Movie fans and video game players know the term “Easter egg” describes a hidden feature or inside secret that is easily overlooked unless you’re paying attention – a subtle nod to the annual April hunt. They are a lot of fun to seek out if you know what you are looking for in advance. Have you ever spotted the famed flux capacitor from “Back to the Future” when watching “The Polar Express”?
One of the biggest benefits people overlook is that being an AFS member means being a supporter of the industry. By renewing every year, you’re giving AFS the bandwidth to do terrific things with your dues investment, including 8% that goes directly towards research which is critical to maintain a strong, vibrant, healthy and continually advancing metalcasting industry. AFS currently has nine research projects in progress that will soon benefit the industry, and you have contributed to this
just by being a faithful member. Your dues investment also fuels the engine of a well-oiled advocacy machine in Washington, D.C. AFS is continually monitoring lawmakers’ activity so we can support legislation that will benefit the industry, like infrastructure investment, and fight back against legislation that will negatively impact metalcasting business, like the crystalline silica rule. With your membership, AFS can influence meaningful change as the voice of a unified metalcasting
industry.
Another fact that is largely unknown is AFS rebates 75% of student member dues back to the student chapters. This funds their meetings, equipment and materials, and travel to industryrelated events. As most of you know, this is a group that we need to engage early on to keep them moving towards careers in metalcasting. To do our part, last year AFS created a “First Year Free” program that allows current student members to transition to a professional AFS membership at no charge for the first 12 months after graduation.
For our Corporate Members, some terrific advantages to your membership are worth noting. First, your company and contact details are listed prominently in both the online and print edition of the Casting Source Directory (CSD), which allows buyers and designers to locate your firm based on alloy, process, and location. I'll bet you didn't know if you Google “find a foundry” or “foundry directory,” the CSD is the top returned result, which is complex and valuable real estate on the web.
One more underused but valuable resource is Metal Casting Design & Purchasing magazine (MCDP), which is an AFS bimonthly publication that goes to 17,000 casting buyers, designers, and engineers in print and online. For metalcasters with capacity to fill, MCDP offers multiple methods to market your company and elevate your profile, including print and online advertising, targeted e-mails, and a turnkey sponsored webinar program.
All employees need continued education. Another great Corporate Member benefit you might find helpful is the AFS Institute’s e-Learning program, which launched in July 2016 and has grown to more than 60 self-study learning modules about metalcasting, including three recently released in Spanish. Another 17 Spanish-language modules are on their way soon. The subscription fee is nominal considering you can train and retain your employees without incurring travel expenses and with the flexibility to fit your production schedule. AFS Corporate Members have been catching on. They have already completed 2,630 modules, so this one won’t be a secret for much longer.
Lastly, AFS has offered for the past six years unique events that are audiencespecific, industry-driven and free to members and their guests. The Supplier Summit is for AFS Corporate members serving the needs of metalcasters, either as manufacturers, service firms, or material providers. Attendees learn
about their customers’ purchasing preferences and the emerging trends in the industry.
Well-informed and engaged AFS members know about these membership benefits and the countless others not mentioned here, but the odds are good that a few of you just found an Easter egg that was not there before.