Ceramics Expo 2017 returns to the I-X Center in Cleveland on April 25-27 to showcase the latest innovations in the ceramic community. This free-to-attend event provides attendees with opportunities to discover and explore sources for raw materials, processing equipment, and finished components during the exhibition while learning about trends and technology advances during the two-track conference. In addition, multiple networking events will provide attendees with many opportunities to meet new contacts and share their knowledge and experience.

In excess of 3,000 attendees are expected to visit this third edition of Ceramics Expo. Personnel working in production, design, engineering and management will visit to discover how ceramics can contribute to the success of their applications in aerospace, automotive, electronics, medical/dental, defense, and more. Registration will open at 9:30 a.m. on Tuesday, April 25.

On the Exhibition Floor

Event organizers expect more than 300 exhibitors to participate in Ceramics Expo 2017 (see Ceramics Expo 2017 Exhibitor List and Floor Plan). Exhibiting companies will showcase a range of products and services, including ceramic components, raw materials, materials preparation, handling and packaging, heat treatment, fabrication and finishing, decorating and glazing, engineering and design services, plant construction, laboratory equipment, testing and certification services, research, tools and spare parts, and more.

The exhibit floor will be open 10 a.m.-5 p.m. on Tuesday and Wednesday, April 25 and 26, and from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Thursday, April 27. Networking receptions in the exhibit hall will take place on Tuesday and Wednesday, beginning at 3 p.m.

Conference Details

The Conference @ Ceramics Expo will open at 9:30 a.m. on Tuesday with a plenary session moderated by Mark Zupan, president of Alfred University. The panel, including Ted Day (MO-SCI Corp.), Richard Clark (Morgan Advanced Materials), Doug Freitag (U.S. Advanced Ceramics Association), and Chuck Miller (Harper International), will discuss “Forecasting Key Ceramic Markets to Understand Industry Trends.”

The remainder of the conference will be organized in two tracks per day (see Ceramics Expo 2017 Conference Agenda). On Tuesday, the tracks will detail “Ceramic Material Properties and Application” and “Ceramic Coating and CMC Manufacturing Processes.” Wednesday’s first track will again cover “Ceramic Material Properties and Application,” while the second track will focus on “Forming Technologies and Automation.” Conference @ Ceramics Expo will conclude on Thursday with tracks on “Medical Applications” and “Slurry, Sintering and Post-Processing Technologies.” 

To register or for additional information, visit www.ceramicsexpousa.com.

Ceramics Expo 2017 Conference Agenda*

Tuesday, April 25

9:30 a.m. - Plenary Session: Forecasting Key Ceramic Markets to Understand Industry Trends

Moderator: Mark Zupan, President, Alfred University

Speakers: Ted Day, CEO, MO-SCI Corp.; Richard Clark, Senior Technical Specialist, Morgan Advanced Materials; Doug Freitag, Technical Director, U.S. Advanced Ceramics Association; and Chuck Miller, President, Harper International

11:00 a.m. - Lunch

Track 1:
Ceramic Material Properties and Application

12:00 p.m. - Developing Industry Standards for CMCs: 2,700F Gas Turbines, Accident-Tolerant Fuels, and Solar Applications

Speakers: Rick Lowden, Senior Research Engineer, Materials Science & Technology, Oak Ridge National Laboratory; Suraj P. Rawal, Technical Fellow, Research and Technologies, Lockheed Martin; Rajiv A. Naik, Ph.D., Fellow, Computational Materials Modeling, Materials & Processes Engineering, Pratt & Whitney; and W. Howard Poisl, Ph.D., Engineering Fellow, Ceramic, Optical and High Temperature Materials, Materials and Process Engineering, Raytheon Missile Systems

1:15 p.m. - Afternoon break

1:45 p.m. - Evaluating Design Approach for Reliable Ceramic Coatings

Moderator: J. Douglas Jeter, PE, ASP, Principal, Verity Technical Consultants LLC

Speakers: Melanie Kuhn, Ph.D., R&D Group Leader, Saint-Gobain Innovative Materials; James Vartuli, Platform Leader of Ceramic Matrix Composites, GE Global Research; and Erik Mikalsen, Manager, MPE Advanced High Temperature Materials, Pratt & Whitney

3:00 p.m. - Close of Conference Day 1, followed by Networking Reception in the Exhibition Hall

Track 2:
Ceramic Coating and CMC Manufacturing Processes

12:00 p.m. - Optimizing Ceramic Coating Quality to Improve Reliability

Speakers: Samuel D. Harkness IV, Ph.D., Founder and CEO, HIA Inc.; Mitch Dorfman, FASM, Metco Fellow, Product Portfolio Manager-High Temperature Materials, Oerlikon Metco (U.S.) Inc.; and Timothy S. Dyer, Vice President Operations, Elcon Precision LLC

1:15 p.m. - Afternoon break

1:45 p.m. - Evaluating Advances in CMC Processing and Manufacturing Technologies

Moderator: Shay Harrison, Ph.D., Senior Materials Scientist, Free Form Fibers LLC

Speakers: Eric Norton, Engineering Manager, Bullen Ultrasonics; Matt Webb, General Manager, Element Materials Technology; and Barrett Jackson, Senior Materials and Processing Engineer, Composites Horizons LLC

3:00 p.m. - Close of Conference Day 1, followed by Networking Reception in the Exhibition Hall

Wednesday, April 26

Track 1:
Ceramic Material Properties and Application

9:30 a.m. - Developing Additive Manufacturing

Moderator: Johannes Homa, Ph.D., CEO, Lithoz GmbH

Speakers: Joseph Cesarano III, Ph.D., President and Founder, Robocasting Enterprises LLC; Christophe Chaput, CEO, 3D Ceram; and Thomas Henriksen, President, CeramCo Inc.

11:00 a.m. - Lunch

12:00 p.m. - Reviewing Material Requirements, Design, and Challenges in Inorganic Solid State Batteries

Speaker: Venkat Anandan, Ph.D., Research Scientist, Ford Motor Co.

12:30 p.m. - Understanding Ceramic Material Behavior in High Radiation Flux Environments for Improved Insulation and Thermal Barriers

Speaker: James M. Lustig, Senior Engineer, GE Reuter Stokes

1:00 p.m. - Afternoon break

1:30 p.m. - Optical Ceramic in Aerospace Applications

Speaker: Jonathan A. Salem, Ph.D., Materials Research Engineer, NASA

2:00 p.m. - Corning® Gorilla® Glass for Automotive: Bringing Thin, Lightweight Glass to the Automotive Industry

Speaker: Thomas Cleary, Reliability Manager, Auto Glass Solutions, Corning Automotive Glass, Corning Inc.

2:30 p.m. - Evaluating the Application of Advanced Refractories

Speaker: Rakesh K. Dhaka, Senior Research Engineer (Refractories), United States Steel Corp.

3:00 p.m. - Close of Conference Day 2, followed by Networking Reception in the Exhibition Hall

Track 2:
Forming Technologies and Automation

9:30 a.m. - Integrating Automation and Robotics to Optimize Production Lines and High Volume Manufacturing

Speakers: Chad White, OEM Business Developer for Building Material Industries, Siemens Industry Inc.; and Leon Grossman, PE, Principal Engineer, DMC Inc.

10:30 a.m. - Lunch

11:45 a.m. - Reviewing Ceramic Additive Manufacturing Challenges to Promote Industry Adoption

Moderator: Tracy Albers, Ph.D., President and Chief Technology Officer, Rapid Prototype and Manufacturing LLC

Speakers: Dror Danai, Chief Business Officer, XJET Ltd.; Holly Shulman, Ph.D., President, Materials Scientist, Ceralink Inc.; Rick Lucas, Chief Technology Officer, The ExOne Co.

1:15 p.m. - Afternoon break

1:45 p.m. - Designing Complex Small Parts for High-Volume Ceramic Injection Molding (CIM) and Dry Pressing

Speakers: Karin Hajek, Ph.D., Sales Director, INMATEC Technologies GmbH; Clifford O. Orcutt, Vice President, American Isostatic Presses Inc.; C. Scott Nelson, Staff Research Engineer, Powertrain Systems, Delphi Automotive Systems; and Harrie Sneijers, Sales Manager, Formatec Ceramics

3:00 p.m. - Close of Conference Day 2, followed by Networking Reception in the Exhibition Hall

Thursday, April 27

Track 1:
Medical Applications

9:30 a.m. - Navigating Regulatory Pathways to Develop FDA-Approved Devices and Materials

Moderator: David C. Greenspan, Ph.D., President, Spinode Consulting

Speaker: Gary Fischman, Ph.D., Owner, Future Strategy Solutions LLC

10:30 a.m. - Morning break

10:45 a.m. - Examining End-User Requirements of Ceramics for Medical Applications

Speakers: Gordon Hunter, Ph.D., Principle Manager, Material Science; Quality Assurance, Smith & Nephew Inc.; Charanpreet Bagga, President and CEO, Prosidyan Inc.; Jason Langhorn, Ph.D., U.S. Team Leader-Tribology Research and Development, DePuy Synthes Joint Reconstruction

11:45 a.m. - Lunch

12:15 p.m. - Evaluating Clinical Data Performance of Bioceramics and Bio-glasses for Orthopedic Applications

Moderator: B. Sonny Bal, Ph.D., MD, JD, MBA, Chairman of the Board, CEO, President and Principal Financial Officer, Amedica Corp.

Speakers: Giuseppe Pezzotti, Ph.D., Professor, Ceramic Physics Laboratory, Kyoto Institute of Technology; Ricardo J. Heros Ing, Senior Scientific and Sales Consultant, North and South America, CeramTec Medical Products; and Bryan J. McEntire, Ph.D., MBA, Chief Technology Officer, Amedica Corp.

1:30 p.m. - End of Conference @ Ceramics Expo 2017

Track 2:
Slurry, Sintering and Post-Processing Technologies

9:30 a.m. - Utilizing Better Dispersion and Control of Rheology to Achieve High-Performing Ceramics

Speaker: Kapil V. Deshpande, Ph.D., Applications Scientist-Industrial Chemicals, Croda Inc.

10:00 a.m. - Evaluating Best Practices for Grinding, Dressing, and Truing to Optimize Finishing and Cycle Time

Speakers: to be announced

10:30 a.m. - Reviewing Advances in Sintering and Firing Technologies

Speakers: Hanzheng Guo, Ph.D., Postdoctoral Researcher, Materials Research Institute, Penn State University; Bob Aauland, Director, SPS/DCS Business Development, Thermal Technology LLC; and Rishi Raj, Ph.D., Professor of Mechanical Engineering, University of Colorado Boulder

11:45 a.m. - Lunch

12:15 p.m. - Introducing Finishing Methods for Precision Ceramics

Speakers: to be announced

1:30 p.m. - End of Conference @ Ceramics Expo 2017

*as of February 28, 2017