Foundry 4.0 Conference moved to Spring 2021

The American Foundry Society is rescheduling an important event, the Foundry 4.0 Conference, from June 2020 to spring 2021. Modern Casting magazine will continue to publish information on this important issue; see the link at the bottom of this message.

The decision to postpone…

AFS Institute Offers Classroom Courses LIVE Online

AFS & The Institute know the importance of continued education and training, especially in the current pandemic climate. The Institute is being proactive in quickly transforming some of its popular courses to a live online format. Due to current travel restrictions, AFS is pleased to offer…

AFS Makes Major Commitment to Virtual Programming

The COVID-19 public-health and economic shock has affected the metalcasting industry in a broad variety of ways. The American Foundry Society is moving quickly to continue to deliver on its mission of Advocate-Educate-Innovate in newer ways for the benefit of our corporate and individual members…

AFS Calls on Congress to Pass Legislation for Increased Funding for the Paycheck Protection Program

AFS joined more than 200 national and state-based trade groups in a letter to congressional leadership today calling on Congress to increase funding for Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans. 

According to the Small Business Administration, banks have already committed most of the…

AFS Compiles COVID-19 Resources for Foundries Regarding Respirators

Foundries have asked questions regarding the legitimacy of specific respirators amid the COVID-19 pandemic. To address these important concerns, AFS has compiled resources that foundries can use to identify NIOSH-approved respirators versus counterfeits, as well as foreign respirators…

AFS Advocacy Summit to Feature Labor Sec. Scalia

AFS today announced its annual flagship advocacy event, the Government Affairs Fly-In, has been replaced this year with a three-hour virtual Advocacy Summit, to be held on May 19 at 9 a.m. (CT). 

The Advocacy Summit will have an extremely powerful…

SBA Issues Final Application Form for New Small Business Loans

The U.S. Small Business Administration and the U.S. Treasury Department issued a new application form early today, April 3, and published a draft interim final rule for the new Paycheck Protection Program Loans (PPP). 

These loans, which provide small businesses -- …

Congress Approves Historic Coronavirus Relief Package with Loans for Small Businesses

On Friday, March 27, President Donald Trump signed into law a bipartisan package, the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act (H.R. 748), which offers $2 trillion in health care and economic relief to Americans and businesses. The massive aid package contains a combination of…

New Small Business Loans Under the CARES Act Open April 3: Eligibility, Application, and Key Terms/Benefits

The CARES Act includes the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) for small businesses. The PPP provides short-term cash flow assistance to small businesses, including foundries, and their employees deal with the immediate economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. Loans are made by lenders…

DOL Indicates Shut-Down Employees Won’t Qualify for Emergency Paid Sick Leave or FMLA

On March 28, 2020, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) released an updated guidance document on the implementation of the paid sick leave and expanded family and medical leave benefits in the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA).

The updated DOL guidance…