[3] Edwin Fitch Northrup built the first prototype of a vacuum induction furnace in the United States of America in 1920.
As these metals and alloys became more common, the vacuum induction melting (VIM) process became more widely adopted.
[5] The melting and casting operations are carried out at low pressures to control the entire alloy chemistry process.
The VIM process is often used for small batch sizes and allows for a high level of control over the composition of the alloy.
There is low environmental contamination (dust etc) and oxidation, while elements that are often undesired such as hydrogen or nitrogen can be removed from the process.