38th AFS ENVIRONMENTAL, HEALTH & SAFETY CONFERENCE
Jenny Pappalardo
AFS EHS Division Chair, Charlotte Pipe & Foundry Co.
Oakboro, NC
George W. Curry, Jr.
AFS EHS Technical Director
Schaumburg, IL
CONFERENCE CO-CHAIRS
Mickey Hannum
Optimized Safety Solutions, LLC
Gulf Breeze, FL
Daniel Moravej
Hiler Industries
La Porte, IN
Industrial and collaborative robots are becoming far more common in the foundry. This session will discuss the relevant standards, along with many considerations for the safe implementation and integration of robotics.
- Safety Fences and Area Scanners
- Collaborative Versus Industrial
- Layout and Design Considerations
Mickey Hannum
Optimized Safety Solutions, LLC
Gulf Breeze, FL
Traditional incident investigations often focus on identifying errors, causes, and corrective actions, but when blame enters the process, learning can stop. This session explores how shifting from investigation to Event Learning creates a deeper understanding of the conditions, systems, and decisions that shaped an event, helping organizations move beyond blame and turn incidents into meaningful opportunities to prevent recurrence.
Brad Kline
National Safety Council
Minneapolis, MN
Transform your injury experience! Yes, the implementation of a robust SIF (Serious Injury/Illness and Fatality) Prevention process will be transformation for your company’s injury experience. In this session, learn about the key SIF Prevention Principles to ensure your process is as effective as it can be. We’ll talk about Why SIF Prevention, Metrics, Safeguards, SIF Risk, Engagement, and continuous learning. And you’ll hear supporting experiences along the way. Don’t miss this opportunity to be TRANSFORMATIONAL!
Dan Engling
KERAMIDA, Inc.
Indianapolis, IN
Combustible dust hazards in foundries are often misunderstood, underestimated, or addressed through generic solutions that fail to reflect actual operational risks. Drawing on Dust Hazard Analyses (DHAs) performed across foundries and other industrial sectors, this presentation shares practical lessons learned from evaluating combustible dust hazards in real-world environments. Attendees will gain insight into common findings, recurring compliance challenges, and effective risk-reduction strategies related to material handling, dust collection, housekeeping, and management systems. The session will also discuss the transition to NFPA 660 and its implications for foundry operations, with a focus on prioritizing corrective actions and developing sustainable combustible dust management programs. Designed for EHS professionals, engineers, and operations leaders, this presentation provides practical, experience-based guidance for improving combustible dust safety and achieving NFPA 660 compliance.
Austin Yurt
Industrial Safety and Training Services Inc.
Shelbyville, KY
This 45-minute Arc Flash presentation explores current industry trends, critical statistics, and key NFPA 70E 2027 standard updates. This session will examine why 5 to 10 Arc flash incidents still occur daily in the workplace and provide insights to improve safety. Attendees will leave with a stronger understanding of Arc Flash PPE requirements and the ability to proactively recognize Arc Flash hazards within their facility.
Key Takeaways
- NFPA 70E 2027 Updates: Understand the latest regulatory changes and compliance standards.
- Incident Prevention: Understand why arc flash events still happen and how to prevent them.
- Hazard Recognition: Learn to identify dangerous situations before they lead to accidents.
- PPE Familiarization: Gain clarity on selecting and utilizing the right protective gear working around Arc Flash Hazards
Brian Bigley
McWane, Inc.
Oskaloosa, IA
As soon as you receive a citation from a regulatory agency, the clock starts and deadlines begin. You have several paths and choices, but do you know what to do if you choose to not immediately pay? This program is a quick primer on your options for conferencing or contesting agency citations. We will discuss the difference between the conference and contest process, and how to prepare for both, as you timely proceed with your agency interactions.
Mickey Hannum
Optimized Safety Solutions, LLC
Gulf Breeze, FL
A Culture of Safety Excellence is built not simply through programs and compliance, but through the everyday decisions, behaviors, and interactions that shape how work actually gets done. This session explores the cultural attributes that strengthen safety excellence, including leadership commitment, trust, employee engagement, and organizational alignment. It highlights how leaders can create the conditions where people feel empowered to speak up, learn, and make safer decisions.
Katie Hensley
Cottingham & Butler
Dubuque, IA
Attendees will learn practical strategies to improve communication with injured employees, strengthen collaboration across departments, and create a more consistent claims experience, regardless of carrier or adjuster changes. The result: better employee outcomes, faster return-to-work success, and reduced workers' compensation costs.
Moderator:
Earl Miller
Hiler Industries
La Porte, IN
Panelists:
James Hart
Milwaukee Valve
New Berlin, WI
Glenn Hunneycutt
Charlotte Pipe & Foundry Co.
Oakboro, NC
Kristi Yates
Lodge Mfg. Co.
South Pittsburg, TN
Amanda Fedorko
Charlotte Pipe & Foundry Co.
Oakboro, NC
George W. Curry, Jr.
AFS EHS Technical Director
Schaumburg, IL
CONFERENCE CO-CHAIRS
Kristi Yates
Lodge Mfg. Co.
South Pittsburg, TN
James Hart
Milwaukee Valve
Prairie du Sac, WI
Stephanie Salmon
AFS Washington Office
Washington D.C.
Christian Richter
The Policy Group
Washington, D.C.
Jenny Pappalardo
AFS EHS Division Chair, Charlotte Pipe & Foundry Co.
Oakboro, NC
George W. Curry, Jr.
AFS EHS Technical Director
Schaumburg, IL
- AFS Metalcasting Safe Year Awards
- Green Foundry Awards
Air Quality
Jeet Radia
KERAMIDA, Inc.
Indianapolis, IN
Water, Waste, & Byproducts
Bryant Esch
Waupaca Foundry, Inc.
Waupaca, WI
Health & Safety
James Hart
Milwaukee Valve
Prairie du Sac, WI
Colin Green
Cottingham & Butler
Dubuque, IA
A fire, equipment breakdown, severe weather event, utility outage, cyber incident, or supply chain disruption can halt production with little warning. For foundries and other manufacturers, the financial impact of these events extends far beyond damaged property and often includes lost revenue, delayed customer orders, workforce challenges, and long recovery timelines. This presentation will provide a practical roadmap for helping manufacturers prepare for and recover from disruptive events. Attendees will gain insight into critical insurance considerations, including property coverage, business interruption coverage, contingent business interruption, equipment breakdown protection, service interruption exposures, and the importance of accurately establishing building values and business income limits.
George W. Curry, Jr.
AFS EHS Technical Director
Schaumburg, IL
Sandra Lehmann
IVG German Foundry Chemistry Association
Hanover, Germany
The classification of thermite materials has become an increasingly important issue for manufacturers, suppliers, and foundries that produce, distribute, transport, or use thermite-containing products. In September 2023, the U.S. Department of Transportation's Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) issued guidance explaining its approach to the classification of thermite mixtures, renewing industry focus on how these materials are regulated during transportation and handling. This presentation reviews PHMSA's classification approach, the criteria used to distinguish thermite mixtures from explosive materials, and the resulting regulatory requirements that may apply when thermite products are classified as Division 4.1 flammable solids. The session is intended for EHS professionals, shipping and transportation personnel, foundry managers, and procurement and supply chain professionals responsible for purchasing and handling thermite-containing materials. Attendees will gain a better understanding of how these classifications affect the transportation, storage, handling, and use of thermite-containing products, as well as the potential impacts on foundry operations, compliance programs, and supply chains.
Ryan Burke
OSCO Industries Inc.
Portsmouth, OH
Earl Miller
Hiler Industries
La Porte, IN
OSHA has regulated formaldehyde since 1987, but EPA is now developing a second, separate limit under TSCA that would apply to nearly every chemically bonded sand operation. This session brings foundry EHS professionals up to date on where the rule stands, what OSHA already requires, and what the underlying science does and does not support.
- The SBREFA (Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act) panel process and the foundry industry's position in both rounds of comments.
- OSHA's limits versus EPA's proposed 0.300 ppm and international standards.
- What "sensory irritation" means, and what we found when we read the third-party studies behind the number.
Kayla Gibbons
KERAMIDA, Inc.
Indianapolis, IN
This presentation examines the primary technical and legal concerns associated with the EPA’s deployment and acceptance of ALT-082. Key topics include:
- Analyzing why ALT-082 does not fully automate opacity monitoring, as it still dictates a certified human operator to review digital images through analysis software, leading to workflow bottlenecks.
- Investigating how software algorithms manage subtle environmental interferences—such as changing ambient background contrast, sun slant angles, and momentary steam plumes—differently than traditional visual emission observers.
- Review compliance risks and enforcement complexities introduced by ALT-082.
Cheryl Curry
Plumb Tree Psychology
St Charles, IL
Generation Z, generally encompassing those born between 1997 and 2012, has often been inaccurately stereotyped as lazy, bubble-wrapped, entitled, soft, and spoiled. But like all stereotypes, these don’t give credit to the exceptionally hard-working and talented members of this generation, who now match the number of baby boomers in the workforce. Surveys are showing that companies find their youngest employees, Gen Z, the most difficult to work with and the most mystifying to managers. But they are here to stay and have much to offer! Gain insight into this generation so as to bring out their best qualities for mutual benefit and retention.
With practical advice, useful takeaways, and a good dose of humor, this presentation will shed some light on this generation, providing insight and data from the perspective of Gen Z’ers themselves, research on how industry is successfully responding to the differences in the workplace, and what is really behind the stereotypes.
Moderator:
Jenny Pappalardo
Charlotte Pipe & Foundry Co.
Oakboro, NC
Panelists:
Bryant Esch
Waupaca Foundry Inc.
Waupaca, WI
Craig LeNoble
Charlotte Pipe & Foundry Co.
Neenah, WI
Ryan Burke
OSCO Industries
Portsmouth, OH
Networking, time with Exhibitors, hors d’oeuvres, & refreshments for all.
Jeet Radia
KERAMIDA Inc.
Indianapolis, IN
George W. Curry, Jr.
AFS EHS Technical Director
Schaumburg, IL
Mike Lenahan
Badger Mining Corp.
Berlin, WI
This interactive presentation will bring a fresh and entertaining twist to environmental, health, and safety education for the foundry industry by using the familiar format of the game show Jeopardy! Attendees will be challenged with practical questions every EHS professional should strive to answer, covering key foundry topics such as regulatory compliance, silica exposure, heat stress, air emissions, housekeeping, PPE, hazard recognition, and safe work practices. Designed to be both informative and engaging, the session will encourage audience participation, reinforce important EHS principles, and highlight the real-world knowledge needed to support safer, healthier, and more compliant foundry operations. By combining friendly competition with practical learning, this presentation will educate, entertain, and leave participants with useful takeaways they can apply in their own facilities.
Dr. Janet Anderson
Exponent, Inc. Health Sciences Practice
Austin, TX
Dr. Sara Hearon
Exponent, Inc. Health Sciences Practice
Austin, TX
Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) continue to be a major focus of state legislative and regulatory activity across the United States, creating new compliance, liability, and operational challenges for the metals industry. While much of the national conversation has focused on consumer products and drinking water, metal producers, processors, fabricators, recyclers, and finishing operations are increasingly affected by PFAS requirements related to manufacturing processes, wastewater discharges, residuals management, environmental investigations, and supply chain reporting obligations.
This presentation explores how evolving state legislation may affect the metals industry and examines the potential sources of PFAS-related liability throughout the manufacturing lifecycle. Topics include historical and current uses of PFAS in plating and finishing operations, industrial wastewater and residuals management, site investigation and cleanup obligations, recycled material considerations, and supply chain disclosure requirements. The presentation will also review key state legislative trends, discuss how differing state definitions of PFAS can influence compliance obligations, and identify practical strategies for managing regulatory, environmental, and commercial risks in an increasingly complex PFAS landscape.
Emily Henderson
TRC
Atlanta, GA
An overview of how hazardous waste is defined and practical implementation of characterization and tracking requirements. The goal of the presentation is to generate discussion around the following questions:
- Why is identifying hazardous waste important? How can we determine if a waste is hazardous or not?
- What are the requirements for tracking hazardous waste?
- What types of hazardous waste treatment are allowed?
Carl Raycroft
McWane Inc.
Birmingham, AL
This presentation examines the types of corrective actions generated for environmental teams and how the level of response scales with risk. Risk levels are established by assessing the severity of an environmental issue alongside the likelihood of its occurrence, producing a risk band that dictates the required action and communication. The presentation also addresses the importance of involving the right team members in the investigations that generate corrective actions, and of establishing an accountability system to track those actions through to completion.
Greg Kramer
Badger Mining Corp.
Berlin, WI
- Ventilation design guidelines and how foundries can be misguided.
- Interactive demonstration on system measurements and foundry specific ventilation issues and solutions.
- Minimum transport velocity vs. material pick-up velocities: how much valuable raw materials are you losing?
Moderator:
Jenny Pappalardo
Charlotte Pipe & Foundry Co.
Oakboro, NC
Panelists:
Amanda Fedorko
Charlotte Pipe & Foundry Co.
Oakboro, NC
Earl Miller
Hiler Industries
La Porte, IN
Bryant Esch
Waupaca Foundry, Inc.
Waupaca, WI
Kristen Belcredi
KERAMIDA, Inc.
Indianapolis, IN
The April 15, 2026 update of the ISO 14001 Environmental Management System Standard is the first full revision of the standard since its 2015 publication. The changes focus on climate change risk, sustainability goals, product life cycle management, supplier management, and change management. Approaches to updating an existing EMS and the deadline for transitioning to the revised standard will be discussed.