Wine, cable cars & castings.

Even though I am a part of the metalcasting industry every day, I become caught up in the duties of my day-to-day responsibilities and often lose sight of how important this industry is to almost every facet of our society. In June's MODERN CASTING editorial, I talked a little about this importance, but in this editorial I want to tell you about the slap in the face reminder I received a month ago when my wife and I took a trip to San Francisco and the Napa Valley wine country.

In Napa, we stayed in the town of St. Helena. For dinner one night, we ate at Terra, a highly-regarded French-Asian restaurant one block from the town's main street. Throughout dinner, we were admiring the building the restaurant resides in as the walls (both interior and exterior) are exposed native fieldstone. As the photo on this page illustrates, this is a very dramatic and elegant look.

Once we finished dinner, we asked our waitress about the building, and the first words out of her mouth were, "This was originally a metalcasting facility for the local community in the late 1800s and early 1900s." You should have seen the smile on my face.

In fact, the Taylor, Duckworth and Co. Foundry Building is registered as a historical landmark. Constructed in 1884, the metalcasting facility served the press and pump industries with a focus of casting components for wine-making machinery, such as grape crushers and stemmers. The plant also machined its own components in-house and then assembled the end-machinery for the wine industry. (To think, they knew the importance of value-added services.)

This metalcasting facility was once the center of the town's industry and helped build the manufacturing foundation for dozens of the Napa Valley wineries still in operation today. In fact, according to historic wine-making documents, it was believed that the firm manufactured the best hydraulic wine press on the West Coast.

Now, if the Napa Valley experience wasn't enough, shift about 80 miles south to San Francisco. While traveling throughout the city on its famous cable cars, my wife and I decided to stop in at the Cable Car Museum (pictured above). While the fact that there are castings in a cable car is no surprise (because cable cars travel on rails, their undercarriages with side frames, bolsters and wheels utilize many castings just like a railcar), the display within the museum of the metalcasting process and its contribution to cable cars was a surprise.

As part of one of its displays, the cable car museum showcased a pattern used to make green sand molds to cast decorative components for the cable cars. Also, various cast components were in the glass case display, including pulley wheels and castings for the gripper system. In addition, the cast bells used on the cable cars were on display (the double chime on the bell that cable car operators perform before the car begins to move again is unmistakable in San Francisco).

While I don't make a habit of seeking out castings during my vacations, the fact that the metalcasting industry kept popping up unexpectedly during my trip served as my reminder--metalcasting is as integrated with society as almost any other industry. This is a badge of honor everyone in our industry should wear proudly.

To ensure this occurs, I am giving you the following assignment. The next time you are walking down the street--whether in San Francisco, Cleveland or Greensburg, Pa.--take a minute to look at your surroundings. I guarantee you'll be surprised by how many ways metal castings and your industry are supporting our daily lives.

If you have any comments about this editorial or any other item that appears in MODERN CASTING, email me at [e-mail].