GROUP I (Up to 80 employees)

First Place:                              

Arro Forge, Incorporated 

Cardinal Forge Company

Eagle WI Forge Company

Lakeview Forge Company

Michigan Forge Company

Second Place:

Schaefer Equipment a Wabtec Company

Third Place:                              

Green Bay Drop Forge

Improvement:

            Keystone Forging Company        

GROUP II (81 to 175 employees)

First Place:                              

ATI Portland Forge- Kentucky

Ellwood Advanced Components

Missouri Forge Incorporated

Second Place:

Jorgensen Forge Corporation

 Third Place:

Carolina Forge- a MFC Group Company

Improvement:

Missouri Forge Incorporated     

GROUP III (176 to 325 employees)

            First Place:

FRISA Forjados S.A. de C.V. Superalloys Plant

Second Place:

BAE Systems, Land & Armaments                    

Third Place:

General Dynamics Ordnance & Tactical Systems Scranton Operations

Improvement:

FRISA Forjados S.A. de C.V. Superalloys Plant

GROUP IV (Over 326 employees)

            First Place:

 Scot Forge Company- Spring Grove Division

Second Place:

Weber Metals Incorporated

Third Place:

Sypris Technologies Incorporated-Toluca

Improvement:

Weber Metals Incorporated

We are pleased to announce the 2013 Safety Award Winners. Awards are given in each of the four groups established according to average annual employment as follows:

                        I.          Up to 80 employees                  III.         176 to 325 employees

                        II.          81 to 175 employees                 IV.        Over 326 employees

First, second and third place Safety Awards are given in each group for companies having the lowest Recordable Cases Incidence Rate provided that the DART Incidence Rate falls below the group average. In the event that Recordable Incidence Rates are equal, the lower DART Incidence Rate will determine the award.

Improvement Awards are given in each group for the company experiencing the greatest improvement in the DART Incidence Rate. This award is determined by percentage of improvement by DART Incidence Rate compared with the last three years average.

The Laurin Baker Group Brings Us Breaking Political News:

As expected, House Ways and Means Chairman Dave Camp (R-MI 4) released his long-anticipated comprehensive tax reform legislation today.

The odds of this proposal becoming law this year are not good, particularly given the departure of Sen. Max Baucus (D-MT), who had been working with Rep. Camp on a bipartisan approach for the past three years.  Also, Republican leadership is concerned that moving ahead with this comprehensive package before the 2014 elections will allow Democrats to shift attention away from their Obamacare problem and potentially mitigate their losses in November.  Some even suggest getting too aggressive on tax reform now could cost the Republicans the chance to take back the Senate.

However, it is a bold proposal and regardless of whether it becomes law this year or not, it will certainly set the tone of the tax reform debate whenever it occurs!

FIA HAS BEEN ACTIVELY COMMUNICATING WITH MEMBERS OF CONGRESS FOR THE PAST TWO YEARS TO MAKE SURE THAT THE CONCERNS OF FORGERS WERE KNOWN.  NOW THAT THE PROPOSAL HAS BEEN RELEASED, WE NEED YOUR INPUT ON THE GOOD, BAD AND UGLY ASPECTS!!  FIA'S ANNUAL LOBBY DAY ACTIVITIES ARE APRIL 2 AND 3, AND WE NEED TO MAKE SURE MEMBERS OF CONGRESS KNOW HOW THIS WILL IMPACT FORGERS!!

Send your comments to Laurin Baker ([email protected]) or Jennifer Reid ([email protected])

 Here are some highlights of the package released today:

 Highlights of the Tax Reform Act of 2014 include:

 New Individual and Corporate Rate Structure:  Flattens the code by reducing rates and collapsing today's brackets into two brackets of 10 and 25 percent for virtually all taxable income, ensuring that over 99 percent of all taxpayers face maximum rates of 25 percent or less.  The plan also reduces the corporate rate to 25 percent. NOTE: This includes all income from U.S. manufacturing activities, regardless of whether earned by a pass-through entity or a C corporation.  There is a 35 percent bracket for individual income above $400,000 or $450,000 for joint filers (excluding Qualified Domestic Manufacturing Income from a pass-through entity)

• Larger Standard Deduction:  Makes the code simpler and fairer by providing a significantly more generous, inflation-adjusted standard deduction of $11,000 for individuals and $22,000 for married couples.  
• Larger Child Tax Credit:  Increases the child tax credit to $1,500 per child, adjusts it for inflation going forward and expands the number of families that can claim the credit. 
• Simpler, Improved Taxation of Investment Income:  Taxes long-term capital gains and dividends as ordinary income, but exempts 40 percent of such income from tax - resulting in a three percentage point decrease from the maximum rates individuals pay today on such income while also achieving the lowest level of double taxation on investment income in modern history.  
• No AMT:  In addition to lowering tax rates for families and all job creators, the plan repeals the Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT) for individuals, pass-through businesses and corporations

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FIA Board Update

At last month's FIA Board meeting in Cleveland, the Board took the following actions:

            * Approved funding to enhance and improve FIA's Benchmarking programs.

              This investment will result in "giving members what they want, when they want it"

            * Approved the continuation and expansion of "Benefactors" for the Annual Meeting to help fund

              the increasing cost of quality speakers.  This financial support will allow FIA to continue to       

              provide high level content at the Annual Meeting without dramatically increasing the registration

              cost to attendees.

            * Approved changing the title of FIA's chief executive staff person from Executive Vice President

              to President.  Additionally the titles for the President and Vice President of the Board of Directors       

              has been changed to Chairman and Vice Chairman.

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™Women in Manufacturing  is a nearly 400-member-strong national organization dedicated to the attraction, retention and advancement of women who are pursuing or have chosen a career in the manufacturing industry. This group encourages the engagement of women who want to share perspectives, gain cutting-edge manufacturing information, improve leadership and communication skills, participate in sponsoring programs and network with industry peers. Members benefit from exclusive access to regional and national programming, networking opportunities, mentoring and sponsoring programs, monthly professional development webinars, a customized employment tool called WiMWorks, online discussion communities, the quarterly Impact e-newsletter and a robust searchable online directory.  Allison Grealis, Director of Women in Manufacturing says, "Our goal at WiM is to better share the story of what it is really like to be a woman in today's manufacturing industry so that young women can better envision this as a professional fit."  Visit the group's website for additional information. 

Interested in forming a forging supply chain group?  Please contact Karen Lewis at the FIA Office ([email protected]; 216.781.6260).

Click to view/print the Catalog  

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Got a 2020 Plan?  FIERF does, and you're part of it!

While the view from the FIA Office is of a very frozen Lake Erie, we're thinking of summer to come and summer interns!  Now is the time to start your search for summer interns.  We hear from FIA Members that the one thing they would do differently regarding their internship program is to start earlier to bring in the right students.

For tips to make the most of internships, see the Foundation's Internship Pointers.  Contact Karen Lewis (216.781.6260 or [email protected]) to receive resumes of students interested in an internship in the forging industry.

April 9, 2014 - Chicago Marriott O'Hare Hotel

Safety professionals from FIA member forge shops will share their best safety practices with you in this one-day Best Practices Workshop.

Workplace safety requires providing a safe work environment for your employees. An injured worker is an unproductive employee, costing your business the services of a valued employee as well as driving up your insurance costs. While catchy slogans posted on signs can be effective cautionary reminders, responding to safety issues immediately can reduce the number of incidences of workplace mishaps.

Topics to be covered:

Overview of Forging University Safety Courses
Arch Flash Standards

What is a Recordable? Are You Over Recording Your Incidences?

OSHA Hot Buttons and Targeted Areas

Reducing the Risk of Hand Injuries

Overview of Environmental Regulations, Permits and Reports

Maximizing the Effectiveness of Your Safety Training

Improving Your Return-to-Work and Illness and Injury Preventive Programs

Round Table and Open Discussion

Click to view/print Workshop Brochure

Contact George Layne at: [email protected] for additional information.

Exhibitors Wanted: 2014 International Forgemasters Meeting

The 19th International Forgemasters Meeting (IFM 2014) will be held this September 29-October 3 in Tokyo, Japan. The IFM traditionally brings together hundreds of open die forging and supplier executives representing leading manufacturing companies from across the globe. This extraordinary event will showcase the best in forging technical presentations for the worldwide forging community.

Organized by The Steel Castings and Forgings Association of Japan (JSCFA), the 19th IFM will include an open exhibition of products and services of interest to the worldwide open die forging community. An Exhibitor Prospectus is now available. If you wish to exhibit at the IFM, please visit the JSCFA website at http://www.ifm2014.com/exhibition.html. Applications to exhibit will be accepted on a first come-first served basis. Completed applications should be faxed or e-mailed to the Secretariat no later than May 31, 2014.  

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