On 1st April 2000, the former FERROTRON ELEKTRONIK GMBH became a 100-percent subsidiary of Minerals Technologies Inc. (MTI), under the new name FERROTRON TECHNOLOGIES GmbH. In recent years, FERROTRON has emerged as the market leader for laserprofile measurement technology for the refractory and steel industries worldwide. Notable is the laser-measurement system known as LaCam^®, developed in close cooperation with German steel makers and formally introduced in 1999. The LaCam^® refractory lining measuring system can measure the safety lining of steel furnaces and other vessels that carry molten metals in 20 seconds; the previous market-leading measurement system took 20 minutes. Further, when used in combination with Minteq International Inc.’s (MINTEQ’s) MINSCAN^® robotic manipulator and the Scantrol interface module—the world’s first fully automatic system for integrating the measurement, evaluation, and repair of linings in refractory environments—LaCam^® refractory lining measuring system eliminates guesswork in lining maintenance and minimizes the dangers in the steel-making environment.

FERROTRON was founded in 1974 with the goal of developing an immersion measurement probe—again, in cooperation with German steel companies—capable of determining the activity of oxygen dissolved in molten steel. The result was the FOX™ probe, now in its fifth generation.

In 1979 the product offering was extended to self-developed instruments for the measurement of temperature and the activity of oxygen, and now includes network systems for data acquisition and processing.

In 1985 FERROTRON began reaping international acclaim through its groundbreaking laser-measurement technology.

The division for non-destructive testing for rolling mills, established in 1996, uses innovative measuring techniques to determine the degree of re-crystallization and grain size in rolled steel.

Vision systems and sophisticated data-acquisition systems round out the FERROTRON product and service range.

The close customer relationships that were instrumental in producing the FOX™ probe and LaCam^® refractory lining measuring system guarantee that in the years ahead, FERROTRON’s hands-on experience will continue to flow back into the development processes needed for revolutionary new measurement systems and immersion probes.

Ferrotron^®, LaCam^® and Scantrol^® are registered trademarks of Minerals Technologies Inc. or its subsidiaries in the United States and Germany.