INDUSTRY news
Alcoa Howmet Wins Global Quality Award Alcoa Howmet’s Morristown,
Tenn., coremaking operation recently was recognized as a bronze award winner in a competition held by quality certifi cation group ASQ. T e Howmet division, which
produces complex ceramic cores that form the internal cooling passages of investment-cast turbine airfoils, won the award out of a fi eld of 32 fi nalists. T e award was announced
at the World Conference on Quality and Improvement held recently in Anaheim, Calif. T e plant was Alcoa’s fi rst to win the ASQ award. Morristown also was selected by its peer fi nalists as the Attendee Choice Award recipient in the organizational impact category. ASQ awarded one gold and six bronze awards. No silver awards were given. “T e bronze award validated our
business transformation strategy against other world-class companies,” said Alexander Alford, plant manager, Alcoa Howmet, Dover, N.J. “T e judges put the stamp of approval on the eff ectiveness of our approach and the sustainability of the solution.” Alford served as plant manager of
Morristown from 2007 to 2011, when the company improved delivery time by 63%, reduced its injury rate by 23% and decreased costs by 26% annually. Howmet’s Morristown plant
employs 535 to produce its airfoil cores, which range from less than 1 in. to more than 30 in. in length. T e casting support operation occupies 121,000 sq. ft. of manufacturing space.
Michigan Steel Reopens Former Kurdziel Industries
Rothbury Steel LLC, Rothbury,
Mich., offi cially has been reopened by its new owner, according to multiple local news reports. Formerly known as Kurdziel
Industries, the ferrous casting plant was shut down in 2009 after being purchased in 2008 by Monomoy Capital Partners LP, New York, for an undisclosed amount. T e company was briefl y known as
Carlton Creek Ironworks Inc. before being purchased by the owners of Michigan Steel, Muskegon, Mich. According to individuals involved in the transaction, the sale included the land and buildings and some of the facility’s equipment. T e cupola and holding furnaces were replaced by induction melting equipment, with the intent of producing commercial steel castings. Prior to the purchase, Kurdziel
Industries manufactured commercial castings and counterweights for a variety of industries. Its customers included John Deere, Haas, Komatsu and Genie. Rothbury Steel representatives were not available for comment.
10 | METAL CASTING DESIGN & PURCHASING | Jul/Aug 2012
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