After the Aluminum Association's annual meeting the first week of October, the association discussed some of its thoughts on the state of the aluminum sector and its perspective on the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) during a conference call with the press.
Heidi Brock, president and CEO of the Aluminum Association, says the industry has experienced growth in the past decade overall.
"We continue to enjoy record-setting levels of demand for our products," she says. "Last year, the industry shipped 27.2 billion pounds of metal, a record since we began tracking this data back in the 1960s. Looking at more recent data, demand in North America is now up more than 2 percent year to date in 2018, that is through July."
Brock adds that there has been overall, year-over-year growth for aluminum demand since the Recession in 2009. Also, she says association member companies have committed investments of more than $2.6 billion in manufacturing facilities based in the U.S., which will help to create more than 2,000 permanent U.S. jobs in communities across the country.
In addition, the Aluminum Association says it supports a free trade agreement that includes the U.S., Canada and Mexico, such as the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement announced the first week of October. However, the association says it is disappointed that the agreement did not remove Section 232 tariffs.
"The current Section 232 tariffs [are] actually making the U.S. aluminum industry less competitive on the world stage by increasing the cost of raw materials to us," said Jean-Marc Germain, CEO at Constellium, on a conference call for the Aluminum Association. "This must be resolved."
Award winner, new board
In addition, the Aluminum Association made additions to its board of directors and announced the winner of its 2018 Marlan A. Boultinghouse Award.
The association honored Ken Willings, senior vice president of health, safety and environment at Aleris, as its 19th recipient of the Marlan T. Boultinghouse Award for his service to the North American aluminum industry. Since joining Aleris in 2004, Willings has been an active and engaged member of the Aluminum Association. According to an association press release, Willings helped to shape the association’s engagement with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) through both the Environmental Committee, of which he is now chair, and the Saltcake Work Group, which he helped to found in 2007. As Aluminium Stewardship Initiative (ASi) board member, Willings also provides perspective to the association’s sustainability technical working group as it became involved in ASi.
According to an Aluminum Association, the Boultinghouse Award is the association’s highest honor. It recognizes those who have distinguished careers within a member company, as well as those who have provided their talents to improve the broader industry. The award is presented in memory of late ARCO Aluminum Inc. President Marlan T. Boultinghouse, who brought energy and enthusiasm to the industry through his advocacy of aluminum marketing, the press release reports.
The Aluminum Association also appointed a few new members to its board of directors. New members included on the board of directors for the class of 2021 include: Tolga Egrilmezer of Rio Tinto, Charlie Murrah of Southwire and Wes Oberholzer of Smelter Service. The association says it also added John Wharton of Gresham Smith to its board of directors for class of 2020.
“It’s an incredibly dynamic time for the aluminum industry in the United States and around the world,” says Michelle O’Neill, senior vice president of global government affairs and sustainability at Alcoa and chair of the Aluminum Association. “Demand continues to grow but trade and regulatory uncertainty are creating challenges in the market. I extend my congratulations to our Boultinghouse Award winner Ken Willings and am also thrilled to welcome these new leaders to the association’s board to help us navigate the opportunities ahead.”