ATLANTA – Another successful CastExpo wrapped up Tuesday.

After 3 1/2 days of full-scale exhibits, cutting-edge technology demos, packed aisles, exciting new equipment, innovative sessions and a show floor full of energy, CastExpo said goodbye until 2022 in Columbus, Ohio.

“CastExpo 2019 was very well-received by all of our various audiences, and we were thrilled to have more than 5,000 guests from 32 countries in attendance,” AFS CEO Doug Kurkul said.

The success of the show displayed the strength of the industry, and the variety of everything available to all parts of the supply chain.

“There is so much new technology that is available for foundries to evaluate and upgrade their plants. It was on display here,” Kurkul said. “Then, with the technical and management sessions, a wealth of knowledge has been shared. We’ve received tremendous feedback from the attendees that this was a very worthwhile 3 1/2 days in Atlanta.”

The 124th Metalcasting Congress will be held April 21-23, 2020, in Cleveland. The 125th Congress is heading to Milwaukee from April 13-15, 2021. CastExpo 2022 and the 126th Metalcasting Congress is slated for April 23-26, 2022, in Columbus.

More Honors
The final formal event of CastExpo was Tuesday’s President’s Luncheon and 123rd Annual Business Meeting. At the luncheon, John M. Tartaglia was presented an AFS Award of Scientific Merit “for outstanding technical papers and presentations, as well as meritorious technical contributions in the areas of material property information and fatigue strain analysis of cast metals.”

There were also three AFS Service Citations handed out.

George B. Kokos was honored “for his important work in advancing the technical understanding of iron casting and support of advanced research, as well as his extensive service to the Cast Iron Division and the regional AFS chapter.”

Peter Satre was cited “for his steady leadership of AFS technical programs, outstanding service to the Melting Methods & Materials Division, and service to the industry as a rich source of technical information.”

Brian V. Smith was recognized “for his relentless focus on attracting youth to the metalcasting industry through Foundry in a Box and other outreach activities, as well as his longtime service to AFS regional chapters.”

Other honorees included the 2019 Casting of the Year (Neenah Foundry), AFS Corporate Contribution Award (Carley Foundry, Elkem), and the AFS Millionaires Safety Award (Oil City Iron Works, Charlotte Pipe and Foundry, Denison Industries, LeSueur Inc., Neenah Foundry).