This month our Managing Director of PETROFER UK and PETROFER Group Executive Committee member Stuart Gregory gave a speech to mark the end of his term as Chairman of the Cast Metals Federation in the UK. He was elected to this position in 2019.
The Cast Metals Federation works in partnership with companies and stakeholders to advocate for the advancement and innovation in the UK foundry industry. They want to promote best practice and represent the UK foundry industry globally.
Shortly after Stuart Gregory took up his position, the Covid pandemic hit the entire world. Accordingly, he, like so many other people, faced completely new challenges and his period in office differed enormously from that of the former chairman. He pointed out that, virtual meetings, Teams, andZoom have been a godsend and are now part of the new normal daily life and helped him to fulfil his position.
However, with a look at the pandemic, he also reminded again of the terrible sides of the last two years. He asked to remember family, friends and work colleagues that died in these terrible times, and also CMF members that are no longer with them.
He again mentioned the challenges that have existed for the industry alongside Covid in recent years and what the future is likely to bring:
“We are seeing so many raw material shortages, energy, transport, packaging, and material price increases along with so many job vacancies that every day brings new challenges. Additionally, over the past 2 years we have had Brexit and all the new complexities, rules, legislation, and administrative burdens that brought, and then the new demands of environmental legislation to meet the “greener” future we desperately must meet.
And this is without talking about chip shortages and the swing to electric vehicles that will change our world and markets for ever.
Wow, what a challenging time for everyone working in the foundry sector!
Despite all these negative influences, there remains an optimism and positive mood in the sector that it will win through. New technologies, markets, materials and investments are coming along, and we must grasp them quickly.”
Published: 15 December 2021
