Dr. Julio Aguilar is Senior Casting Expert at Safran, responsible for evaluation and validation of new casting technologies and materials. He is attached to the platform Safran Advanced Turbine Airfoils dedicated to the development of new generation single crystal high pressure turbine blades. After completing his bachelor metallurgical engineering studies at the National University of Mexico (UNAM) he worked eight years as foundry manager in Guatemala. He moved then to Germany where he obtained his M.Sc. and PhD at the Foundry Institute of RWTH Aachen University. Before joining Safran he was director of the TechCenter of Access e.V. in Germany, working mostly on investment casting technologies.
Steve Goodier has worked in the cast metals industry his entire career. Having previously worked in the sand casting sector for 16 years, he joined investment casting specialists Tritech Group in 1999 and was appointed Group Technical Director in 2011. Steve now heads up the business as Chief Operating Officer and also leads the Global Engineering Research and Development functions for parent company Neterwala Group. Steve was appointed Chairman of the Cast Metals Federation in November 2023 and is a current serving board member of the EICF.
Owen Draper is a graduate of the University of Birmingham, where he completed a PhD on investment casting core materials. He has over 20 years experience of working within foundries at Rolls-Royce where he specialises in Nickel superalloy single crystal investment casting. He has a background in technology development in both processes and for new parts. Most recently, Owen was the technical manager for a research foundry for the University of Birmingham and Rolls-Royce. Currently Dr. Draper is the Global Process Owner Sx Casting at Rolls-Royce and EICF Board Member
Carl is a manufacturing and materials specialist who has spent the last 34 yearsdeveloping and problem solving in both manufacturing technology and materialsscience. Carl brings both these disciplines together to deliver product solutions for bothnew and mature technologies.
Experienced people leader
Values building and executing strategic technology roadmaps
Optimised manufacturing and materials processing whole methods
Development of quality systems for long and short term quality control
Advocates Lean principes and keeps the product and customer in focus
Gavin Dooley serves as the Group Technical Director of REMET®, overseeing Quality, R&D, and New Product Development across the REMET Group. With over 14 years of experience in the investment casting industry, Gavin has held roles as a senior process engineer and as a trusted supplier to the field.
Gavin earned his PhD in 2016 from the University of Birmingham, focusing on "Shell Improvements for the Investment Casting of Orthopaedic Implants." Complementing his technical expertise, he completed an MBA from the Open University in 2019 and has further advanced his qualifications with a National General Certificate in Occupational Health and Safety.
A dedicated advocate for innovation and knowledge sharing, Gavin has presented over 15 publications at international conferences, contributing valuable insights to the industry.
Nicole Procter serves as the Commercial Manager at ICD Europe, where she oversees the global supply of primary metals, superalloys, and minor metals to industries including aerospace, automotive, and medical. With over a decade of experience in international trade and business development, Nicole has cultivated a deep understanding of sustainable supply chains and the strategic use of revert materials in the investment casting industry.
As a dedicated advocate for innovation and sustainability, Nicole also holds positions on the Board of Directors for the European Investment Casters' Federation (EICF) and Women in Recycling, where she actively promotes diversity and sustainable practices within the metals and recycling sectors.
Nicole's expertise lies in fostering collaboration across supply chains, driving efficiency, and championing responsible sourcing practices to secure a more sustainable future for the industry.
Sayan Chatterjee is a researcher at Access e.V., specializing in the digitalization of the investment casting process. He graduated in Production Systems Engineering from RWTH Aachen University, where he worked on the modeling and simulation of manufacturing processes and data-driven process optimization. This foundation led to his growing interest in computer vision, automation, and AI-driven solutions. His current work focuses on AI-based image processing, data analytics, and enhancing decision-making in manufacturing. Through this, he is exploring the potential of predictive modeling across different stages of the process chain to advance quality control and process efficiency in investment casting.
Dr. Caroline E. Giacomin is an Application Engineer from Rheonics GmbH based in Winterthur, Switzerland. Rheonics produces inline viscosity and density meters for a variety of fluid applications and has been assisting the investment casting industry with slurry viscosity monitoring and control within slurry tanks for almost a decade. Caroline earned her doctorate from ETH Zurich, focusing on complex fluids. Prior to that, she completed a master’s in chemical engineering at the University of British Columbia and a bachelor’s degree at McGill University.
Education:
Technical college Mechanical Engineering
Degree in Automation Technology
Experience:
Mechanical engineer / 10 years
Project manager special metallurgy / 2 years
Sales and product manager for special melting and remelting (SVP) / 7 years
Head of department sales (EVP with signing power) / 3 years
Vice President Sales, Special Metallurgy at DANIELI / 2021–today
Business Development Manager | Advanced Material Densification
Quintus Technologies
Rasmus Björk
Academic Background • Master of Science in Applied Physics and Electrical Engineering - Linköping University, Sweden Industry Background • Research Assistant at JKUAT in Jeju, Kenya
Research Assistant at the University of Sharjah in Sharjah, UAE • Research Assistant at TEK-UP University in Tunis, Tunisia
Joined Quintus Technologies in September 2023 through the trainee program, featuring rotational development across Sweden, China, and Korea
Currently Business Development Manager in Advanced Material Densification focusing on castings, powder metallurgy, and energy storage
Patrick Dunne is Vice President, Application Innovation Group (AIG) & Technical Fellow at 3D Systems. Since joining the company in 1999, he has focused on application development for additive manufacturing (AM). Prior to his current role, Patrick led the Application Development Lab based in Berkeley, California, as part of the broader global AIG since 2010.
Advocating an open-minded, creative, and holistic approach to problem-solving within manufacturing workflows, Patrick brings expertise to utilize a broad toolbox of conventional and AM technologies, including direct and indirect metals, SLA, SLS, DLP, and Inkjet, all pointed towards a wide range of industries including, dental, medical, automotive and aerospace. In recent years his focus has been on originating, developing, and scaling up mass custom and mass complex manufacturing workflows in collaboration with industry-leading companies.
Vincent Icart is currently COO & CTO with Prodways Printers. Graduated as a mechanical engineer, he joined Prodways 10 years ago for his master thesis internship as an application engineer. He then moved on to various R&D positions within the company where he was able to collaborate deeply with many strategic partners as well as key accounts both in ceramics but as well dental verticals
Wenchao Tang is a Simulation Engineer specializing in investment casting and process optimization at Access e.V. . He holds a Bachelor's degree in Material Chemistry from the University of Science and Technology Beijing and a Master of Science in Metallurgical Engineering from RWTH Aachen University. His previous work and research involved using simulation and additive manufacturing to accelerate casting system design. He is currently exploring further process acceleration through digitalization leveraging Siemens Teamcenter and applying AI for data analysis and quality control.
David Scott is an Industry Technical Consultant with Nalco Water, an Ecolab Company. He has been working for Nalco for 8 years supporting Investment Casting customers with onsite technical expertise. David has many years of experience leading foundry shell room operations and research and development of shell systems. With over 30 years of experience in the Investment Casting space, David’s role at Nalco Water is uniquely designed to support our customers with implementation of new technologies and support our field sales team execute process improvement for customers.
George Salomon is a Principal Chemist with Nalco Water, an Ecolab Company. He has been working with Nalco for 10 years supporting Investment Casting Innovation, customer and technical support to field sales team. George studied Chemistry and Biomedical Engineering at Mississippi State University and is currently a 5th year Ph.D. student at Illinois Tech with an Inorganic Chemistry focus.
Viral Mistry is a Mechanical Engineering graduate from India, with a Master's degree in Power Engineering from BTU Cottbus, Germany. Currently working as a Design and Simulation Engineer at Access e.V., focused on designing and simulating cast parts and casting clusters to optimize results and reduce or eliminate the defects. Simultaneously, the role involves 3D printing of ceramics using the VAT photopolymerization technology to accelerate the casting process by printing RP models, complex core geometries, and directly printing the shells for efficient and precise production. Past works include the design and analysis of a shell and tube heat exchanger with a modified approach to optimize heat transfer.
Andrew has been working in RP/AM/3D-Printing since 1990 starting with 3D Systems in the UK and moving to 3D Systems Corporate in Valencia, CA in 1996. He was part of the development teams for the SLA5000, SLA7000 and Viper Si2 systems as well as the 3D Lightyear software. After 3DS, he ran a 3rd party AM maintenance & support company for 7 years, followed by 5 years with Solid Concepts in Valencia, CA – now Stratasys Direct Manufacturing. Most recently he was the Equipment Partnership Manager with DSM (subsequently, Covestro) Additive Manufacturing, and moved back to the UK 7 years ago. Since Stratasys acquired the Covestro AM business in 2023, he now holds the position of Business Development Manager for the Stratasys Neo line of Stereolithography printers where he is developing advanced manufacturing applications for stereolithography such as investment casting, sand casting and wind tunnel testing.
Cameron Coyle is a Senior Sales Manager at voxeljet, specializing in 3D printing solutions for clients across the UK, Scandinavia, and South America. Since joining voxeljet in 2016 as a Sales Associate, Cameron has developed a reputation for his deep expertise in additive manufacturing. Passionate about building lasting relationships, he works closely with foundry customers to understand their unique needs and deliver tailored 3D printing solutions that drive innovation and success. With a focus on collaboration and problem-solving, Cameron is dedicated to making cutting-edge 3D printing technology accessible and impactful for businesses around the world.
John Machielse went to the University of Amsterdam to finish his Master in Chemisty & Catalysis in 1992. In 1994 he finished a post-academic degree in Process Development at the University of Twente and also got his Master in Chemical Engineering. From 1994 until 2003 he was head of the R&D team at Byk-Cera Netherlands, who produces wax additives for the paint & ink industry. After 5 years in marketing & sales in Honeywell’s synthetic wax department, he moved to Paramelt in 2009 to become Business Development manager for Investment Casting waxes for the EMEAI, integrating and managing the product lines: Paracast, Cerita (ex Argüeso) and KC-waxes (ex Kindt Collins).
Iñaki Vicario is the Senior Process Technology Specialist of Consarc Engineering. He belongs to the Technology Department of Consarc dealing with technical developments, and customer technical support.
He has almost 18 years of experience in the aerospace industry, specifically in investment casting technology as a foundry process owner, and also, in the last 6 years as senior casting and other vacuum technologies process specialist worldwide.
He has also large experience in other metallurgical processes, such as vacuum heat treatment (10 years of experience in AMS 2750), VIM process for Ni based alloy manufacturing, vacuum degassing and decarburizing of steels, Hot Isostatic Pressing and Gas Phase Aluminizing.
Mr. Vicario has a Bachelor’s degree from the University of the Basque Country in Industrial Engineering, specialized in Manufacturing Technologies.
Mr. Swatantra Kumar is a highly experienced and accomplished mechanical engineer with 18 years of expertise in the design, development, and implementation of mechanical systems and solutions. With a proven track record in Design & development with manufacturing industries in India and United states of America such as Larsen and toubro, Caterpillar, McNeilus trucks, Carrier global, United Technology Corporation now RTX, Proctor & Gamble & Lohia corp limited specializes in Industrial products, automotive, and industrial machinery.
Throughout his career, Mr. Swatantra Kumar has demonstrated a commitment to innovation, problem-solving, and excellence. He has led cross-functional teams, managed complex projects, and delivered cost-efficient, high-performance solutions that meet stringent quality and safety standards. He is associated with Modtech machines as a R&D head since last more than 1 year.
With a strong foundation in engineering principles and a passion for driving sustainable solutions, Mr. Swatantra Kumar continues to make significant contributions to the advancement of mechanical engineering
Paul Tennant Fred has over 25 years of experience in the foundry industry, working with UK, US, and European facilities. At Rolls-Royce Plc, he specialises in process modelling, focusing on single-crystal investment casting and wax/core injection. Paul began his career at the Rolls-Royce Research and Development Foundry, before moving into various capability acquisition roles. In his specialist role, he introduced casting process modelling for equiax castings in Rolls-Royce, and has contributed to the global expansion of process modelling for both equiax and single-crystal processes. His current focus is on automation of the complete analysis process, from CAD definition through to analysis reporting. Paul is a Chartered Engineer and an elected Fellow of the IET.
James Simpson is a research engineer at the High Temperature Research Centre – a research partnership between the University of Birmingham and Rolls-Royce plc. Here he has specialised in nickel superalloy single crystal casting filtration and has additional experience in other aspects of investment casting.
Haize Galarraga Phd. Industrial Engineer (UPV-EHU, 2005), Materials Engineer (Worcester Polytechnic Institute, 2016) and PhD in Materials and Sustainable Processes Engineering (UPV-EHU, 2020). Researcher with more than 18 years of experience in the technical-scientific development of national and international research projects for metal alloy developmet, metal component manufacturing, and recycling processes. He has been responsible of additive manufacturing in the Industry and Transport division of Tecnalia, where he has coordinated actions related to this field. He is currently managing projects on the development of new metallic materials, circularity of metals and sustainable processes.
Chris is MORSA´s Director investment casting unit and a US wax chemist with over 40,000,000 pounds of experience in casting wax formulation, reclamation and use who has worked on many development programs at foundries for military, Aerospace and commercial applications that helped develop processes for Boeing Integrated Defense Systems, Boeing R+D, Boeing Commercial Aircraft Company, The US Department of Defense and several other Governments and agencies across the globe. His expertise centers on Net Shape Injection Molding of various foams metals and polymeric compounds. His efforts are focused on formulation, process efficiency, advanced reclamation technologies and assessment of customer needs.
Ali ALKIN, born in France in 1997, completed his pre-tertiary education in the same country. He graduated in 2024 with a degree in Mechanical Engineering, ranking first in his class. During his studies, he contributed to research projects funded by the Scientific and Technological Research Institution of Turkey and published a scientific article in an international journal. Now, he works as a Sales and Business Development Engineer at Akarmak in Turkey.
With more than 13 years of experience, Tobias Schmidt is a seasoned professional in the ceramic and refractory industry.
At Zircoa, he is a sales engineer specializing in crucibles for the investment casting industry and platinum group metal castings, as well as zirconia nozzles for powder metal atomization.
His expertise in technical product management bridges manufacturing, engineering and sales teams in the United States and customers throughout Europe to deliver innovative solutions tailored to industry needs.
He holds a degree in Materials Science Glass and Ceramics and an MBA in Engineering Management.
Prior to transitioning to sales in 2018, Tobias built a strong foundation in quality assurance, manufacturing, R&D and application engineering.
Currently working in Business development at MAGMA GmbH in Aachen. I have many years of experience in research management and in the implementation of publicly funded collaborative projects. Another focus of my current job is product management in the field of continuous casting. As a materials scientist (with a degree in Saarbrücken), I also contribute my knowledge to questions in a variety of casting processes with a wide variety of metallic materials. I am happy to report on the exciting possibilities of numerical simulation and optimization of casting processes as a speaker at various events.
CEO of 3DCeram CEO since 2009
Since 2016 Vice President of the French Ceramic Manufacturer
President of EuTeCer, the European Technical Ceramics Federation from 2013 to 2016.
Graduated from ENSCI French school of ceramic engineer and from HEC MBA.
Former General Manager of Ceric, an engineering company specialized in turnkey solution production of heavy clay building materials.
Mr. Olabe has been linked to the aerospace industry for a period over 20 years. He served as Programmes Director of the Engine company of Spain (ITP) managing engine programmes such as EJ200, Trent 700, Trent 800, Trent 500, Trent 900 and as CEO of PCB, during 10 years. A brand new world class investment casting Company in Spain which he took the mission to create and project internationally. During this period Mr. Olabe was member of the Board of Directors of the EICF , being Chairman of the Federation for a period of 4 years supporting an interesting period of revitalization of the EICF and contributing personally to the establishment of the global circuit..... America / Europe / Far East for the celebrations of the IC World Conferences. Mr. Olabe background is an Engineer specialized in electricity and energy where he has devoted another 15 years of his profesional life in key managerial positions with experience in the field of nuclear equipments and lately renewables Mr. Olabe is a believer in cooperation and innovation as elements that enhance operations and achievements of organizations
