company’s history over that time: initially a state-owned enterprise, we have become a privately-owned, effectively-managed modern company that has adapted our products to the requirements of today’s global market.
Here is the story of our success.
 "ELTERMA – 1950")
ELTERMA – 1950
The fifties & the sixties
ELTERMA was established in 1950 to concentrate on manufacturing heat treatment equipment for metals, so we have many years’ experience in this field. Confirmation of the quality of our products is that we quickly became the Polish industry’s leading company in this area. In the 1960s, we were the main supplier of such equipment to Eastern Europe, while – quite naturally – remaining the leading manufacturer in Poland.
 "PEKAT Furnace Line")
PEKAT Furnace Line
The seventies
Technology and customer requirements were changing. A critical period for us was the 1970s, when the company began to grow very fast. Significant technological changes at ELTERMA came as early as 1970, when we began manufacturing what were then ultra-modern lines based on PEKAT electric chamber furnaces for controlled atmosphere heat treatment. Not long after that, we began producing PEKAT electric pit furnaces for controlled atmosphere heat treatment and a full range of other furnaces for applications in a variety of industries: machinery, motors, tooling, machine tools, bearings, and aviation, among many others.
 "Sealed Quench furnaces produced as a licensee")
Sealed Quench furnaces produced as a licensee
Our investment and development efforts paid off. As customer demand for the modernisation and construction of complete large steel-hardening shops grew, we became the general supplier in the thermo-technical metal treatment industry.
In 1975, ELTERMA acquired from USA-based IPSEN International the licence for the manufacture of many types of vacuum furnaces and controlled atmosphere heat treatment furnaces. Producing these new furnace lines, we became the leading producer of metal heat treatment equipment throughout Central and Eastern Europe.
Until the 1980s, the METALEXPORT Foreign Trade Office handled export of our equipment. ELTERMA was prospering at that time, with new production halls constructed and the modernisation of our ‘machine park’. Our product range grew to include over 1,000 types and sizes of different metal heat treatment devices, and we employed almost 1,500 people.
 "ELTERMA – 1985")
ELTERMA – 1985
The eighties
The late 1980s brought significant political and economic changes in Eastern Europe. For thousands of Polish companies, that meant suddenly having to face global competition at the same time as losing their main export markets. These changes caused serious difficulties, which in some cases could not be overcome. To save the day, ELTERMA began to restructure its business, including its products. We became a supplier of steel structures and machine components for a variety of industries. At the same time, the company’s size had to be adapted to the needs of the market at that time.
Pusher Heat treatment Furnace
The nineties
Fortunately, in the mid 1990s heat treatment equipment was back in demand and so we were able to resume our traditional area of business, providing high quality, great value equipment.
ELTERMA S.A. in the 21st century
A turning point was yet to come. In early 2003, SECO/WARWICK acquired 100% of the ELTERMA stocks. The new owner, SECO/WARWICK, provided the company with access to its sales network, business contacts, references as well as technical documentation and support for particular product groups.
The joint forces of our engineers, combined with SECO/WARWICK’s experience and know-how, allowed us to improve the quality and competitiveness of our products and to focus on a new area. Currently, we specialise in manufacturing atmosphere heat treatment equipment.
Our experience of over 50 years, combined with the support provided by SECO/WARWICK, has proven to be a force for further change. From 2003 – 2006, our sales and profitability increased threefold, and we have primarily used our profits to develop and modernise the company and its products.
We are already rated among Europe’s leading manufacturers of atmosphere heat treatment equipment, and plan to become, within the next five years, the world’s leader in the supply of certain types of products.
We do not skimp on investment projects, research and development or adapting new technologies, which allows us to continuously increase the technical and price competitiveness of our products.
We are strongly convinced that our story has only just begun.
