Wire Expo 2010 Course:

Fundamentals of Wire Manufacturing

Tuesday, May 11, 8:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.

Get back to the basics on Tuesday with WAI's course, "Fundamentals of Manufacturing." You’ll learn the central practices of wire manufacturing as shared by a team of six instructors who are experts in their respective disciplines. The program is divided into two topics each in the ferrous, nonferrous/electrical, and general categories. Registration includes a one-hour luncheon between the morning and afternoon sessions.

Morning Session

8:00 a.m. - Mechanics of Wiredrawing, Joseph P. Domblesky, Marquette University

9:20 a.m. - Fundamentals of Ferrous Metallurgy, David Trautner, Charter Steel

10:40 a.m. - Measurement and Controls, Keith Donahue, Zumbach Electronics Corp.

Afternoon Session

1:00 p.m. - Metallurgy and Technology of Electrical Conductors, Horace Pops, Horace Pops Consulting Inc.

2:20 p.m. - Steel Rod Technology, Robert J. Glodowski, STRATCOR

3:40 p.m. - Extrusion Engineering, David W. Riley, Extrusion Engineers

Mechanics of Wiredrawing

Joseph P. Domblesky, Marquette University

This course covers basic engineering principles and process calculations that are used in wiredrawing processes for metal rods and wires. Topics that will be covered include stress-strain curves, material heat-up during drawing, and friction. Calculating reductions and draw forces for sizing drawing stands using standard engineering formulas will also be considered. Also the effect of alloy chemistry will be considered on drawing performance along with an overview of common die materials.

Joseph P. Domblesky is an associate professor in the mechanical engineering department at Marquette University in Milwaukee, where he teaches manufacturing processes/enigneering and performs research in mass finishing and metal forming. He also teaches a workshop in die stress analysis for the cold and hot forming industries. He has been with Marquette since 1996. He previously held positions at General Motors and MSW Inc. as a manufacturing engineering and tool room supervisor. He holds BS and MS degrees in industrial engineering from Penn State University and a PhD in metal forming from Ohio State University. He is a licensed Professional Engineer in Wisconsin.

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Fundamentals of Ferrous Metallurgy

David Trautner, Charter Steel

This introductory course is designed to provide a general understanding of general ferrous metallurgical concepts including crystallography, phase equilibrium, transformation, strengthening mechanisms, heat treatment, and an overview of steelmaking.

David Trautner has been a technical services metallurgical engineer at Charter Steel, Saukville, Wisconsin, since 2003, and is currently involved in developing high-carbon rods. He has previous experience with high-carbon wire applications in the quality and technical departments of Insteel Wire Products, Amercord, and Bekaert. He earned a B.S. degree in 1987 from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

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Measurement and Controls

Keith Donahue, Zumbach Electronics Corp.

This course examines measurement and controls for hot rod rolling, wiredrawing, extrusion, insulation, and jacketing. It discusses the requirements of each process for measurement of diameter, shape and profile, temperature, eccentricity, capacitance, spark faults, wall thickness, and length and line speed. It also describes the technologies available to address these needs, including laser scanning, X-ray systems, multi-axis scanning, infrared “heat flow” sensors, and ultrasonic technology. The course also outlines advantages and disadvantages of these solutions.

Keith Donahue is vice president sales and marketing for Zumbach Electronic Corp. He joined the company in 1987 as a field service engineer which started his 20-year career of traveling extensively in the wire/cable, steel/metal, and extrusion industries to troubleshoot problems and to later consult for new applications. He has a BS degree in electrical engineering from Union College in Schenectady, New York, USA, and an MBA degree from Villanova University, USA.

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Metallurgy and Technology of Electrical Conductors

Horace Pops, Horace Pops Consulting Inc.

The course covers the technology and metallurgy of copper and aluminum conductors. It addresses topics that include the following: requirements for conductors, magnet wire, metals vs. alloys, processing of electrical conductors, electrical properties, the role of oxygen in copper, effects of impurities, annealing behavior, annealability, thermal mechanical production variables, surface effects, and the properties of copper vs. aluminum.

Horace Pops is president of Horace Pops Consulting, Inc., Ft. Wayne, Indiana, USA. He previously was director, metals laboratory at Superior Essex in Ft. Wayne. He holds an Sc.D. degree from the University of Pittsburgh and an M.Met.E. degree from Lehigh University, and a B.Met.E. degree from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. He was president of the Wire Association International from 1992-93. He has received numerous honors from WAI, including its Mordica and Donnellan Memorial Awards as well as 16 paper awards spanning 1976 to 2008. He is the sole or co-holder of 10 patents. Many of his papers have been published in leading technical journals.

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Steel Rod Technology

Robert J. Glodowski, STRATCOR

This course addresses various issues associated with steel rod processing, including components in primary and secondary steel-making such as furnaces and vacuum degassing; continuous and ingot casting; heating and cooling in the rod rolling process; rod quality characteristics such as chemistry, inclusions, surface quality, microstructure, and mechanical properties; rod specification systems; and requirements for direct-drawn vs. heat-treated applications.

Robert J. Glodowski worked for Armco Inc./GST for 30 years before retiring in 1997, at which time he became director of technical services for Strategic Minerals Corporations (STRATCOR). He has served in a wide range of positions in the wire industry, from principal metallurgist to director of rod production. He has published numerous technical papers and holds two patents. A long-time active member of WAI, and other industry organizations, he won the 2002 Mordica Memorial Award.

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Extrusion Engineering

David W. Riley, Extrusion Engineers

This course covers the following topics: basic design of the extruder system (hopper, barrel, screw, head, die modifications compared with normal); friction analysis for the polymer used, covering PVC, PE, PP, and XLPE; melt rheology for all different forms of plastics; analytical engineering, laboratory data needed for proper design critieria (FTIR, Instron rheometer, chromatograph); cables of all sorts, power and communication; thermal stability of polymers; and an in-depth study of PVC and its remarkable advantages and disadvantages.

David W. Riley, currently with Extrusion Engineers, has experience in research and development, plant technology, and thermoplastic materials. His prior work includes roles as a friction research director at Scientific Process & Research; a technology manager with General Cable Research and Production; a senior development engineer with Western Electric; and a research engineer with Union Carbide. He holds both a Ph.D. degree and an M.Sc. degree in physical organic chemistry from The Ohio State University, and a B.S. degree in chemistry from Tufts University.

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