Ready for some inspiration? Dwier Brown appeared in one of the most popular movies of all time, Academy Awards nominee Field of Dreams, as the father of Kevin Costner’s character. Although he has appeared in scores of films, television shows, and stage productions, including The Thorn Birds, ER, Ally McBeal, and Murder: She Wrote, Dwier is still best known for his inspirational “Wanna Have a Catch?” scene as Ray Kinsella in that film. Poignant stories from viewers about how the movie changed their own lives, and their relationships with their own fathers, led Dwier to write the moving memoir, Build It and They Will Come: Fathers, Fate and Field of Dreams. He also co-owns the Baseball Hall of Dreams in Dyersville, Iowa, not far from where the film was shot. Join us for this uplifiting presentation.

When all inputs are included, energy is over half of the cost of manufactured goods. All metal components start as castings. Metalcasting is the lowest energy, most direct manufacturing line from metallic ores to metal products. The metalcasting industry is the largest recycling body on the planet. However, the metalcasting industry is slow to develop and deploy new products and methods. With Industry 4.0 upon us, we must “Innovate or Die.”

A pioneering metalcasting entrepreneur and dedicated mentor, Hoyt Lecturer John “Chip” Keough is chairman of LightSpeed Concepts Inc. and president of Keotech Inc. (Albion, Michigan), and former adjunct professor to University of Michigan’s Materials Science and Engineering Department. He received the 2005 AFS Award of Scientific Merit and the 2014 Foundry Educational Foundation E. J. Walsh Award. In 2018, he received the AFS Pangborn Gold Medal, the society’s highest honor. Presented annually since 1938, the Hoyt Lecture is one of the industry’s most prestigious addresses.

Designers have long debated the merits of various metal processing methods for use as metallic parts or in assemblies. Traditionally, castings and forgings were predominantly considered as preferred options. However, more recently, additive manufacturing of metallic objects has been similarly considered a preferred method.

During this interactive debate, experts in additive manufacturing, casting, and forging will debate, in a lighthearted “roast” style, the merits of their preferred processing methods – along with the demerits of the other methods – in an attempt to determine the “best” of the best.

This event should prove informative and entertaining, while perhaps establishing the definitive argument for the metallic part assembly community!  After the longstanding debate on “Aluminum v. Iron” was at least momentarily suspended following last year’s CastExpo debate in Columbus, OH, you will not want to miss this sequel debate to determine the best process for making metallurgical components in any alloy.

Representing additive manufacturing:  John Wilczynski, America Makes - National Additive Manufacturing Innovation Institution, Youngstown, OH; Richard Huff, ASTM International, Lebanon, OH

Representing castings:  Randy Oehrlein, Carley Foundry Inc., Blaine, MN; Charles Monroe, The University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, AL

Representing forgings: Bud Kinney, Retired from IMT Corporation, Cleveland, OH; Pat Burke, Whitcraft Group, Rocky River, OH

Moderator: Vasko Popovski, Ransom & Randolph, Maumee, OH