Magnetics Business & Technology - July/August 2021 - 28

INDUSTRY NEWS
After 51 Years of Innovation, Electron Energy Corporation is Developing Magnet
Solutions that Will Enable Tomorrow's Technologies
In the late 1960s, Marlin
Walmer, a young metallurgical
engineer working at
the Hamilton Watch Company,
developed a process
to produce platinum cobalt
magnets for the world's
first electric wristwatches.
At the time, platinum
cobalt magnets offered the
highest energy output of
any commercially available
permanent magnet
material. Platinum cobalt,
however, was far too
expensive for broader use
in other industries. Around
the same time, Marlin was
introduced to a new alloy
Marlin Walmer founded the first
rare earth magnet company,
Electron Energy Corporation, in
1970, after being introduced to permanent
magnets through his work
at Hamilton Watch.
system that was based on the rare earth element samarium and
the transition metal element cobalt, which appeared to have the
possibility for superior magnetic properties at far less cost than
platinum cobalt. Marlin instantly saw the possibilities for this new
magnet material to drive innovation across multiple industries
and decided to resign from his prominent position at Hamilton
Watch to create a startup company focused on magnets. In
1970, Marlin Walmer created the first rare earth magnet company
and Electron Energy Corporation (EEC) produced the world's
first commercially available rare earth magnets in a garage in
Manheim, Pennsylvania in 1971.
EEC utilizes pockets of automation in its
Lancaster, PA-based manufacturing facilities.
Today there are
numerous magnet
companies
producing various
types of magnet
materials for applications
ranging
from simple
electric motors in
children's toys to
complex traveling
wave tubes in
satellites enabling
modern day
communication
systems.
While much of the magnet industry was gravitating toward high
volume commercial markets and moving production overseas for
economic reasons, Electron Energy Corporation made the conscious
decision to keep its alloying, machining, and engineering
capabilities in the United States, near its customer base. Local
access to a vertically integrated magnet producer was exactly
what developing technologies of the day required in aerospace,
satellite communications, defense, medical devices, and energy
systems. " For over fifty years our customer base has used EEC
as an extension of their own engineering teams to develop next
28 Magnetics Business & Technology * July/August 2021
generation technology because they trusted EEC would remain
a local and accessible supplier, " said Scott Murr, the Lancaster,
Pa. based Director of Business Development. " EEC's ability to
internally train multiple generations of magnet experts paired
with our vertically integrated samarium cobalt operation in North
America are what have sustained the 40-50-year relationships
we've enjoyed with our customers. The current trend in rare earth
magnets is to bring back lost capabilities in the supply chain to
places such as the United States and Europe to mitigate supply
risks. EEC never left, so we are already positioned as a fully
operational domestic supplier of rare earth magnets in the United
States. "
The company's Materials
Technology Center (MTC), is
a 40,000 square foot facility
dedicated to the production of
sintered magnet blocks, rings,
discs and other shapes. At
the MTC, EEC also conducts
research and development in
support of continued improvement
of its magnetic materials
and operates a state-of-theart
magnetics laboratory to
satisfy the need for magnetic
characterization. EEC also
conducts research and
development in collaboration
with universities, national labs
and various other government
The Materials Technology Center
houses specialized equipment
used in various research
and development projects for
both individual companies and
government agencies.
agencies. The facility, and more importantly the veteran staff of
magnet experts running the operations, is internationally known
for developing new customer-driven magnet materials for various
industries. " Most of the people who join our team are intrigued
by the opportunity they have here to do work that really matters
and has a positive impact on the quality of life for everyone, "
CEO Michael Walmer said. " We offer opportunities for people
who embrace lifelong learning and we love the fact that we learn
something new every day. " By pushing the limits of magnet
technology, EEC has yielded a steady stream of innovations over
the years.
One of the early innovations at the MTC was the development
of EEC's temperature compensated samarium cobalt magnets.
The company developed the material to satisfy a need for an
extremely low reversible temperature coefficient (RTC) in highly
precise magnet systems. Originally created for use in accelerometers
and gyroscopes, Temperature Compensated SmCo
magnets are now employed in a variety of precision applications.
In 2010, EEC's Temperature Compensated SmCo magnets enabled
mission critical instruments used in two historical events.
In April, the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico
resulted in the largest marine oil spill in history. The solution to
the spill was to drill relief wells in order to intersect and cap the
blown-out well. BP used a vector magnetometer using EEC's
Temperature Compensated SmCo magnets, to make precision
measurements in order to guide the drill and locate the extremely
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Magnetics Business & Technology - July/August 2021

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