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Magnesium Bowl Gifted for IMA’s Diamond Anniversary

International Magnesium Association - bowl memento

In May 2018, the International Magnesium Association (IMA) celebrated their 75th Anniversary at the World Magnesium Conference in New Orleans, Louisiana. The closing banquet consisted of a formal dining experience, a live New Orleans style band, dancing, and a celebration of many years of success for all of the attendees to enjoy.

During the event, the attendees were the recipients of a unique and stunning memento — a custom-crafted art deco bowl. The bowl featured three curving sides, indicating the IMA’s 75 years in three 25-year segments. An inscription was cast into the bottom of the bowl, highlighting the IMA logo and acknowledging the occasion.

Chicago White Metal Casting Inc., one of the longest-standing dies casting companies in the U.S. and a long-time member of the IMA, volunteered to provide the gift for the IMA’s Diamond Anniversary. The original design of the bowl was made 60 years ago by the founder of the company, Walter Treiber Sr., as a gift to customers in the 1950s. The design and tooling was kept over a span of time and was later reused used to commemorate special occasions, such as each of the milestone anniversaries of Chicago White Metal as well as IMA’s 50th anniversary.

The crafting of the bowl was personally overseen by Walter Treiber Jr., chairman, Tim Mrock, production manager, and Roseann Rimocal, marketing coordinator. The company carefully assessed the condition of the 60-year old die casting tool, making the necessary repairs. Once the tool was ready, over 400+ art deco candy dishes were hot chamber die cast. Each of the bowls passed 100% inspection and then were polished, machined, and acid etched in preparation for powder coating. All physical imperfections were filled and sanded to provide the smoothest, most flawless surface possible. Two coats of the powder coating were performed to maximize the visual effect of the color.

For the powder coated finish, a special diamond-containing coating was selected in honor of the IMA’s diamond anniversary. “Walter [Jr.] wanted the bowl to represent 75 years of success in the IMA, as we would represent 80+ years of excellence in Chicago White Metal,” said Tim Mrock, production manager for Chicago White Metal. “Over 2.5 years ago, when the process started, I began researching several different finishing samples for our magnesium alloy AZ91D. We wanted the finish to make a lasting statement.

“One day, I was reading a Products Finishing magazine and read about a brand new architectural powder that was to be used outdoors and guaranteed to last for 20 years. The name of the color was Champagne, and featured a diamond-like dimension to the finish. It had a richness and depth of color that met our high expectations for a finish. To top it all off, the finish itself was never placed into production by the manufacturer and CWM purchased the entire supply, making this gift a one-of-a-kind commemoration of the anniversary.”

Roseann Rimocal, marketing coordinator for Chicago White Metal, played a part in not only the selection of the powder coating and inspection processes, but also in coordinating the design of the custom carton/labeling, gift quality packaging, and organizing the assembly process for packing, a final packaging inspection, and assisted in the shipping of the bowls to New Orleans for the IMA conference.

“This entire project was a complete success,” stated Rimocal. “We kept with our commitment to excellence and involved our rich history, deep sense of community, and cohesiveness as a team to complete and deliver on our promise to the IMA. This truly embodied the notion that in every Chicago White Metal casting is the heart of what our company is about.”


Editor’s Note: This is a companion piece to the feature article, “75th World Magnesium Conference” by Andrea Svendsen, which appeared in the October 2018 issue of Light Metal Age. To receive the current issue, please subscribe.

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