Refractory Engineers gather in Sheffield for annual conference and forum
Made in Britain CEO, John Pearce (pictured) will be one of the keynote speakers at this year’s Institute of Refractory Engineers (IRE) Annual Conference entitled ‘Surviving the Energy Crisis’ which will be held on 9th November 2022 at the prestigious venue, The Mowbray in the steel making heartland of Sheffield, South Yorkshire.
“A growing and prosperous refractory sector is absolutely central to the successful growth of British manufacturing. The sophisticated, complex technologies involved in controlling high-temperature processes and environments requires experts and innovators to work collaboratively. I was delighted to be asked to speak at the IRE’s annual conference in 2022 celebrating its 61st anniversary. I look forward to being able to demonstrate later to our 1900 members, many of which will be familiar with refractory, how they can interact with and support this vital sector for the future.”
John Pearce, CEO, Made in Britain.
IRE President and Made in Britain member at Trent Refractories, Katy Moss believes everyone should understand the vital role refractory plays in the successful foundations of manufacturing and raw material making. Katy explains: “The heavy and (very) hot engineering activities of refractory are what provides the conditions for the making of products and the lifestyles we are accustomed to, creating the wealth and prosperity for our great nation The Institute of Refractory Engineers (IRE) may not yet be the household name it would like to be, but their work affects every home in the UK, being essential to the building material sector (bricks, tiles, cement and glass) as well as foundation industries – chemicals, metals and paper.”
The foundation industries produce 75 per cent of all materials in the UK economy and are vital for the UK’s manufacturing and construction industries. Combined they are worth £52bn to the UK economy and produce 28m tonnes of materials per year, accounting for about ten per cent of the UK total CO2 emissions. Refractory engineering underpins industrial heat processes. Put simply, there would be no steel or glass industry without refractories.”
IRE is engaging with more people at all levels of the business and trade agenda. If we are to lead the world in any aspect of sustainable product technology and greener, cleaner manufacturing we must train and educate more engineers and inform wider society on all that is possible. Even highly advanced materials start their lifecycle as dirt in the ground. From that raw state, they are transformed by heat, and the enabler of this transformation, the enabler of the processes that make our ingenuity real, is Refractory Engineering. Meeting all the challenges we face requires skilled people who are willing to share best practices and offer collective solutions to today’s dilemmas.
IRE is a not-for-profit professional organisation for the refractories industry, connecting people with application knowledge, sharing insights and best practices to benefit the refractories engineering industry. It is celebrating 61 years since it was established. The IRE Annual Conference 2022 is entitled: Surviving the Energy Crisis and will be held on 9th November 2022 at The Mowbray, Sheffield. It will be supported by a Training Day on 10th November entitled: ‘The Role of Refractories in Achieving Energy Savings.’
Read more about the Institute of Refractory Engineers (IRE) Annual Conference 2022.
By Made in Britain 1 year ago | By Made in Britain