Section Officers:
Chair: Matt Creedon, Washington Mills
Treasurer: David Gottfried, Alfred University
If you would like to contact any of the Western New York Section officers, visit the ACerS online membership directory for contact details. You must be a member to access the directory. Or contact Vicki Evans at vevans@ceramics.org for assistance.
Meetings and Events
The ACerS Western New York Section presents:
Maintaining, repairing, and replacing terra cotta roofs
Sponsored by Alfred 21st Century Group, Alfred Village, Alfred University Archives, WNY Section of ACerS, and Baker’s Bridge Historical Association
On September 15, 2022, Western New York ACerS Section co-hosted a presentation about the terra cotta industry in Alfred, NY. Toby Duncan from Precision Construction and Roofing, an expert in historic preservation discussed the maintenance and repair of terra cotta roofs. The presentation was followed by a section leadership meeting and dinner at the Rosebush.
Laurie Lounsberry Meehan, Alfred University Librarian and University Archivist
Tony Duncan, Precision Contruction and Roofing
Members of the ACerS Western New York Section listen to the presentation.
Mock up of a terra cotta roof, which will be displayed on Alfred University's campus.
Western New York Section of ACerS and Alfred University hosted the 2021 McMahon Lecture on October 7, 2021
The ACerS Western New York Section hosted the McMahon Lecture presented by Dr. William Carty on Thursday, October 7, 2021.
Dr. Carty, Emeritus Professor of Ceramic Engineering, Kazuo Inamori School of Engineering, New York State College of Ceramics, Alfred University, presented "It Starts with Ceramic Processing- Think like a particle”.
Additionally, Western New York Section of ACerS members toured the McMahon Engineering building.
Dr. Gabrielle Gaustad, Dean of the Inamori School of Engineering presented an update on ongoing research at Alfred.
ACerS members voted on the top posters during a Student Poster Session. Cash prizes were awarded to the top posters.
Monofrax Hosts Section Meeting
The Western New York Section of ACerS held its most recent meeting at Monofrax in Falconer, NY, on Monday, December 17, 2018.
At the Monofrax plant in Falconer, New York, section members in attendance were treated to a very exciting plant tour and social event. The highlights from the plant tour include interesting presentations, scholarship award recognition, and an impressively up-close demonstration of a large-scale high temperature molten refractory pour. This was an exceptional opportunity to witness a full-scale high temperature refractory pour into a huge industrial refractory mold.
Prior to the demonstration, guests of the event were treated to a presentation, “Fused Cast Refractories” by Kevin Selkregg, the manager of the Analytical Laboratory and Technical Manager for Monofrax. “The Monofrax plant was established in 1948 by The Carborundum Company to manufacture fused-cast refractories. Today it remains one of the only fused-cast refractory suppliers that is truly independent of its customer base.”
Western New York Section Chair Matt Creedon opened the evening with a report on our continued Section efforts to bring people together from the ceramics industry in Western New York. By doing so, it is our goal to support the health and growth of the field through various educational and networking opportunities.
During Section announcements, we were delighted to have Mike Alexander of Allied Minerals on hand to recognize and congratulate the 2019 The Refractories Institute (TRI) scholarship recipients Sarah Whipkey and Alex George.
Following the Monofrax tour and demonstration, William Andrews of Monofrax extended his generous hospitality by hosting a lively networking event at the beautiful Southern Tier Brewing Co. Those in attendance were invited to network while enjoying a delicious BBQ dinner and specialty craft beers and drinks.
The Western New York Section of ACerS would like to extend our appreciation and thanks to Monofrax for being such wonderful hosts of this important event. We additionally would like to thank David Gottfried of the CACT (Center for Advanced Ceramic Technologies at Alfred University) for his support of the our Section and being a big part of making these events successful.
Western New York Section Enjoys Tour and Dinner Meeting
The Western NY Section of ACerS was invited to Praxair Inc., in Tonawanda NY, on March 1, 2018, for an exciting tour and networking event. The highlight was an up-close view of the OTM Syngas Pilot Reactor. This reactor is the largest working ceramic membrane integrated syngas production system in the world. Praxair, Inc. is a leading supplier of gas products; it produces and distributes a wide range of gases, as well as high performance surface coatings.
Our group of 21 professionals, representing over a dozen companies, was treated to a catered networking event in the sleekly modern-styled Praxair Innovation Center by Max Christie, Praxair’s R&D Manager for the Ceramic Membrane Division. Guests at the event were also given the benefit of two technical presentations: “Syngas Production with Praxair’s Oxygen Ion Conducting Ceramic Membranes” by Max Christie and “Ceramic Materials for Gas Separation” by Jonathan Lane.
Matt Creedon, chair of the Western New York Section, updated the group regarding continued efforts to fulfill our mission of bringing together people involved in the ceramics industry in Western New York to mutually support growth through education and networking. This will be accomplished through a monthly newsletter, plant tours, presentations, social events, and student scholarships. Additional thanks to the CACT for supporting in part this most recent Western New York Section event.
Section Facilitates Recent Tour and Dinner Meeting
Members of the Western New York Section met on August 1, 2017, for a plant tour of ASK Chemical Hi-Tech, LLC, in Alfred Station, New York, which was followed by dinner at Rosebush Restaurant in Alfred. A general Section meeting was held during which a draft mission statement was discussed, as well as plans for doing student outreach using the Materials Science Classrooms Kits, which were originally developed by the ACerS President's Council of Student Advisors and distributed by The Ceramic and Glass Industry Foundation.
Western New York Section Holds Planning Meeting
The newly-revitalized Western New York Section held a well-attended meeting in Cleveland, Ohio, on April 26, 2017, in conjunction with Ceramics Expo. Following an introduction by Section Chair Matt Creedon, special guest, ACerS President Bill Lee, kicked off the meeting by welcoming everyone and outlining his vision for the Society and the Section.
Christopher Janson, Business Development Executive, NYS Center of Excellence in Materials Informatics, followed with a presentation on how the Center leverages the University at Buffalo's cutting edge materials science and informatics expertise to foster a culture of innovation and drive critical to R&D activities that directly impact private sector growth in advanced manufacturing, life sciences, and energy.
Matt Creedon led a discussion of Section membership and all in attendance were enrolled as Section members if they weren't a member already. A suggestion was made to also make Material Advantage students in the region Section members as well.
Attendees discussed various ideas for future events and it was agreed that a meeting should be planned for the near future.
For questions, contact Matt Creedon at mjcreedon22@gmail.com.
Check back for upcoming meetings and events!