Custom Carbon & Graphite Machining

25 Nov

Innovations in Graphite Machining Techniques: What's Coming in 2026?

Over the past two decades, the tech world has conditioned us to expect lightning-fast innovation. Now, every few months brings new AI capabilities, faster processors, and software that can do things we couldn't imagine a year ago. It's easy to assume that every industry moves at this pace. But that's not how innovation works in manufacturing, and it's certainly not how it works in graphite machining. Not that graphite machining doesn’t involve cutting-edge technology. It does. We, of course, incorporate automated systems and CAD/CAM machining into our workflows. But at Semco, we keep before us a picture of progress that...

19 Nov

How Custom Graphite Parts Improve Efficiency in the Steel Industry

Steel production has never had a reputation for being clean or efficient. For over a century, massive blast furnaces consumed enormous amounts of coal and iron ore while belching CO2 into the atmosphere. But the steel industry has been changing, slowly but surely. Electric arc furnaces now dominate steel production in the United States, and the shift toward scrap recycling has reduced both energy consumption and emissions. At Semco, we've watched these changes closely because custom graphite parts play a significant role in making modern steelmaking more efficient. The electrical conductivity and thermal conductivity of graphite, along with its thermal...

11 Nov

Carbon Graphite: Sustainability and Green Manufacturing Practices

At Semco, we pay close attention to developments in synthetic graphite production, not just because we machine graphite components daily, but because our customers increasingly ask about sustainability. The truth is, graphite manufacturing has never been particularly "green." Synthetic graphite production consumes enormous amounts of energy, and the recycling of graphite has historically lagged behind other materials. As we’ve written about in a previous blog, we were called in to extract large graphite electrodes that had been disposed of in an Iowa cornfield. Yet we're seeing real changes in how graphite gets made and how it's being recovered and reused....

29 Oct

How Graphite Solutions Help Reduce Industrial Carbon Footprints

It's a funny thought, right, carbon graphite helping to reduce industrial carbon footprint, lower emissions, and combat climate change. To us at Semco, well acquainted as we are with graphite's stellar thermal management, durability, and key role in green technologies, the idea that carbon graphite plays a role in reducing emissions and industrial carbon footprint is not surprising at all. In fact, for years we've explored this topic in piecemeal ways in this blog (see this blog that includes how carbon graphite plays a part in hydrogen fuel cells, for instance). Here, we will take a look at the overall...

15 Oct

5 Ways Custom Graphite Machining Enhances Industrial Productivity

5 Ways Custom Graphite Machining Enhances Industrial ProductivityThe manufacturing environment is and has always been competitive. As a manufacturing company ourselves, we know at Semco that every advantage matters. Companies constantly seek ways to streamline operations, reduce costs, and improve output quality. For example, we have written here about Semco's pursuit and achievement of ISO-9001 certification, a process which led us to find new strengths and efficiencies in our graphite machining operation. We have also written extensively about our use of CNC machining. For many manufacturers, custom graphite machining offers multiple pathways to enhanced productivity that many manufacturers overlook. Unlike...