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A D V A N C E D M A T E R I A L S & P R O C E S S E S | M A R C H 2 0 1 6
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IN MEMORIAM
G
eorge Pfaffmann was well known
throughout the heat treating in-
dustry and was an active member
of ASM International. He served on ASM’s
Technology and Programming Committee
and the ASM Materials Education Founda-
tion, as well as the Heat Treating Society
Board of Trustees and R&D Committee.
In September 2013, he presented a talk
during the “Masters of Heat Treating Se-
ries” at the 27th ASM Heat Treating Soci-
ety Conference and Exposition in Indianapolis. He spoke
about Edwin F. Northrup (1866-1940), widely considered
the “father of induction heating.” Some of George’s other
accomplishments include:
•
George H. Bodeen Heat Treating Achievement Award,
2003
•
ASM Heat Treating Honorary International Sympo-
sium Award on Induction Hardening, 2003
•
Served on the National Research Council commit-
tee to draft the DOE-ITP report, “Decreasing Energy
Intensity in Manufacturing”
•
Co-recipient of
R&D Magazine’s
R&D 100 Award for
2009
•
Enlisted in the U.S. Army during WWII and served
during the Korean war
•
38 U.S. patents and many more international patents
•
Over 50 years of service to ASM
I worked with George for almost a decade. He loved
technical research and would long to get to the office at
six in the morning and work until late in the evening. Even
during the last few weeks before he passed, George would
follow the technical developments and contribute his
thoughts and opinions. The last technical paper he co-au-
thored, Induction Coupled Thermo-Magnetic Processing,
was presented in October 2015 at the 28th ASM Heat Treat-
ing Society Conference and Exposition in Detroit.
The work cited below is from discussions with
George’s colleague, Ron R. Akers, VP of R&D at Ajax Tocco
Magnethermic Corp. In 2002, George retired as Ajax Toc-
co’s VP of Technology, after working for 50 years. He then
rejoined the company as a consultant VP of Technology
until November 22, 2015. George was part of widespread
TRIBUTE TO A HEAT TREATING PIONEER:
GEORGE D. PFAFFMANN, FASM
FEBRUARY 13, 1928
–
NOVEMBER 22, 2015
George Pfaffmann was highly regarded as a true leader and innovator
in induction heating technology.
Aquil Ahmad,
Retired Chief Metallurgist, Eaton Corp.
changes the U.S. automotive industry
experienced over the past 50 years. The
industry went from 100,000-mile automo-
bile
lifetimes
to today where 100,000-mile
warranties
are common. Average mileage
has doubled and performance has been
enhanced to where most cars are at per-
formance levels approaching previous
muscle cars. George was in Detroit during
this period and led much of the induction
industry’s contributions to these changes.
His legacy includes the following:
Camshaft hardening:
George was involved in the con-
version from flame hardening to induction hardening of
camshafts in the early 1950s and later added high power
density hardening to that technology.
Axle shaft hardening:
George was a leading contrib-
utor to the development of full length scan hardening of
axle shafts, improving resistance to torsional fatigue by
200%.
Single shot axle hardening and tempering:
George was
involved with introducing the single shot process, increas-
ing the induction hardening production rate to allow the
process to be put in line with other processes and improv-
ing the metallurgical pattern for many parts that were pre-
viously scanned.
Restraint axle hardening:
George was a leading mem-
ber of the team that introduced restraint axle hardening to
the automotive industry.
Valve seat hardening:
George invented the induction
valve seat hardening process, which was the major break-
through that paved the way for conversion from leaded to
unleaded gasoline.
Gears:
George has many patents and achievements
regarding gears, such as profile gear hardening and front
wheel sprocket hardening.
Powdered metal atomization:
George was part of the
early gas atomization process for the production of fine,
pure, and high temperature metal powders.
Hot metal gas forming:
George was an integral part of
the Auto Body Consortium in developing a process to re-
place hydroforming of auto body structural parts.
Aquil Ahmad and George
Pfaffmann at Heat Treat 2013.