This week I welcome Bill Easter, the CEO of X-Mat on the show. X-Mat is a company that has developed a revolutionary, high-performance material that combines some of the best properties of metals (electrical conductivity), engineering plastics (lightweight), and ceramics (high operating temperature). 

 Their technology has the power to disrupt many industries and we'll be discussing some of the latest projects they are involved in on today's episode. 

This week, I welcome Sonny Vu to the show. Sonny is a serial entrepreneur and CEO of Arevo, an advanced manufacturing technology company that automates the design and production of large, complex continuous carbon fiber reinforced polymer (“CFRP”) composite structures. 

Their technology has the ability to build complex-geometry parts using chopped carbon fiber or, more importantly, continuous fiber reinforcement and high-performance polymers. However, the real innovation is combining digital technology with a six-axis robot to enable 3D parts with 3D fiber orientation.

On this episode, Sonny will discuss his background as a serial entrepreneur and what drew his interest to Arevo's technology and market potential. 

This week I welcome Casey Welch to the show. Casey is the co-founder and president of Tallo, a company that connects the next generation of talent with opportunities in the workplace. 

On this episode, we'll be discussing the worker shortage for so many industries including manufacturing and trucking.

Casey will be sharing some interesting data from their survey of over 29,000 Gen Z high school and college students on their choice of careers and the industries they are most interested in. 

Casey will also share some important strategies for attracting this next generation of talent. 

You can learn more about their company by visiting https://tallo.com. 

This week Meredith Glasgow of Current joins me on the show to discuss their company.

On this episode, I welcome Brett Walker, CEO of Electroninks on the show to discuss how they are working to be the leading worldwide brand of particle-free metal complex inks for printed electronics and semiconductor applications.

Electroninks was founded in 2013 with a deep knowledge base in materials science, chemistry, and design.

Since its founding, Electroninks has been adopted into the consumer electronics supply chain and developed its own entire consumer product line, Circuit Scribe.

Currently, Electroninks develops high-performance solutions for many markets including display, plating, interconnects, and wearables, as well as consumer devices.

On today's episode, Brett will be sharing the history and background of the company as well as some of the advantages their material technologies offer to the market. 

On this episode, I share a recent interview I did with Andrew Pokelwaldt, of the ACMA, and Brannon Pittman of HK Research discussing Gelcoat issues. Gel coating is typically a common problem area when working with composites, especially in the colder months, and can be a struggle for even experienced fabricators.

On this episode, Andrew and Brannon will be walking us through application steps and procedures for avoiding many problems that can arise during the gel coating process.

Nearly $130 billion dollars is needed to repair deteriorating infrastructures throughout North America. 

And while steel and concrete may be the most popular methods for reinforcing structures, they are labor-intensive and time-consuming. 

CIISolutions was formed in 2018 by Dr. Bahira Abdulsalam to provide a better solution. They specialize in the repair and strengthening of structures like bridges, parking structures, and seawalls with Fiber Reinforced Polymers (FRP).

CII Solutions is an engineering and manufacturing company based in Canada, and they provide advanced, sustainable, and cost-efficient solutions for the civil engineering sector.

This week, Dr. Abdulsalam joins me on the show to talk about the work they are doing at CII Solutions. 

Dr. Bahira Abdulsalam has a Masters's Degree in structural strengthening using composites, a Pd.D. in FRP internal reinforcement, and a Post-doctorate Industrial Fellowship in composite manufacturing.

This week, I welcome William Hoff CEO of Geopolymer International, a firm that creates and distributes ecologically friendly building materials. William has been in
the construction industry for over 40 years, with experience in massive projects and is an expert in concrete and concrete alternatives.

William focuses on sustainable materials, and commits to bringing new technologies compliant with standard certifications, and permitting requirements needed to make them a reality. Currently, he's working with Geopolymer, 3-D concrete printing, and modular housing to achieve his goals.

You can learn more about them by visiting https://geopolymerinternational.com. 

This week, Martin Gambling of GRM Consulting joins me on the show to discuss how they are using OmniQuest's GENESIS is being used in the Motorsports industry today, and is migrating into automotive hypercar development, mainstream automotive, and marine composites sector as well. 

This week, Bob Barsotti the global R&D manager of Arkema joins me on the show to discuss their Kepstan Pekk Resins. 

These polyether-ketone-ketone resins are made from a tailored combination of two monomers and are designed for applications requiring extreme performance, usually in a combination of multiple categories.

Compared to PEEK resins, Kepstan^® PEKK resins generally offer higher temperature performance, significantly higher compression strength, a broader range of tailored properties, improved barrier performance, and a better coefficient of friction control.

You can learn more by visiting https://www.extremematerials-arkema.com/en/product-families/kepstan-pekk-polymer-range/ 

This past week Bentley Park, CEO of APJeT®, Inc. joined me on the show to discuss their unique air plasma technology and the benefits to a number of industries including the composites and additive manufacturing industry. 

APJeT® is an advanced technology company located in Research Triangle Park, Morrisville, NC. They recently announced a new industrial application for its breakthrough air plasma technology.

Eliminating the need for heat and chemicals for substrate preparation prior to dyeing or printing, the APJeT cold plasma process increases wettability and adhesion, while reducing safety risks, environmental impact, and degradation of the substrate material.

This week, I have a two-part interview with Chris Hurdleston and Marcos Vidal of ACS International, and also Marco Suess of Dorfner. 

ACS International is a leading supplier of raw materials for composites industries such as cast polymer, solid surface, and fiber-reinforced plastic (FRP).

This week Tato Bigio, cofounder of UBQ joins me on the show to discuss how their company helping to reduce landfills all over the world by converting everyday household waste into their patented UBQ™ Material.

UBQ™ is a thermoplastic and climate positive material, that can be used to make everyday durable end-products, more sustainable and with a reduced carbon footprint.

It can substitute plastics, minerals, and wood in thousands of different applications. 

UBQ Materials was founded in 2012 by Tato Bigio and Rabbi Yehuda Pearl. The name UBQ stands for ubiquitous. The problem of waste is ubiquitous and the solutions, therefore, need to be as well. On this episode, Tato will be sharing the background of the UBQ™, and discuss their process, as well as some of the projects they've been involved with. 

On this episode, I welcome two guests from the transportation industry to discuss the two biggest drivers of increasing rates in the US - COVID-19, and supply chain disruptions. 

Jim Grundy, a transportation expert, and CEO of Sisu energy joins me for the first part of the discussion, and John Barnett of Steamboat Transportation Group joins me for the 2nd part. 

On this episode, we’ll be discussing the ongoing resin supply issues with Steve Wetzel of Interplastic, and Dirk De Vuyst of IMI. 

Steve will be discussing the cause of resin supply shortages. As many know, the February freeze in Texas triggered mass blackouts and led to chemical plant shutdowns that are disrupting supply chains, causing a shortage of raw materials.

Dirk will be sharing some proactive strategies manufacturing members can implement during these challenging times. These include the 4 P’s – Protecting current customers, Pricing based on new costing, Procuring materials ahead of time, and Producing efficiently.

This week Tim Ross and David Dytman of RimCraft join me on this episode to discuss their custom equipment solutions for our industry. 

RimCraft of ROI Equipment is a company well known in the industries they service for having a wide array of standardized machines used universally throughout the GRFC, GRFG, and Resin industries, they are also able to customize their products to meet your specific needs.

As engineers, David and Tim understand the chemistry of the materials so well that they are able to design customize their systems accordingly, in a way that most big companies cannot.

David and Tim were recently approached by Tesla Motors to provide a syntactic dispense system for their car battery packs. They made the decision to pursue this project, and it has expanded to their new facility in Shanghai, China.

Every Tesla Model 3 on the road now utilizes RimCraft's technology. As a result of this relationship with Tesla, they have been able to expand their production capabilities.

On this episode, we'll be discussing their line of resin systems as well as the fact that RimCraft now offers replacement parts for the old 2400 and 4600 pumps that have been discontinued by MVP. 

You can learn more by visiting their website at https://www.rimcraft.com. 

This week Scott Acton, CEO of Forte Specialty Contractors joins me on the show to share their story as a company serving the hospitality, restaurant, nightlife, and entertainment industries. 

Scott's entrance into this arena began with a long family history of Disney projects, which is known for creative, unusual experiences requiring innovative construction techniques.

Part of developing this skill set for Scott included attending “Disney University” where he learned the business and leadership skills necessary to build a successful career.

His early work comprises several landmarks across North America, including portions of Knott’s Berry Farm, Universal Studios, and Disney, showcasing Scott’s affinity to thematic design and construction.

Scott continues his legacy of innovation as the CEO of Forté and on this episode, you hear him share how they've expanded as a company to the point where they now use 3D printing to produce mockups of projects for their clients and subcontractors. They boast the largest 3D printer of-its-kind in the state of Nevada. 

You can learn more about their company by visiting them at https://fortedesignbuild.com.