Congress Speeds Ahead on Car Trade-In Plan

Congress Speeds Ahead on Car Trade-In Plan
The U.S. Congress is about to hit the accelerator on efforts to spur lagging U.S. auto sales. The House is scheduled to vote as early as Tuesday on a bill that is sponsored by Rep. Betty Sutton (D-Ohio) and expected to be considered under suspension of the rules. The bill will receive a fast-track procedure barring amendments and requiring a two-thirds vote for passage.

The bill would offer cash rebates to people who trade in older cars to buy newer, more fuel-efficient vehicles. Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.) may also introduce identical legislation in the Senate this week as an amendment to a tobacco regulation bill (HR 1256). Sutton and Stabenow were at work Friday on a compromise version that could pass in both chambers.

The old passenger car must get 18 or fewer miles to the gallon. To receive a voucher of $3,500, the consumer must purchase a new car that gets at least four more miles per gallon. To receive a voucher for $4,500, the new car must have a mileage rating at least 10 mpg higher. For a light-duty truck or SUV, the old truck must have a mileage rating of 18 mpg or less. To receive a voucher of $3,500, a consumer must purchase a new vehicle rated at least 2 mpg higher. To receive a voucher for $4,500, the new vehicle must get at least 5 mpg more.

President Obama urged Congress to act on the auto trade-in plan on June 1, when he discussed the twin bankruptcy filings and his administration’s efforts to restructure and revive the domestic auto industry. For more information, contact Stephanie Salmon, AFS Washington Office, at 202/842-4864 or ssalmon@afsinc.org.

Find Out What Casting Buyers Are Thinking Aug. 5
Seize the opportunity to hear from and meet leading casting buyers at the What Are Casting Buyers Thinking conference on Aug. 5 at the Westin O'Hare, Rosemont, Ill.

Speakers include:

Keynote: State of the Manufacturing Economy: Metalcasting in Interesting Times, Greg Chaudoin, Stuart School of Business, Illinois Institute of Technology, Chicago
U.S. Dept. of Defense Weapon Systems: Dean Hutchins, Castings Manufacturing Program Technology Manager, Defense Logistics Agency, Washington, D.C.
Oil Field & Energy: Daniel Crane, Purchasing & Supplier Development, Kimray Inc., Oklahoma City
Farm Equipment & Agriculture: Donald Backens, Supply Base Manager-Raw Castings, Worldwide Agricultural Equipment Div., John Deere & Co., Cedar Falls, Iowa
Machining: Kirk Schildt, Purchasing, Hypro Inc., Waterford, Wis.
Special Professional Seminar: Selling Has Nothing to Do with Selling, Rick Farrell, President, Tangent Knowledge Systems, Chicago
Brake Systems: Roberta Brecheisen, Commodity Manager Strategic Sourcing, Haldex Brake Products Corp., Grain Valley, Mo.
Military: Kyle Huff, Strategy Manager for Castings, Raytheon Co., Dallas
Mining: Robert Mueller Jr., Casting Procurement Specialist, P&H Mining Equipment, Milwaukee

Other attendee benefits include updated forecast data, a chance to meet tabletop exhibitors, featuring web designers, graphic artists, printers, marketing agencies and casting designers that can help you, drawings for free advertising design, and free sales and marketing toolkits.

Register by July 1 to take advantage of the early bird special discount of $50. For more information or to register, visit www.afsinc.org/castingbuyer or contact AFS customer service at 800/537-4237.

Healthcare Debate Moves Front and Center
During the first two weeks of June, lawmakers with oversight of health care reform in the U.S. House and Senate are expected to introduce draft versions of health care reform legislation. These proposals will seek to slow down the rate of healthcare spending, improve the quality of medical care and extend coverage to the uninsured. President Obama and Democratic leaders have outlined an ambitious agenda that the House and Senate should each pass healthcare reform bills by July 31, with an eye toward combining the measures into a final package by year’s end.

All indications are that Democrats will call for the creation of a public plan people could choose over private health insurance. Congress could also set limits on the current tax exclusion for workplace health benefits, subjecting job-related health insurance to taxation for the first time since World War II.

For more information, contact Stephanie Salmon, AFS Washington Office, at 202/842-4864 or ssalmon@afsinc.org.

Tips for Touring a Casting Supplier
The following is excerpted from the newest article on MetalCastingDesign.com. A new article appears on the site once every two weeks. Access the full library of articles at www.metalcastingdesign.com.

An engineer is in the beginning stages of designing a new product for his company, and the success of the design relies heavily on the use of a cast metal component. A request-for-quote is sent out and the list of prospective casting suppliers narrowed down to two or three. The purchasing and design team decides to visit the suppliers to make an educated final choice. But the engineer’s design experience is mostly with fabrications and forgings, and he’s unfamiliar with the metalcasting process and its facilities.

It’s a scenario that design engineers and purchasers are bound to run into at some point. Your first metalcasting facility visit may be intimidating—casting plants are generally hot, often loud and sometimes odorous, and conversations with metalcasters tend to be full of jargon that’s unrelated to any other metalworking industry. However, armed with the right questions, even the greenest of casting designers and purchasers can use their first metalcasting facility visit to make a well-informed assessment.

California Metals Coalition to Host No Lead Conference
The California Metals Coalition will be hosting California’s No Lead Law Product Show and Conference July 16 at the Hyatt Regency Orange County, Garden Grove, Calif.

In 2006, California Gov. Schwarzenegger signed Assembly Bill (AB) 1953 into law, which states that on Jan. 1, 2010, no one in California can sell or install a product that touches drinking water if it has more than 0.25% lead. In 2008,Schwarzenegger also signed Senate Bills 1334 and 1395 into law. These laws outline product certification and provide additional enforcement for AB 1953.

Plumbers, contractors, water utilities, stores, brokers and others impacted by California’s no-lead laws are encouraged to attend this conference and product show. Learn how these laws impact you and the products available that comply with AB 1953. For more information or to download a registration form, click here.

Free Webinar: Optimizing Automation for Finishing Iron and Steel Castings
MODERN CASTING magazine is sponsoring a FREE 30-minute webinar focused on advancements in the cleaning and finishing of ferrous castings. Scheduled for June 24 at 11 a.m. and 3 p.m. EST, this webinar will be presented by Maus USA Inc., Virginia Beach, Va.

Iron and steel castings increasingly need to be finished and machined in a single set-up to reduce material handling requirements and associated cost factors.The presentation will focus on the developing trends in cleaning and finishing toward automated production systems that allow external grinding, internal grinding, machining operations, spheroidal measurement, part articulation and cycle control in a single work cell or other configuration in-plant.

To register for the 11 a.m. EST webinar, click here. To register for the 3 p.m. EST webinar, click here.

Webinar to Discuss Confined Spaces
AFS will be producing a webinar on confined spaces June 11 at 11 a.m. EST. The webinar is intended to define what standards apply, hazards and possible solutions associated with confined spaces.

To register for this webinar, click here or contact Dave Krugman, AFS PR and marketing coordinator, at 800/537-4237 x286 or dkrugman@afsinc.org.

CMI Hits the Road With In-Plant Training
Save money by bringing the training you need in-house. CMI can offer most of its regular courses as in-plant training, allowing you to train your employees locally, eliminating travel costs and reducing out-of-work time. AFS corporate members receive discounted pricing.

For more information, or to request a quote, contact Jennifer Head, CMI special projects and course coordinator, at 800/537-4237 x 244 or jhead@afsinc.org.

Learn Geometric Dimensioning & Tolerancing With CMI Course
CMI will be offering a Geometric Dimensioning & Tolerancing course Aug. 4-5 at AFS Headquarters, Schaumburg, Ill. This course will cover the advantages of the language and provides a general overview of rules, concepts and tolerances of form, run out and location, datum principles and applications.

For more information, or to attend this course, download the course .pdf, contact AFS customer service at 800/537-4237 or click here to register.

Looking for more information on geometric dimensioning and tolerancing? Click over to the AFS E-Store today for more information on this and other metalcasting related topics. While you're there, take advantage of the June publications sale, which includes a 25% discount on select titles on numerous safety, ferrous, nonferrous and finishing subjects, to name a few. To view all of the titles on sale, click here.