Hillman Proudly Serving The U.S. Navy
The US Navy recently launched the USS Gerald Ford, the largest and most sophisticated US aircraft carrier ever built, after 5 years in the making. Hillman Brass & Copper is the proud supplier of over 20,000 pounds of Copper-based alloys on this mighty ship – key components that keep the ship’s plumbing and power plant working smoothly and safely for over 4,000 sailors on board. We love our role in supporting our nation’s diplomacy and defense, and look forward to putting our products into the next Ford-Class aircraft carrier.
For 105 years Hillman Brass & Copper has supported the United States Navy. While specializing in Copper-Nickel products like plate, sheet, rod and tube, Hillman has supplied a variety of other Copper-based alloys to the Navy. Given that Hillman supplies over 3000 customers, many related to military shipbuilding, we can be sure that every vessel in the 280-ship Navy has Hillman metal aboard. And we had product on many, many more vessels that were built early last century and since decommissioned.
USS Gerald Ford
Why Hillman?
Copper Nickel (CuNi) (aka Cupro Nickel) has a number of chemistries that are used in shipbuilding applications. 70/30 (known as C715 with 70% Cu and 30% Ni) and 90/10 (known as C706 with 90% Cu and 10% Ni) are the two primary alloys that end up in equipment such as valves, tubing, condensers, desalinization and hundreds of other types of components. Hillman carries a large inventory so that the Navy and its suppliers are never waiting for product. Next-day shipments are the expectation, along with the critical tasks of quality control.
Every order that Hillman ships is considered Level 1 SUBSAFE. This is a standard that began in the 1950’s when the Navy lost a submarine and its crew due to a failure of substandard components. Hillman makes the assumption that every piece of metal we ship will end up in a submarine, aircraft carrier, destroyer or other surface vessel, so our Quality Control includes triple checks on order placement, receipt of material, work order placement, and final inspection prior to shipment.
Hillman is Quality Control. We maintain 100% traceability on all orders, from the mill to when they leave our door. We can tell you who made it, when they made it, how they made it, and who had influence on any material in our shop.
While the Navy’s Level 1 SUBSAFE program requires that we comply with these standards – we strive to exceed the standards.
Willow Grove, PA-based Hillman Brass & Copper adds value to the metal products we supply. We sawcut tube and rod to exact length, as well as squares and rectangles from plate. We have a brand-new shear that allows close tolerance cutting of sheet. And our waterjet machine cuts close tolerance shapes, eliminating excess machining. Additionally, Hillman works with partner machine shops to create finished components. We anticipate our customers’ needs – we bring in only military-grade material in quantities that keep us ahead of the long mill lead time curve. Our customers can be confident that Hillman will have in stock the exact product that they need.
Hillman and the US Navy have 105 years of history together, and we both are looking to the next 105 years. Give us a call and see what Hillman Brass & Copper can do for you.