Teaching & Training
It has been said “give a man a fish and you feed him for a day, teach him to fish and you feed him for a lifetime”!
The training courses that are available are meant to teach the refractory engineer, technical sales person, installer or manufacturer not just basic facts, but instead what are the key questions that need to be asked to solve a refractory problem. The teaching is based on the methodology in my book on how to approach refractory design that takes into account the operation/process it will encounter, the installation method to be used and finally the tracking of actual performance.
“Tom has a way of simplifying complex refractory solutions in a timely
manner while obtaining cost saving results. He mentored me by teaching
the foundation of these techniques. His practical examples, course
materials and lectures were engaging while instilling key design
concepts. He taught me how to take the principles and apply them by getting into
the shop and looking at the material from manufacturing of the
refractories,installation and exposure to wear throughout processing,
and to always design for the “Saturday Night Shift”!”
Vanessa Mazzetti-Succi, Senior Refractory Coordinator Steelmaking, ArcelorMittal Dofasco
Previously Taught Courses
Training courses previously taught include:
ISS / ACS – Phoenix 2001 – Short Course on Shotcreting – Developed the program, chaired the program and taught some of the sessions.
Canadian Ceramic Society – Developed and taught courses on “Refractories for Steelmakers”
In order to support ArcelorMittal CTO organization and plant knowledge, Tom developed a course for “Refractories in Steelmaking”. This included writing a 400-page manual, three-day course with Powerpoint support, and a case study. Tom also delivered this course to 40 people in North/South America team in October 2012 and 40 people in Europe/South Africa in April 2013.
This manual was then converted into a published textbook/handbook and published by Wiley & Sons in 2016 – “Refractory Material Selection for Steelmaking”
2 courses taught in 2019 (2 days each) to over 60 technical and sales staff in India on the fundamentals of selecting refractory materials for steelmaking.
4 classes taught online for Missouri Science and Technology on refractories usage in steel plants (coke ovens to galvanizing lines)
Courses Currently Available to Teach
Training courses are currently available to run from ½ day to 5 days:
Introduction to Refractories
Goals of Refractory Selection
Refractory Wear Mechanism Fundamentals
Refractory Raw Materials
Refractory Installation and Dryout
Refractory Testing
Hot metal ladles
Basic Oxygen Furnaces
Electric Arc Furnaces
Steel ladles
Continuous Casting