Composites Weekly

This week Andrew Pokelwaldt joins me for the final podcast episode of 2022. We'll be discussing some of the Best Innovations in Composites for 2022. In our discussion we'll reference some of the 2022 JEC Composites Innovations Awards finalists .   

On this episode, Weslee Washington and John Kehoe of Boaz Partners join me to discuss some of the work they do for their business partners in the composites industry. Boaz Partners is an executive recruitment firm providing companies with custom recruiting solutions in specialty chemicals and advanced materials markets. Their expertise is a result of a niche-specific approach which allows them to...

This week Dr. Roberto Lopez-Anido joins me on the show to discuss their research in structural thermoplastics and smart materials. Dr. Lopez-Anido has more than 22 years of experience in the areas of mechanics of fiber-reinforced polymer (FRP) composites for construction, durability analysis of composite materials, advanced experimental methods for composites, composites manufacturing, rehabilitat...

This week I welcome Douglas Gardner on the show. He's the professor and program leader of sustainable materials technology in the School of Forest Resources at the University of Maine. He's also a member of the Advanced Structures and Composites Center and Forest Bioproducts Research Institute.   His research, teaching, and service activities focus on polymer and interfacial science aspects of woo...

This week, Bryce Anzelmo joins me on the show. Bryce is the director of product development for Lyten , an advanced materials company that invented Lyten 3D Graphene™. 3D Graphene™ is a platform of materials that has the potential to enable breakthroughs in energy storage, composite systems, and chemical & passive sensors. Composite system improvements enabled by Lyten 3D Graphene include increase...

On this episode, Andrew Pokelwaldt joins me as he does each month to discuss ways to improve quality control. Andrew is the director of certifications for the ACMA and also a manufacturing training consultant. It's always great to catch up with Andrew each month as he shares process improvement takeaways from his time spent in manufacturing plants. 

On this episode, we feature some interviews from day 2 at CAMX 2022. We start off the show with interviews with Scott Lewitt and his team at Structural Composites.  We'll also be talking with Anvesh Gurijala, CEO of Boston Materials, Witt Doolittle of Stoner Inc., Anoosheh M. Oskouian of Ship & Shore Environmental, and Marcos Vidal of Dorfner Composites.   

CAMX 2022 is a wrap, and on this episode, we share some interviews from day 1 on the exhibit hall. Some of our interviews include:  9T Labs - Yannick Willemin Composites Application Group - Peter Hedger Hexion - Dr. Robert Yancey  IACMI - Dale Brossius  Women in Composites Industry - Megan Multanen  

This week I welcome Nick Santhanam to the show. Nick is the CEO of  Fernweh Group , and the co-author of a brand new book The Titanium Economy coming out October 25th in book stores and available for pre-order on Amazon.  While Silicon Valley titans dominate the headlines nowadays, many of the fastest-growing, most profitable companies in the US are firms you've likely never heard of, such as HEIC...

This week I welcome Vishnu Marla, a scientist at W. L. Gore & Associates, a company with an amazing history of innovation.  Gore is a materials science company focused on creating solutions for the most challenging environments — from implants in the human body to clothing worn on expeditions to Mt. Everest, to electronic cables transmitting signals from Mars. Since 1958, Gore has developed produc...

This week, Andrew Pokelwaldt with the ACMA joins me on the podcast as we discuss ways composite fabricators can create new market opportunities while serving their existing customers. We'll be referencing one of my favorite business books Blue Ocean Strategy.  

On this episode, Byron Kennedy joins me on the show to discuss SPEE3D, a company that has developed the fastest most affordable metal additive manufacturing process in the world.   Their printer technology enables the most affordable metal additive manufacturing process in the world. They make parts the fastest way possible, leveraging metal cold spray technology to produce industrial quality meta...

This week, I share an interview I did with Dr. Francesco Fornasiero of Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory discussing some of their work in developing a material that could protect soldiers from biological and chemical agents . The work includes fabricating flexible polymeric membranes with aligned carbon nanotube channels as moisture conductive pores. The size of these pores is 5,000 times sma...

This week we're happy to welcome Cindy Squires, president of the ACMA, and Zane Clark, president of SAMPE to the show. We'll be discussing CAMX 2022 coming up October 17-20th.  It's the largest, most comprehensive event for products, solutions, education & networking in the composites and advanced materials industry.  This collaborative event combines the strengths of our two leading associations,...

This week Pat Carey, the senior vice president of strategic growth at Stratasys joins me on the podcast to discuss their recent acquisition of Covestro's additive manufacturing materials business.  The acquisition will include R&D facilities and activities, a sales and development team across the US & Europe, and a portfolio of approximately 60 additive manufacturing materials, with an extensive I...

This week,  Andrew Pokelwaldt, the director of certifications & training with the ACMA joins me to discuss what procurement managers at every company need to know when making the best decisions on material substitutions. 

This week Jake Fallon, the product manager at Braskem joins me on the podcast show to discuss some of the new filaments they have developed for the additive manufacturing industry.  Created in August 2002 by the merger of six companies today Braskem is the largest petrochemical company in the Americas and the world's leading  biopolymer  producer.   As one of the world's largest producers of polyo...

On this episode I welcome Andrew Pokewaldt of the ACMA back on the show as we discuss the rise of thermoplastic materials in the composites industry. Thermoplastics are growing in the composite market, with the benefits they offer of reusability and sustainability. Reports from Marketsandmarkets show that the thermoplastic composites market is projected to reach USD 36 billion by 2024. Thermoplast...

On this episode, we'll be discussing the topic of branding based on a legendary icon in the recreation world. I welcome Robert Grede to the show to talk about his book  Rebuilding the Brand: How Harley-Davidson Became King of the Road .  In the early 1980s, Harley-Davidson was on the verge of bankruptcy. In the public's opinion, the quality was substandard. Harleys leaked oil and were often broken...

This week I welcome Megan Multanen, one of the founders of "Women in the Composites Industry". Megan is the Chief Executive Officer at Bestbath based in Caldwell, Idaho, and a member of the Board of Directors for the ACMA.   On this episode, we'll be discussing this organization (WCI) and its mission of helping women succeed in the Composites Industry. The rapid growth of the composites and high-p...

This week I welcome  Dennis Fink  of  Akpa Chemical  to the show. Dennis is a veteran with over 40 years in the polymer industry. He is the president of Resin Research & Recovery and a consultant for Akpa Chemical.  AKPA Chemical was established in 1997 and specializes in the production of Organic Peroxides, Initiators, Accelerators, and Paint Driers. AKPA has a State of the Art R&D center with di...

This week Andrew Pokelwaldt joins me on the show to discuss the Composites Certification Training programs that are offered to help improve quality production and boost employee development at every level of an organization.  The ACMA's standardized composite process training with CCT Certifications are designed for technicians, engineers, quality, safety and technical sales personnel.  Nine certi...

This week I welcome Dan Cohen, CEO of FLITE on the show to talk about some of their surface engineering technology that uses laser and plasma energy to make permanent changes to surfaces reducing the need for chemicals. The company was created in 2018 to develop the emerging science of surface functionalization into commercial use at industrial scale.   The FLITE team believes that the time has co...

This week I welcome Dr. David Hicks and Dr. James Chen on the show. We'll be discussing LIFT,  a Detroit-based national manufacturing innovation institute, and its recent partnership with the University of Buffalo on a project to accelerate the development of materials for hypersonic systems. LIFT, which is operated by the American Lightweight Materials Manufacturing Innovation Institute (ALMMII),...

This week  Andrew Pokelwaldt  joins me again on the show to discuss the ACMA's CCT Certification and Training Content resource center that is available to members and non-members. This Education Hub is a great destination for composites resources for CCT training & testing, recorded webinars, conference proceedings, ANSI standards,  regulatory information, customized manufacturing training, and mo...