McHenry County EDC’s Business Accelerator for Innovation and Collaboration (BAIC) provided funding to help General Kinematics develop a novel, patent-pending vibratory dry slag cooling conveyor. The system is used in the processing of molten materials, including metals. Bob Huffer, Applications Sales Manager at General Kinematics, said the conveyor is not only safer and lower maintenance than wet slag…

The aluminium high-pressure die-caster Fonderie Aluminium de Cléon (FAC) owned by BAVARIA Industriekapital AG ("BAVARIA") delivers transmission housings and engine blocks to Renault, PSA and Getrag Ford. BAVARIA acquired the foundry at the end of 2007 as a part of the takeover of three French entities from Teksid SA in Luxembourg. FAC was created in 1964 by Renault on the site of the foundry in Cléon. In…

At the turn of the year 2026, the Federal Association of the German Foundry Industry (BDG) will appoint its chief executive officer. Dr. Martin Theuringer will succeed Max Schumacher, who has been leading the association since 2012. He joins the firm from the Wirtschaftsvereinigung Stahl (WV Stahl). The 56-year-old expert steps aboard with over 20 years of association experience in executive positions at WV…

The China Foundry Association (CFA) sent 1000 protective masks to the BDG. "We are very grateful for the support in partnership with the association", said BDG general manager Max Schumacher, "in these times, cohesion is particularly important and helpful". Regenbogenland is a home for children, adolescents and young adults who have only a limited life expectancy due to a life-shortening illness or a severe…

On November 8th and 9th, in the house of the foundry industry at the Hansaallee in Dusseldorf, the Division Leaders of Economy and Technology of the Bundesverband der Deutschen Giesserei-Industrie (BDG) met to re-elect the association’s committee, among other things. Dr.-Ing. Erwin Flender was elected unanimously at the subsequent inaugural Bureau Meeting to serve another three years as BDG President. The…

A special moment for the German foundry industry: After more than three decades of service to the association, Max Schumacher, long-time Chief Executive Officer of the Bundesverband der Deutschen Gießerei-Industrie (BDG), has officially entered retirement. During the BDG’s first economic policy evening in Düsseldorf, colleagues, political representatives, and industry leaders paid tribute to the remarkable…

CLEPA, the European association of automotive suppliers, held a high-level round table yesterday on the green transformation within the mobility sector, discussing the impact of the various available policy instruments on the employment and manufacturing footprint in Europe with representatives from academia, workers associations, mobility-technology industry, and government. Among the participants were…