ECHT Prague 2025 – What was it like?
To repeat history, since 2000, the ECHT conference has been held 3 times in Prague. Why the attraction? Prague is simply perfect. In addition to the history of heat treatment, history itself breathes here.
Year Location Country
2000 Wiesbaden Německo
2002 Florencie Itálie
2004 Paříž Francie
2006 Praha Česká republika
2008 Stuttgart Německo
2010 Verona Itálie
2012 Salzburg Rakousko
2014 Paříž Francie
2016 Praha Česká republika
2018 Friedrichshafen Německo
2019 Bardolino Itálie
2020 Online (organizováno A3TS) Francie
2022 Salzburg Rakousko
2023 Janov Itálie
2024 Toulouse Francie
2025 Praha Česká republika
I personally participated in 2016 and 2025. In 2016, the conference was held at the Břevnov Monastery, this year at the Kaiserštejn Palace.
Illustrative photo from the ECHT 2016 conference and participant statistics
The fact that Prague is attractive was also true in Bodycote. Even during the presidency of John Hubbard, a global Bodycote meeting was held every year, and one of them was also in Prague. I still remember very well how I paid the invoice for the rental of the Zbraslav castle. And in the end, this attractiveness led Bodycote to move the share centre here, actual Bodycote SSC.
But let’s get back to ECHT. It was a pleasant meeting with a whole range of new acquaintances. However, the “hard core” has remained the same for years. The presence of ECM, or the return of Ipsen after a change of representation, is a revival, but the world of heat treatment is much larger than we are used to understanding it.
Since there are almost no potential customers at this type of conference, except for commercial heat treater, then the presentation of furnace or accessory manufacturers seems like a kind of blind shot to me. As Cédric Villard from ECM said, if we were missing, for example, at the HK at Cologne, everyone would think we went bankrupt.
Personally, I missed the presence of HIP manufacturers, or the presentation of Chinese furnace production (SAMT, Fulcrum), but also Aalbert Surface Technologies or HÄRTHA Group, as competitors of Bodycote in our region, or NITREX with its new program for FNC disc brakes. So those who have something to offer are outnumbered by those who would like to buy something.
Since the founding of HT-PROGRES, I have regularly participated in our Heat Treatment Days, actively, with lectures. I counted almost 30 of them. I am glad that Klára Tesárková took over this role, thus ensuring a certain continuity. Other commercial heat treaters are silent, so I explain it by saying that they do not want to share any of their know-how.
I have decided for myself that I will offer a lecture this year as well. Although I no longer quench, I am trying even harder to keep up with modern technologies. And since the path we have chosen with Doc. Tomáš Čegan seems meaningful to me, why not publish the results of our work in this form.
Although there were individuals who thought that the 3D Printing Center for Metal Implants is an utopia, as I introduced the lecture, I took it more as a PR preparation for lobbying. After all, it takes €10 million to do this. At the same time, I wanted to show that only a conceptual solution to 3D printing makes sense. And because everyone is focusing on printers, and not on the necessary post-processes, the situation in the Czech Republic is what it is.
I calculated that more than 40 metal printers were sold in the Czech Republic, but the number of applications implemented in the form of real parts is minimal. It is interesting that this field was significantly improved by a person who came from a completely different world, and that person is Mr. Jebavý from Vibrom. And so, unlike scientific and academic institutions, he became the right visionary. So, a big congratulations to Třebechovice, without him even implantology would not work today, even though the goal of HIP, which it bought, is Colt pistol triggers, produced using MIM technology.
I cannot forget the role of ONE3D in this, but their path is aligned differently, and I am not entirely sure if it is correct. When I observe various global companies involved in 3D printing, they are gradually buying post-processing equipment so that they are independent. An example can be, for example, the Austrian Pankl Racing, which was also present at the conference, and which bought HIP several years ago, or Press-X from Italy, Deloro Wear, Howmet Aerospace in Germany, Paolo in US, now part of the Aalbert group etc. Although the academic community claims something different, I am 100% convinced that it will not work without this combination. After all, you just have to ask yourself why Bodycote is constantly expanding its HIP capacities.
If I had to evaluate my feelings about the lectures, some were very interesting, but they solved problems that were not entirely practical. However, I still evaluate positively the participation of all French institutions, as well as the lecturers from Japan. However, I missed more critical topics, and that is the transformation of our technologies to FIT55. Perhaps because there are no customers present, there is no need for an offer.
I was surprised that the topic of water quenching appeared again. It is just confirmation that the world is trying to save on steel alloys, and then we will have no choice but to go back a few centuries. I do not know if a vacuum device combined with water hardening is the right way, but there is certainly something to it.
Perhaps, apart from the SecoWarwick lecture, no one seriously paid attention to energy savings and sustainable development. ESG reporting is also related to this. I have already mentioned several times that, just like household appliances, furnaces should also have their own energy label. That is the primary information that the customer should receive. If there is no global consensus on a reference, measurable model, then I don’t quite understand why furnace manufacturers don’t create their own tool. ECM has such a tool, and a complete energy analysis can be easily done for each part, as well as a carbon footprint.
Although many of the lectures were focused on simulations, surprisingly no one from the commercial sector was present. Those working in our field do not need complicated studies of mathematical calculations through various integral and differential equations, but a simple modelling tool that will allow for quick orientation in the design of the batch composition. Aubert-Duval’s attempt to simulate this is nice, but it is 2025. I have had such a simple modelling tool since 1995, when Bernard Jomain from BMI created it in Excel, and this system has made many things easier for me for years. The mathematical description of the problem is the same today as it was 30 years ago.
The same applies to the use of AI in heat treatment. The conference included an interesting lecture from Pisa, Italy, on the search for the optimal alloying of steel to achieve the correct hardenability profile. Based on AI analysis of Jominy curves, the alloying can be determined to meet the required curve. But heat treaters have a completely different problem. How to choose heat treatment parameters based on knowledge of the chemical composition so that the result matches the customer’s specifications, even if the chemical composition is in the lower hardenability range.
There was no mention of my favourite GIGA casting at the conference. Apart from a recent article by Thomas Wingens in HeatTreatToday, there was silence on the trail. And yet, for me, it is one of the biggest question marks of the time. In the July issue of Slévárenské listy, my lecture, which I gave at the Holeček Conference in the presence of Volvo Car Slovakia, Košice employees, will appear. It is yet another challenge, approaching utopia. Probably like with those implants.
The closing banquet at the Červený Jelen restaurant was a good point for the entire conference. Pavel Stolař award for lifetime achievement is a sign that our generation is coming to an end. And even though I didn’t always agree with him, I wish him all the best. Finally, together with Pavel and Ota Prikner, we are the first honorary members of the Association. Who is lucky enough to be the first again at this age…
Jiří Stanislav
June 8, 2025
