Composites Weekly

For our first podcast of 2024, we wanted to start the year with a discussion on innovation. To compete and be profitable in today's marketplace, you need big, creative solutions and you need them now.

On this episode, I share an interview with Dr. Roger Firestein. He is the author of the book Create in a Flash: A Leader's Recipe for Breakthrough Innovation.

Just as you would follow a recipe to cook a great meal, there is a recipe for creating great ideas, and Roger shares it in his book. He's trained more people to lead the creative process than anyone else in the world. He helped Clorox solve a 77-year-old problem in 15 minutes and helped save General Motors $50,000 per week!

Create in a Flash is based on Roger's 40 years of helping companies unleash the innovation of their workforce. Roger's clients include AT&T, SC Johnson, Disney, Hilton, NASA and over 600 other organizations big and small

Roger is a Senior Faculty member at the International Center for Studies in Creativity, and President of Innovation Resources, Inc.

You can learn more about him at https://rogerfirestien.com.

This week, John Melilli of Composite Automation LLC joins me on our last podcast episode of 2023. John has over 30 years of experience in the application of mechanical, electrical & industrial automation components and systems for manufacturing. He's been working with composite part manufacturers since 2004.

Composite Automation is the only manufacturer's representative firm in North America that focuses on providing innovative composites manufacturing solutions to companies manufacturing various types of composite structures.

On this episode, we'll be discussing Fiber Patch Placement (FPP) technology by Cevotec. This system enables manufacturers to build complex fiber composites in high volume. This process has the potential to revolutionize the production of complex lightweight parts in several industries.

You can learn more about Composite Automation by visiting https://www.compositeautomation.com.

This week Stephen Nolet, senior director, innovation & technology for TPI joins me on the podcast. TPI was founded in 1968 and since 2001, has manufactured over 90,000 wind blades.

They are a global company focused on innovative and sustainable solutions to decarbonize and electrify the world. They accounted for approximately 38% of all onshore wind blades on a megawatt basis globally, excluding China, in 2022.

TPI is headquartered in Scottsdale, Arizona, and they've expanded their global footprint to include domestic facilities in Newton, Iowa; Warren, Rhode Island; and Santa Teresa, New Mexico and international facilities in Kolding, Denmark; Chennai, India; Juarez, Mexico; Matamoros, Mexico; and Izmir, Turkey.

Their mission is to deliver innovative and sustainable solutions to decarbonize and electrify the world by expanding the adoption of renewable energy.

On this episode, Steve will be sharing the background of TPI and the incredible opportunities ahead in the wind energy market. Wind energy is expected to make up over 30% of electricity generation in 2050 with close to 8,000 gigawatts installed. Compare this to approximately 830 gigawatts generated in 2021!

You can learn more about TPI by visiting https://tpicomposites.com.

Manufacturers in every sector are incorporating promising new processes and materials into product development and production—which often involve coating, sealing, and bonding.

Because these molecular interactions are invisible, a host of unseen environmental conditions can compromise surface integrity during production, leading to costly flaws and breakdowns.

On this episode, Lucas Dillingham of Brighton Science joins the podcast to highlight their company's technology – a system that allows manufacturers to confidently assess surface readiness for bonding, coating, or sealing at the point of preparation.

More than 20 years ago, Brighton Science began as a development lab for plasma polymerized coatings.

Through research and development work led by their Chief Scientist and founder Dr. Giles Dillingham, Brighton Science made great strides in the field of material science and adhesives in manufacturing.

It was during this time that Brighton Science developed the Surface Analyst, the first hand-held contact angle measurement device used in the development of adhesive bonding for the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter program.

You can learn more about their technology by visiting https://www.brighton-science.com.

On this episode, Lorenzo Mencattelli of Helicoid Industries joins me to discuss how their company is gaining international recognition as a groundbreaking innovation in the composites market.

Their biomimetic composite technology enhances impact toughness, reduces weight, provides superior structural integrity, safety, reduces raw-material costs, and improves energy efficiency compared to conventional composite laminates.

They're collaborating with world-leading composites parts manufacturers and composites material suppliers to develop innovations in the sporting goods, consumer products, impact protective equipment, ballistic armors, automotive components, wind turbine blades, naval, oil & gas, and aerospace market segments.

You can learn more about their technology by visiting www.helicoidind.com.

On this episode, Russell Covarrubia of Covarrubia Energy joins me to discuss how they are using pyrolysis technology to meet the demands of energy transition and electrification globally. Their goal is to produce reliable, renewable utility-scale power plants that deliver both on energy and financial output.

This is part 3 of our interviews from CAMX 2023 in Atlanta last week.

This episode features interviews with Daniel Neumann, Andrew Pokelwaldt and Peter Hedger of the ACMA, as well as companies like Toray Advanced Composites and CEAD.

This is part 2 of our interviews from CAMX 2023 in Atlanta last week.

This episode features interviews with companies like Vibrantz Technologies, Fives, Crimson Racing, and ACS International.

On this episode, we share some interviews from CAMX 2023 in Atlanta last week. It was a great show and we had the opportunity to speak with several companies during the event.

We'll be making these "CAMX interviews" a three part segment.

For part one, we feature interviews with Paua, a UK-based material technology company, and CAMX award finalist. This episode also includes interviews with John Kehoe of Boaz Partners, Adam Harms, the founder of Modulus, and John Thoma of Gefran.

This week Ryan Oner of AKPA Chemicals joins me to share some of the latest news from their company. AKPA Chemicals specializes in the production of organic peroxides & initiators.

They'll be featuring at CAMX in Atlanta next week and will be located at booth T44.

You can visit their website at https://akpachemicalus.com.