Composites Weekly

On this episode, Joe Steele of LIFT joins the podcast to share some recent news. Their organization has been awarded a contract to accelerate the development of ceramic-based materials for use in industrial and defense applications.

This new four-year, $9 million "Critical Materials Processing" program will advance the state of technology and readiness for ceramics, ceramic matrix composites (CMCs), and ultrahigh-temperature materials.

LIFT is an accelerator connecting advanced materials, manufacturing processes, systems engineering and talent development enhancing America's manufacturing competitiveness, national economy, and security.

On this episode, Cindy Squires joins me to highlight Composites Evolution taking place October 22-23 in Knoxville, TN. This event brings together leading manufacturers, suppliers, and technical experts to explore practical, profitable solutions to the EPA's new styrene regulations.

This focused, forward-looking conference will show you how to turn compliance into a competitive advantage – boosting efficiency, improving processes, and unlocking new market opportunities.

You can learn more by visiting https://acmanet.org/event/composites-evolution.

On this episode, we'll be featuring several interviews from day two at CAMX 2025, including:

• Max Thouin of Fairmat discussing FairPly Recycled Technology. 0:21
• Mike Siwajek, VP of R&D at CSP discussing their ultra-lightweight TCA Float™: 5:47
• Yannick Willemin, founder of Catalysium: 10:39
• Imad Atallah, VP of Product Management at Hexcel Corporation: 19:31
• David Leach, SAMPE Fellow & Co-chair of the CAMX Conference: 35:34
• Jacob Clark of ReForm Composites Engineering: 43:38

On this episode, we'll be featuring several interviews from CAMX 2025, including:

• John Kehoe of Boaz Partners: 2:24
• Paul Salach discussing SUSTAINA® Loop by Owens Corning: 12:04
• Gary Owen, CEO of Lineat Composites Limited: 18:54
• Russell Gentry, Professor of Architecture and Civil Engineering at GA Tech discussing the Monogirder BladeBridge: 23:39
• Matthew Hardman discussing Loop Technology's FibreLINE system: 30:45
• Mark Adams of Polynt Group and Dr. Wayne Huberty from Mississippi State University discussing accelerated composite manufacturing using CRTM and 3D-printed thermoset tooling: 38:45
• Bryan Beimel of Pulflex Technologies: 51:52
• Dr. Moutushi Dey discussing AI in Manufacturing: 58:46
• Monica Rommel of Specialty Materials and Chantel Camardese of Toray Advanced Composites discussing the Hy-Bor® technology: 1:07

On this episode, Cindy Squires and Rebekah Stacha join me to talk about CAMX 2025, taking place in just over a week down in sunny Orlando, FL (Sep. 8-11). You can still register by visiting https://www.thecamx.org.

On this episode, Jamey Embree and Ken Bisconer from L&L Products join us to discuss their work in bringing L&L's extensive expertise to solutions for the aerospace, construction, sporting goods, and emerging mobility industries.

L&L is well-known in the automotive space for developing innovative solutions that help OEMs create lighter, stronger, and quieter vehicles, but they also provide high-performance solutions for Aircraft interiors, electric Vertical Take-Off and Landing vehicles (eVTOL), and Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV), including drones.

On this episode, we'll be discussing three products L&L will be highlighting at CAMX in Orlando next month. They will be located at booth Q45 on the exhibit hall at CAMX.

These new products include:

PHASTER® : A proprietary two-component ambient temperature curing technology with superior adhesion performance and processing ease, in various indoor or outdoor application conditions. https://phaster.llproducts.com/

Continuous Composite Systems ™ (CCS™): Continuous fiber-reinforced composite materials that can be used as a carrier when combined with our highly engineered sealants and/or structural adhesives. The system is designed to provide strength, stiffness, and rigidity to a lightweight structure. https://ccs.llproducts.com/

InsituCore®: a family of one-component, heat-activated foaming materials that can be used to create composites with a foam core. Placed in a heated tool, the material foams to fill the mold cavity and form net-shape parts without time-consuming machining processes or energy-intensive autoclave operations. https://insitucore.llproducts.com/

On this episode, Brian Fitzgerald joins the podcast to discuss how artificial intelligence is transforming the factory floor by predicting machine and equipment failures before they occur—boosting efficiency, increasing production uptime, and cutting downtime costs. Brian is the Chief Growth strategist at Augury, a manufacturing technology leader valued at over $1 billion. Their platform is helping manufacturers unlock greater production capacity, improve operational predictability, and advance sustainability, reshaping the way manufacturing teams operate. More information is available at www.augury.com.

On this episode, Edward Crawford, and Rick Armstrong of Coltala Aerospace join me to discuss Evans Composites' accelerated growth in aircraft repair operations under Coltala Aerospace.

Evans Composites has experienced transformative growth this past year, powered by Coltala Aerospace's precision integration strategy. This momentum has brought alignment and strength to Evans, driving significant gains in operational performance, scalability, and customer experience.

You can learn more by visiting https://www.coltalaaerospace.com.

On this episode, Dr. Michael Ponting joins the podcast to talk about his work on nanolayered metamaterials and polymer nanocomposites. Dr. Ponting is the chief science officer at Peak with over 20 years of experience in micro and nanolayered polymer materials.

His work has enabled breakthroughs in everything from high-temperature capacitors and night vision optics to sustainable packaging and ballistic materials.

You can learn more about their technology at https://www.peaknano.com.

On this episode, Derek DeGeest discusses Nitrotherm - a patented new spray technology system that replaces conventional compressed air with heated, ionized nitrogen as the spray carrier. Nitrogen is cleaner and atomizes more effectively.