Before May 2014, I am sure that I was not the only one who had to decide if I was going to the World Foundry Congress in Bilbao, Spain, or the Metals China in Beijing, which were held at the exact same time.
The entire metalcasting industry was struggling with these dates, which had been established long before, because many were unable to find a reasonable solution for all interested experts. The majority of representatives from the machinery and supplier companies decided for Metals China and the rest attended the Bilbao event.
What a shame!
There were almost 100,000 visitors in China and a number of remarkable personalities in Spain. But a lack of leadership existed in both locations.
In times of prolonged growth, such as those in India or Brazil, or political instability, like the situation in Ukraine that affects the rest of the world, it is not helpful to have two concurrent events held more than 10,000 kilometers (6,214 miles) away from one another. Our global industry must come together and work together to solve our common problems.
The casting industry is cautiously optimistic, as we heard at the German Giesserei-Tag in Hamburg, Germany, where experts advised metalcasting facilities to prepare for global challenges and to invest in technology and machinery.
This cautious optimism can be a good building block and should be a light for the global industry to push forward together.