Labor Department Releases Final Rule on Paid Leave for Federal Contractors

On September 30, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) published its final rule implementing the paid sick leave executive order requiring federal contractors to provide up to seven days' paid sick leave to their employees.  The final rule will go into effect for new solicitations issued…

ASK Chemicals Announces Plans to Build Mexican Production Facility

ASK Chemicals has approved the construction of a Mexican production facility in the Monterrey area that will produce binders, refractory coatings and riser sleeves for the growing Mexican metalcasting industry. 

The facility will be strategically located in the Monterrey area after a…

EJ Plans New Facility

EJ (East Jordan, Michigan) announced it’s planning to move its metalcasting to near Elmira, Michigan.

According to the Petoskey News, the company will upgrade its facilities and “phase out” its current location. The new plant will be “state of the art” and all jobs will be relocated.

Metalcasting Leaders Exchange Ideas at Foundry Executive Conference

Leaders of the North American metalcasting industry convened Sept. 11-13 in Park City, Utah, to hear and exchange fresh ideas and perspectives for business planning and strategy as part of the Foundry Executive Conference held by AFS.

Several well-regarded business speakers and authors…

Thanks In Part to Cast Connections, Arthur Ashe Roof Debuts

The retractable roof at Arthur Ashe Stadium, home of the tennis U.S. Open, debuted this fall to rave reviews. Rafael Nadal was the first player to play under the roof, when he beat Andreas Seppi of Italy.

"It's an amazing event. I'm very happy to be the first player in history to play with…

Star Pipe Acquires Jensen International

Star Pipe Products (Houston) has acquired the assets of Jensen International (Coffeyville, Kansas) and its subsidiary Jencast, located in South Coffeyville, Oklahoma.

Jensen International provides casting, machining, metal fabrication, assembly and production of customized cast iron and…

AFS Announces New Director of Education

AFS has named Shelly Dutler as its new director of education of the AFS Institute, effective September 1. The selection was made after a national search and selection process.

“It’s an exciting time at the AFS Institute and Shelly Dutler is the perfect person to lead it to new…

Court Upholds Administration’s Use of Social Cost of Carbon Metric for Federal Regulations

In August, the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals unanimously rejected a request by industry groups to overturn a Department of Energy (DOE) rule setting energy efficiency standards for commercial refrigerators. The use of the Social Cost of Carbon (SCC) metric was utilized in the cost-benefit…

OSHA kicks off Hearing Safety Awareness with 'Hear and Now - Noise Safety Challenge'

Every year 22 million workers are at risk of losing their hearing from workplace noise hazards. Hearing loss disability costs businesses an estimated $242 million annually in workers' compensation. This is why OSHA and the Mine Safety and Health Administration, in partnership with the National…

Emissions Reduction For Heavy-Duty Trucks Under New Rules

The Obama administration released finalized fuel efficiency standards for medium and heavy-duty trucks that require up to a 25% reduction in carbon emissions for big tractor-trailers over the next 10 years, and smaller improvements for delivery trucks, school buses and other large vehicles…