May 03, 2012

On April 17, 2012, the Forging Industry Association (FIA) held its Annual Lobby Day, which enables industry executives to visit congressmen and senators in their Washington D.C., offices to explain the important role the Forging Industry plays in United States defense applications and jobs.
 
The forging industry was well represented at this yearís Annual Lobby Day when over 25 individuals from 19 FIA members flew into Washington, DC to deliver the forging story to the 112th Congress.  One of the main issues on the discussion agenda was the need for developing a U.S. manufacturing strategy that includes energy and climate change policies that do not harm U.S. manufacturers who compete globally.
 
The FIA produced a short video that was used to introduce our industry to the congressional offices and to show the importance of the forging industry to the US manufacturing base.
 
The Forging Industry has 500 operations in 38 states, (59 in Pennsylvania) that employ 35,000. The supply chain employs thousands more and the industry is critical to the U.S. economy.
 
The FIA contingent also talked to House and Senate members about a National Energy Policy, Comprehensive Tax Reform, Work Force Development and the importance of manufacturing jobs to the U.S. economy.
 
Jack Simmons, Manager of Marketing and Product Development for Electralloy, joined the Pennsylvania delegation which included Kevin OíConnell and Tim Hunter (McInnes Rolled Rings) and Kevin Shaw (Lenape Forged Products).  The delegation visited the offices of Senator Bob Casey, Senator Pat Toomey, Representative Jason Altmire, Representative Mike Kelly, Representative Glenn Thompson, Representative Joe Pitts and Representative Tim Gerlach.
 
Other FIA teams met in the Indiana, Ohio, Illinois, and California Congressional offices as well as in Speaker Boehner's office.    
 
Throughout all the meetings, the primary goal for each FIA member was the same: encourage lawmakers to stop regulations that harm American businesses and American jobs.