20 years of alliance for the benefit of our mutual customers

Partnership past, partnership future: an interview with Dr Marc Schneider, MAGMA

GIFA is a tradeshow that brings the foundry world together. Thousands attend to make new connections and renew old acquaintances. But for two old friends in particular, this year’s event held special relevance, marking the 20^th anniversary of their strategic alliance.

Foseco, a global supplier of casting consumables, and MAGMA, a leader in casting process simulation and virtual optimisation, officially joined forces to support their mutual customers in 2003. But as MAGMA CEO and President, Dr Marc Schneider explained in an interview at the Foseco stand at GIFA 2023, the relationship goes back about a decade before that.

Benefits beyond the alliance

Both sides have thus benefitted over the last twenty years. “It’s been truly a two-way relationship. That was the idea when we started and, from my point of view, that has come to fruition,” said Dr Schneider. But the benefits are also felt far beyond the two alliance partners.  

“Our simulation software gives foundries a common language with Foseco to discuss the application and performance of Foseco products within their specific foundry environment,” Dr Schneider explained. “It therefore facilitates dialogue and enables the collaborative development of solutions. It also allows foundries to efficiently characterise the performance of Foseco products when laying out castings in their engineering department. From this point of view, hopefully we have allowed our common customers to apply Foseco technology to the best extent possible in optimising quality and minimising resource consumption.”

The alliance has also helped to demonstrate more widely through the industry the value of simulation as an effective tool for improving day-to-day foundry practice. “Over the last twenty years, we have seen casting process simulation and virtual optimisation become increasingly accepted by and integrated into foundry applications, as its usefulness has both been proven and expanded alongside advances in the technology,” said Dr Schneider. “It is now an important part of many modern foundry operations, and I don’t think that will change in the future in light of the increasingly complex challenges faced by foundries today.”

A model for the future

Looking back at twenty years of partnership – and with the bustle of the GIFA crowd around – Dr Schneider also reflected on the importance of collaboration for solving those complex challenges.

“I’m sure the industry won’t get by without strong partnerships,” the MAGMA CEO concluded. “I think that has always been the case, but it will be even more so in the future. In that respect, the Foseco-MAGMA alliance can be regarded as a kind of “role model.” We have to use our own individual competencies and synergise them with others to come up with new products, new ideas, and new technologies, which allow the industry and its individual participants to succeed. I’m convinced that’s the only way forward.”

What does the future hold?

Many of these ideas were on display at the Foseco stand at GIFA, which was designed around three key themes: sustainability, innovation and technology, and partnership and knowledge. “This is the single best opportunity for us to engage with our customers on these different topics,” noted Laugier-Werth. “We have the right people here to have the right conversations. It is thus the ideal place to discuss ideas and solutions to the macro challenges we all face.”  

And when it comes to looking ahead? Laugier-Werth is succinct: “It’s a simple vision of an industry enabled to deliver better quality products, cheaply, and with zero accidents and carbon emissions. That’s the industry we are working toward at Foseco; and it’s an industry I’m excited to help build.”