FEB. 04, 2022 | News
The Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Industrial Base Policy (DASD(IBP)), Mr. Jesse Salazar, was the opening keynote speaker at the Forging Industry Association’s 2022 FIA Lobby Day on February 2nd. The two-day event, offered Forging Industry Association (FIA) members an opportunity to discuss crucial industry issues that directly impact their business with leaders from Washington, D.C.
“Forgings are dispersed across many critical applications in defense – from flight critical structural and rotating parts, to missiles, and our large diameter gun tubes,” said Mr. Salazar. “The U.S. casting and forging industry faces challenges related to capability and capacity, workforce, our own government policies, and intellectual property.” Mr. Salazar further highlighted the Department of Defense’s (DoD) commitment to building a more robust domestic manufacturing capacity and casting and forging in particular as captured in DoD’s response to Presidential Executive Order (E.O.) 14017, America’s Supply Chains.
The one-year report will be published on February 24, 2022. Mr. Salazar previewed some of the content, specifically around the forging industry and its importance to DoD’s mission. Castings and forgings are directly addressed in DoD’s report as one of the five focus areas prioritized by the Department for this assessment.
The DoD’s E.O. 14017 report will capture key challenges faced by the castings and forgings sector, such as the need to build domestic capacity for producing large cast and forged products needed for defense systems, machine tools, and manufacturing systems. Between 1984 and 2018, the U.S. lost 1,600 foundries and over 4,400 metal casting facilities. A DoD survey, conducted by the DoD, found that two-thirds of North Amerian casting and forging firms have annual revenues under $25 million and three-quarters have fewer than 100 employees. These changes in the industry have displaced over 324,000 workers since the mid-20th century.
The E.O. 14017 report will outline strategic recommendations and addresses other pressing challenges faced by the industry through investment strategies, applied research, workforce initiatives, policy and procedure reviews, and more.
As Mr. Salazar noted in his remarks to the FIA, “The forging industry is critical to DoD’s long-term success.” Continuing industry engagement such as the FIA Lobby Day, as well as the strategic roadmap outlined in the DoD’s E.O. 14017 report, are vital efforts to improve resilience in the forging sector through collaboration with industry partners.
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