News

June 3, 2026

The fall AACCM meeting will be held on Wednesday, September 23rd, 2026 at Missouri S&T in Rolla, Missouri, with a group dinner the evening before on Tuesday, September 22nd.

 

Additional details for the AACCM meeting will be sent to members via email - please contact us here if you would like to request more information.

March 26, 2026

AACCM held its annual spring breakfast on the morning of May 5th, 2026, prior to the opening of the Ceramic Exposition at the Huntington Convention Center of Cleveland, Ohio. The meeting drew a strong turnout of approximately 30 members and guests in attendance.

Highlights from the meeting included welcoming guests from Calix Ceramics Solutions, who later joined AACCM as members, and a presentation on AACCM's refreshed website from Rodd Ventures. Executives from The American Ceramic Society also shared updates on both the Society and the Ceramic and Glass Industry Foundation.

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Looking ahead, AACCM members discussed plans for the Fall 2026 meeting, which will be hosted in September by Missouri S&T in Rolla, Missouri.

March 25, 2026

The University of Dayton and the University of Dayton Research Institute welcomed a strong turnout of 14 AACCM members, representing 11 member companies, on September 4, 2025.

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The program began with a breakfast meeting among AACCM members, including a discussion about the present composition of the Executive Committee and updates from Doug Thurman on new activities within AACCM and planning for 2026. The meeting also included a welcome of Prairie Ceramics as a new AACCM member, with a presentation by Owen Vaughan, owner of Prairie Ceramics. To close the business session, Marcus Fish and Tim Powers provided an update on the activities of The American Ceramic Society and the Ceramic and Glass Industry Foundation.

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Following the business meeting, researchers at the University of Dayton Research Institute delivered a series of presentations and led tours of the laboratory facilities, showcasing the unique work of the different research departments. AACCM then welcomed undergraduate and graduate students from the University of Dayton’s materials science program for a networking lunch, where each member company provided a brief company overview. After touring a few more laboratory facilities, the day wrapped up with dinner at El Meson. For those who could stay another day, the group was treated to a fascinating guided tour of the National Museum of the United States Air Force.

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AACCM members extend a huge thank you to everyone involved at the University of Dayton and the University of Dayton Research Institute for such an informative and interesting program, with special recognition to Professor Alexander Morgan for putting the program together and serving as host throughout the day.

December 2, 2025

The following AACCM members are serving as officers for 2025-26:

President – Doug Thurman, Sunrock Ceramics

Vice President – Keith DeCarlo, Blasch Precision Ceramics

Treasurer – Jeff Morse, Zircar Zirconia Inc.

Additional Executive Committee Members – Paul Sekeras (At-Large), Du-Co Ceramics; Jeff Vervlied (At-Large), Free Form Fibers

May 1, 2025

AACCM held its Spring Meeting on the morning of April 29, 2025, in Novi, Michigan, coinciding with the opening day of Ceramics Expo. The meeting drew a strong turnout, with approximately thirty members and guests in attendance.

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Highlights included welcoming new member company Prairie Ceramics and hearing from guest speaker Richard Goodhead, Chief Marketing Officer of Lucideon. Executives from The American Ceramic Society also shared updates on both the Society and the Ceramic and Glass Industry Foundation.

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Looking ahead, AACCM members discussed plans for the Fall 2025 meeting, which will be hosted in September by the University of Dayton and the University of Dayton Research Institute.

October 25, 2023

Alfred University, in conjunction with the Alfred’s Center for Advanced Ceramic Technology, welcomed 30 members of AACCM, representing 14 member companies, on September 14, 2023. The prior evening the members enjoyed dinner overlooking Lake Keuka, one of the Finger Lakes. The September 14th program began with the semi-annual AACCM meeting, including the introduction of new member companies ASK Chemical/Hi-Tech Ceramics and Amexstra, Inc, confirmation of new officers for the 2024/2025 term, and updates from Mark Mecklenborg and Marcus Fish on what’s new at the American Ceramic Society. Next on the agenda was an update on Alfred’s ceramic engineering program by Dean Gabrielle Gaustad, followed by a series of technical presentations from department faculty outlining ongoing research in the areas of energy storage, ceramics in hypersonic applications, additive manufacturing and the latest tools in computational design.

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Following the presentations, AACCM welcomed undergraduate and graduate students from the ceramic engineering program for lunch, where each member company provided a brief company overview. The working lunch was followed by a networking period. Next on the agenda was a tour of university and CACT laboratory and test facilities. The final event was a tour of new member ASK Chemical/Hi-Tech Ceramics’ facility in Alfred Station. It was a very interesting and informative day, with a very nice dinner the evening beforehand.

September 8, 2023

With Ceramics Expo getting back on a spring schedule (after being in the fall for the last two years, following the cancellation of the 2020 and 2021 conferences), AACCM members met on May 2 at the Ceramics Expo. This schedule change will get the Ceramics Expo back on an ongoing spring timeframe. In 2023, the meeting was at the new location in Novi, MI, in conjunction with the venue change for the Ceramics Expo. The guest speaker for the AACCM meeting was from the firm of IntoCeramics, discussing the market potential for repurposed waste streams and how this can benefit the ceramics industry. There were also updates from executives at the American Ceramic Society and further updates from leaders of Alfred University’s Center for Advanced Ceramic Technology in advance of the fall 2023 meeting at Alfred.

October 4, 2022

AACCM held its Fall 2022 meeting on the morning of August 30, 2022 in conjunction with the Ceramics Expo in Cleveland. AACCM also had a booth at the Expo to show attendees of the Expo hands-on examples of the product capabilities of member companies. Attendance at the meeting was very good, as was the traffic at the booth on August 30 and 31. The guest speakers at the AACCM meeting were executives from the Center for Advanced Ceramic Technology (CACT) at Alfred University, who discussed how the CACT supports the growth and development efforts of the advanced ceramics industry. Executives from the American Ceramic Society also provided updates on the important work of ACerS. The next AACCM meeting will be held this coming Spring at the next Ceramics Expo, which will be in May 2023 in Novi, MI.

August 15, 2022

On April 14th the AACCM members held their first offsite meeting (outside of the Ceramics Expo meetings) since the pandemic at Clemson University’s Advanced Materials Research Laboratory. The event kicked off with a dinner the night before with chair of the Department of Materials Science and Engineering. The full day meeting featured several department faculty members presenting their research in ceramic applications in areas such as batteries and fuel cells, ceramic matrix composites, and laser sintering of ceramics in additive manufacturing. Over lunch the AACCM members had the opportunity to meet a number of students and present company overviews. The day concluded with a tour of the AMRL facility.

August 9, 2022

The following AACCM members were elected as officers for 2022:

President – Doug Thurman, Sunrock Ceramics Company

Vice-President – Jeff Brundage, GBC Advanced Materials

Treasurer – Dan Tipsord, Skyworks RF Ceramics (Trans-Tech)

Additional Executive Committee Members – Tom Arbanes (past president), Du-Co Ceramics,

Jeff Vervlied (At-Large) – consultant, and Dan Funk (At-Large) – Kyocera

Member at Large — Jeff Vervlied, Consultant

October 7, 2021

A robust turnout of 18 people representing 8 different US ceramic manufacturers met at the 2021 Fall Breakfast Meeting in Cleveland. Perhaps the highlight of the meeting occurred when each visitor at this meeting offered their particular insights regarding their experiences over the past two years dealing with COVID, supply chain issues and workforce development to name a few.

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The current president of the American Ceramic Society, Dana Goski, and Executive Director Mark Mecklenborg provided updates on the current on goings at the Society. Dana also provided her insights relating to her experiences as Vice President of Research and Development for Allied Minerals Products.

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Marcus Fish, Development Director of The Ceramic and Glass Industry Foundation (CGIF) and Amanda Engen, Program Director also provided updates regarding the current programs and developments occurring within the CGIF.

November 21, 2019

AACCM held its Fall 2019 at the University of Pittsburgh in Pittsburgh, PA.  The event was off to a great start beginning with a dinner at the new Oaklander Hotel. Several faculty members and several students enjoyed an evening of networking.

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The meeting began the next morning at The University Club on the campus. Several faculty presentations were given to the attendees and highlighted several collaborative opportunities that the university provides to industry. Following the presentations, a tour took place which included the ANSYS Additive Manufacturing Lab, the Nanoscale Fabrication & Characterization Facility and the Materials Micro-Characterization Laboratory.

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Following the tour and a wonderful lunch, the group learned of Co-Op opportunities presented by the Director of the School of Engineering Co-Op Program at the University. Finally Dr. Ian Nettleship presented Educational and Design Programs occurring at the University. 

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Our thanks to Dr. Nettleship and Mr. Brian Vidic (Director of Partnerships at the University of Pittsburgh) for hosting an incredible event for the AACCM Group.

September 15, 2018

AACCM held its Fall 2018 meeting at the Colorado School of Mines.

September 15, 2017

AACCM held its Fall 2017 Meeting at Penn State University.

September 15, 2016

AACCM held its Fall 2016 Meeting at the University of Dayton.

April 21, 2016

AACCM will be hosting an exhibit at the 2016 Ceramics Expo event being held in Cleveland, Ohio, April 26-28, 2016. Visit AACCM at Booth 413. Numerous member companies will partake in the expo. AACCM members will also meet for a networking dinner on Monday evening, April 25. Please contact aaccm@ceramics.org for details.

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Info about Ceramics Expo 2016 can be found at their event website or go to www.ceramicsexpousa.com.

January 12, 2016

AACCM’s next meeting will be held in Daytona Beach, Florida later this month in connection with the ceramic industry conference ICACC, the International Conference and Expo on Advanced Ceramics and Composites. The AACCM meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, January 26, 2016 at the Hilton Daytona Beach Resort’s Halifax C room. The Executive Committee will meet at 8 AM followed by the General Meeting for members from 9:30 AM until noon. The meeting will include discussion of the upcoming Ceramics Expo in Cleveland, the fall meeting at Wright Patterson/UDRI in Dayton, Ohio, and other topics.

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An optional dinner for AACCM members is scheduled for the night before the meeting, on Monday January 25 at a nearby location.

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Please contact dhaignere@ceramics.org for more information.

November 23, 2015

AACCM held its Fall 2015 meeting at Oakridge National Labs in Oakridge, TN. The meeting included a presentation by ORNL staff about the history, mission and capabilities of the organization. Members also received a tour of the ORNL campus. 

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The current goal of ORNL is to work with industry for the purpose of stimulating economic development. There are many opportunities for AACCM members to leverage ORNL and its strengths, including its extensive ceramic research and testing resources. Members are encouraged to view ORNL as a potentially significant partner to obtain and/or develop technologies.

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ORNL has both proprietary and non-proprietary agreements with industrial entities. Proprietary agreements are paid for by the company. Non-proprietary agreements are no cost.  A report detailing the testing completed and results obtained must be made public when non-proprietary agreements are utilized.

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​For practical reasons AACCM meetings typically coincide with ceramic industry events. When that is not possible, we add value by meeting at interesting or educational sites, as we did with ORNL above. In that regard we are planning our Fall 2016 meeting at the University of Dayton Research Institute (Dayton, OH). We will also tour the National Museum of the US Airforce at Wright Patterson AFB.