AFS, CMI making changes to more effectively, efficiently serve metalcasting industry.

The American Foundry Society (AFS) and its Cast Metals Institute (CMI) have announced recent and future changes to their business structure to be better prepared to serve the North American metalcasting industry.

CMI has instituted a new plan for its more than twenty laboratory courses--they now are only being held at colleges, universities and outside metalcasting facilities. While non-labolatory, classroom-only courses will still be held at AFS headquarters (as well as at offsite locations at the request of AFS Chapters and other metalcasting organizations), all laboratory courses are now taught at outside facilities (by CMI instructors) to bring CMI closer to the metalcasting industry.

The goal of CMI's new initiative for laboratory courses is two-fold. First, the Institute is improving the accessibility of its knowledge and services to its Students--the men and women of the metalcasting industry--to reduce their travel time and time spent away from the job. In addition, CM is giving something back to the colleges and other metalcasting facilities that have given so much to the industry in terms of training and research. Tire metalcasting industry and schools will benefit greatly from the increased exposure to each other that these CMI classes bring.

"This is a new and exciting era for CMI," said Ian Kay, AFS rice president-education. "We are responding as a business should respond. Our potential students spoke and said that we needed to be more accessible. We now are going to the schools and other metalcasting facilities with our courses to bring our metalcasting training and knowledge to you." According to Kay, both CMI and the students are going to benefit from the new technology these new laboratory metalcasting facilities can offer.

"With the recent increases over budgeted course attendance, it is reassuring to know that the changes already made by CMI are being embraced by the membership," said Al Lucchetti, CMI Chairman and president of Cumberland Foundry "If CMI is going to continue to be a leader in education for this industry, we must react to not only what our members want but also to the changing economic conditions and the need to allow CMI better regional accessibility."

AFS' change is still in the development stage but none the less important to announce. The Society is in the process of selling its current home at 505 State Street. Des Plaines, Illinois, and hopes to be in a new location by the beginning of its next fiscal year. July 1, 2004.

"The 67,000-sq-ft location AFS currently owns is too much space for our 35-employees and the services we provide to the metalcasting industry," said Dwight Barnhard. AFS executive rice president. "We are making the same strategic business decisions that our members are making. We need to recognize our structure to build a business model that serves our membership, committees and the metalcasting industry as a whole."

Currently. AFS membership stands at close to 10,000 individual members (from more than 3000 metalcasting and supplier firms) and more than 400 corporate member facilities. The current AFS technical committee structure relies on 782 member committee participants (from more than 400 metalcasting firms).

"While our membership totals are down due to the recent economic difficulties that have plagued our industry, we have seen a steady upward rise the last six months that bodes well for our future and that of the industry," said David Peterson, AFS director of membership services.

"AFS is providing the services that our members and customers say they need in a more effective manner," said Barnhard. "This includes using the precious industry resources even more wisely."