Symposium

7:30 - 8:00 am

Breakfast Treats - Sponsored by Gibbs Interwire 

 Lobby

SESSION 1:

8:00 - 8:50 am

Keynote: 

2024 Economic Outlook

This presentation will cover the general conditions of the U.S. economy and look at key economic trends, including in certain sectors. In particular, there is a focus on the employment situation and inflation. Also covered is the role of monetary policy and prospects for the economy going forward. Oppedahl conducts research on the agricultural sector and rural development, as well as analyzing business conditions and the regional economy.

David Oppedahl

Policy Advisor, Economic Research Department

Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago

Gibbs Interwire Room

Room 14

8:50 - 9:00am

Coffee Break - Sponsored by Forming Systems 

Lobby

SESSION 2:

9:00 - 9:50 am

Breakout 1:

Empowering the Future: Building a Skilled Workforce with SkillsUSA

Join the SkillsUSA National Executive Director for an engaging presentation on how SkillsUSA is shaping the future of the skilled trades. Discover how our partnerships with industry leaders, like those in the spring manufacturing sector, are creating a pipeline of talented professionals ready to meet tomorrow’s challenges. Learn about our innovative programs and competitions that provide students with the skills and confidence to succeed in the workforce. See how you can be part of this transformative journey and help empower the next generation of skilled workers with SkillsUSA, the #1 workforce development organization for students.

Chelle Travis

Executive Director

SkillsUSA

Gibbs Interwire Room

Room 14

Breakout 2:

Shot Peen Process Innovation

This presentation will explore innovations in the shot peening process at Associated Spring, tracing its evolution from the late 1920s to the present day. It will highlight key advancements that have significantly enhanced the durability and performance of springs over the decades. Finally, it will introduce a novel solution for measuring Almen intensity on the inner diameter of a spring.

Jason Sicotte

Director, Global Engineering

Associated Spring Hänggi

Forming Systems Room

Room 13

Breakout 3:

Special for Women Springmakers: Mentoring and Being Mentored

For women in metalforming, having mentors and being mentors is especially critical. You'll learn how to find the right mentor for you, how to be mentored so it's an effective relationship and process, and you'll learn how to pay it forward by being a mentor yourself.

Raquel Chole

President and CEO

Global Leadership Resources

AIM Room

Room 12

Breakout 4:

iQ Technologies: Enable Easy Setup and Adjustment of Compression and Torsion Springs

Learn how to reduce the load on your master springmakers and ease labor shortages.

Jörg Eisele

Head of the Tube and Wire Division and Sales Director

WAFIOS

WAFIOS Room

Room 11

Breakout 5:

Useful Tools for Creating a Comprehensive Marketing Plan

Marketing is an important, but often overlooked topic for many industrial businesses. Especially those who do not have dedicated marketing resources. While there are many marketing solutions available that claim to be “exactly” what your business needs, it’s important to know that no marketing tool can be effective without first developing a solid foundation: a comprehensive marketing plan. Learn the tools to develop a plan for your business and be more confident about your overall effectiveness and marketing budget allocation moving forward.

Jackie Bozart

President & Co-Founder

Sell.Market.Win., LLC

Neturen Room

Room 10

Breakout 6:

A New Look at Safety Committees

Learn about the role of your safety committee in today’s spring manufacturing operations. At the end of this session, participants will be able to identify the effective makeup of the committee, list what activities a committee should be performing (responsibilities and authority), improve hazard identification (including OSHA Top Ten for the spring industry), improve ideas for hazard controls, avoid common mistakes of most committees, improve meeting communication including keeping it interesting and gain access to helpful resources. The first 30 participants will receive signed, printed completion certificates to display at their workstations and/or share with their workers’ compensation provider.

Dr. Laura Helmrich-Rhodes

Regulatory Compliance Consultant

SMI

HS Wire Technology Room

Room 9

7:30 - 8:00 am

Breakfast Treats - Sponsored by ISW (SpringWorld's Visionary Sponsor)

Lobby

SESSION 1:

8:00 - 8:50 am

Breakout 1:

High Performance Alloys for Spring Applications

This presentation will look at high performance alloys to consider when manufacturing springs for applications that must perform at high temperatures or in corrosive atmosphere. Elgiloy Specialty Metals (ESM) is a processor of over 125 high-performance stainless, nickel, specialty metals, titanium, and cobalt alloys, including its own Elgiloy® alloy.  ESM provides precision strip, foil, and drawn wire products distributed globally for high performance and mission-critical applications.

Sawyer Janes

Process Engineer

Elgiloy Specialty Metals

Gibbs Interwire Room

Room 14

Breakout 2:

International Trade

Dan Pickard is rated among the nations’ leading international trade lawyers and is a frequent presenter and commentator on U.S. trade policy. He will discuss the anticipated changes to international trade policies with the start of a new presidential administration. Preceding the 2024 presidential election, the presentation will focus on the potential similarities and differences between a possible Trump administration versus a Harris administration. The presentation will cover key initiatives from the Biden administration, include issues connected with a pro-domestic manufacturing and “worker-centric” trade policy. The presenter will discuss key trade personnel from the previous Trump administration, through the current administration and likely picks for the U.S. Trade Representative and Secretary of Commerce after the election.  In addition, Pickard will share predictions as to policy priorities, including trade with China, free trade agreements, use of the trade remedy laws and the future of the WTO.

Daniel B. Pickard

Attorney

Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney

Forming Systems Room

Room 13

Breakout 3:

Bridging the Multigenerational Gap in the Workplace

Learn how to identify generational differences and so you can better engage the skills on your team. Once you understand the differences, you can communicate more effectively and bridge the gaps to provide better connectivity. Through this workshop, you will develop an effective approach to attract, retain, and lead a multigenerational team -- especially on the shop floor. And these diverse perspectives and experiences collectively will help you lead more effectively by attracting and retaining employees.

Raquel Chole

President and CEO

Global Leadership Resources

AIM Room

Room 12

Breakout 4:

Manufacturing Money Available to Springmakers

Lakeview Consulting has a team of five experienced grant professionals who have collectively obtained over $150 million in grant funding for clients in the manufacturing and trade association communities. Vandeloo will discuss opportunities for springmakers to obtain manufacturing grants and funding for apprenticeship programs and other leadership training opportunities.

Micki Vandeloo

President

Lakeview Consulting

WAFIOS Room

Room 11

Breakout 5:

Wire and Spring Failures: A Root Cause Analysis

This presentation will review examples of wire and spring failures for root causes.  They may stem from wire processing, spring coiling or loading conditions.  Understanding and identifying them can be part of continuous improvement.

Anand Bhagwat

Technical Consultant

Neturen Room

Room 10

Breakout 6:

An Overview of SMI Technical Services

SMI offers an array of technical services to member and nonmember companies. In this presentation, technical services will be reviewed with a focus on training and SMI’s failure analysis program. Highlights from the ISO/TC227 Springs September 2024 meeting in Milan, Italy will also be discussed.

C. Richard Gordon

Technical Director

SMI

HS Wire Technology Room

Room 9

8:50 -9:00 am

Coffee Break - Sponsored by Automated Industrial Motion (AIM)

Lobby

SESSION 2:

9:00 - 9:50 am

Breakout 1:

Revolutionizing Manufacturing: The Role of AI in Modern Production

Integrating artificial intelligence (AI) in manufacturing is transforming the industry by enhancing efficiency and precision in production processes. AI-driven automation enables real-time monitoring and predictive maintenance, reducing downtime and increasing productivity. Advanced analytics powered by machine learning can optimize supply chain management, leading to cost savings and improved delivery times. Additionally, AI technologies are fostering innovation by enabling the creation of smart factories, where data-driven decision-making enhances overall operational excellence.

Herb Staten Jr.

Marketing Director

MBC Aerosol Filling Machinery

Gibbs Interwire Room

Room 14

Breakout 2:

Anti-Dumping 301/322-China

Despite growing awareness around how unfair international competition affects American producers and jobs, U.S. manufacturers continue to fight against foreign subsidized products that are sold in the country at low prices. U.S. trade remedy laws are one of the only available tools to reestablish an even playing field for American companies and avoid lost sales and profits. This presentation will focus on a variety of trade remedy laws which allow U.S. manufacturers to petition the government to investigate imports if they are a cause of, or threaten, material injury to the domestic industry. The presentation will cover how U.S. manufacturers have used the antidumping, countervailing duty, Section 301, Section 332, and Section 201/safeguard laws to protect U.S. production operations and profits. Pickard is the chair of the International Trade and National Security Practice of Buchanan Ingersoll and Rooney in Washington, D.C.  He specializes in assisting U.S. manufacturing companies who are losing market share or suffering from decreased profits to obtain relief against unfairly priced imports.

Daniel B. Pickard

Attorney

Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney

Forming Systems Room

Room 13

Breakout 3:

Eliminate Rework: Deliver Results the First Time

Good communication leads to superior results. With so much at stake, we need to make sure we deliver high quality outcomes the first time. Rework is costly, time-consuming, causes late deliveries, impacts your profitability and can damage customer relationships. What does it take to get it right the first time consistently? 

Raquel Chole

President and CEO

Global Leadership Resources

AIM Room

Room 12

 Breakout 4:

Latest Developments in Wire Straightening and AI Driven Straightening Process on Wire Bending Machines

Since the development of the first wire fencing machine, technical innovations have driven the growth of WAFIOS. With over 130 years of experience in the wire and tube processing industry, WAFIOS has become an internationally recognized name for quality. The company specializes in developing, designing, and producing advanced machinery for the wire and tube-processing industry, as well as for cold-forging applications. In this session, WAFIOS’ collaborates with WITELS Albert, a specialist in straightener, feed, drive, and guide technology. You'll learn about the latest developments in wire straightening and discover how artificial intelligence can be used in wire straightening.

Jörg Eisele

Head of the Tube and Wire Division and Sales Director

WAFIOS

EJ Neron

National Sales Manager

Witels Albert USA

WAFIOS Room

Room 11

Breakout 5:

Advanced Steel Manufacturing Techniques Critical for Springmaker

This presentation will cover melting and rolling practices of high carbon and alloy springs. We will cover technologies in place at Charter Steel employed to make a high-quality product for our spring manufacturing customers. 

Eric MacTavish

Technical Service Manager

Charter Steel

Troy Kaczorowski

Principal Metallurgist

Charter Steel

Neturen Room

Room 10

Breakout 6:

The Power of ASD7 to Design Springs

Advanced Spring Design (ASD) software is a jointly developed product by Universal Technical Systems and the Spring Manufacturers Institute (SMI) that combines engineering expertise with customized calculations to help you design quality springs. ASD covers a total of 47 spring types or loading options and includes compression springs, extension springs, spiral forms, torsion springs, garter springs, snap rings, washers, beams, and torsion bars. The SMI Encyclopedia of Spring Design is now included as part of the context–sensitive help, providing diagrams, tables and background information on the many variables involved in spring designs.

Todd Piefer

Vice President of Applications Development

UTS

HS Wire Technology Room

Room 9