NEW ENGLAND CHAPTER ANNUAL FALL SEMINAR 2021
NEW ENGLAND CHAPTER ANNUAL FALL SEMINAR 2021
The New England Chapter of NASF was grateful to once again be able to host an in-person Seminar for the benefit of its membership and the entire metal finishing community. The event was held on Wednesday October 6, 2021. With the COVID pandemic having forced the adoption of a Virtual format for the past year and a half, the resumption of in-person meetings and the opportunity to not only learn but to network with fellow metal finishers was a welcome change and was enthusiastically received by all in attendance.
The event was once again a four-hour Continuing Education Conference offering continuing education contact hours towards Wastewater license renewal. This was especially significant being that 2021 is a WWT License renewal year for all licensed operators in Massachusetts. The Seminar consisted of four presentations over a four-hour period from 1:00 to 5:00 preceded by a luncheon for all attendees and speakers.
Matt Wright from HRP Associates opened the Seminar with a presentation entitled PFAS What Businesses Need to know stressing the importance of due diligence in preparing for regulatory enforcement of this emerging environmental hot-button issue. He stressed that saying “there is no PFAS in our plant” won’t be enough and everyone should be ready to back up statements with facts. This was followed by a presentation from Jim Walsh of MacDermid-Enthone on another hot-button issue, Sustainability. Jim gave examples of how correct equipment choices can not only lead to a company’s financial success but also to its future environmental success. David Calnan of CCI Chemicals followed with a presentation on Wastewater Treatment Options for the metal finishing industry stressing alternative treatment techniques and water recycling. The seminar closing speaker was Katherine Robertson of the Massachusetts Chemistry & Technology Alliance (MCTA) who gave an eye-opening update on the year-long Ad Hoc Toxic Use Reduction Act (TURA) Committee Hearings on reform to this burdensome Massachusetts environmental regulation and what metal finishers will be facing if certain regulatory changes become effective.
We continue to live in a very different world and it is encouraging that once again we were able to assemble for an in-person conference and networking that this event offered. We must continue to offer, through the combined efforts of NASF Board Members, Committee Members, Chapter Membership and dedicated and talented members of the Metal Finishing Community as a whole, events such as this which can be offered for the benefit of our membership.
New England Chapter of NASF is an official chapter of