The LSRTC met 21 February 2024, Irving, Texas, USA
An informative safety discussion was held, as well as the usual committee business of nominating officers for the 2024–2025 year, discussing the upcoming Secondary Steelmaking Refractory training course to be held in October 2024 in Nashville, Tenn., USA, and announcing the winner of the Ladle & Secondary Refining Best Paper Award. Judy Li also reviewed the committee’s five sessions at AISTech 2024. Presentations were given by Muhammad Nabeel on inclu-sion behavior, Sunday Abraham on steel cleanliness analysis tools, and Paul Turner on slag management tools. 
The following day, the group toured Signal Metal Industries.

April Pitts-Baggett presented a plaque of appreciation to Curtis Chatham for hosting a tour of Signal Metal Industries (left to right): Judy Li, Karen Uffalussy, Chatham, Pitts-Baggett, Mike Fox, Ed Dee and Korey Skala.

Valoree Varick (left) presented Chase Ault (right) with the LSRTC service plaque.

The LSRTC met 10 May 2023, Detroit, MI, USA.
The following officers were elected:

• Chair and Digitalization Liaison: April Pitts-Baggett - Nucor Business Technology

• Vice Chair: Korey Skala - HarbisonWalker International

• Papers Chair: Judy Qiujin Li - Cleveland-Cliffs Research & Innovation Center

• Education Chair: Jimmy Barrett - Allied Mineral Products Inc.

• Young Professional Chair: Andrea Aller - Nucor Corp.

The LSRTC and MSCTC met jointly 14–15 February 2023, Memphis, Tenn., USA.
Both committees participated in discussion about their sessions for AISTech, safety and industry fatalities, upcoming international study tours, and Technology Training Conferences.
After the business meeting in the morning, the group headed to Big River Steel for a tour of their facility. The next day, the two committees reconvened for a number of presentations on steel cleanliness, inclusion engineering and operational improvements while monitoring liquid steel quality.

Bill Jones (right) presented Nick Dionise (left) with a plaque of appreciation for hosting a tour of Big River Steel for the LSRTC and MSCTC.

Members of the LSRTC and RSTC toured Nucor Steel Florida Inc. prior to their joint meeting on 6 October 2022.

The LSRTC and RSTC met Jointly 6 October 2022, Orlando, Fla., USA, in conjunction with Secondary Steelmaking Refractories — A Practical Training Seminar
Members of both committees toured Nucor Steel Florida Inc. in the morning and then held their meeting. The group had a number of business items to address, including a thorough safety discussion focused on the recent fatalities logged in the Steel Industry Fatalities Report. 
The groups also discussed their upcoming award selection and next year’s training course, which will be held in Phoenix, Ariz., USA, with a tour of CMC Steel Arizona. 
The two committees also discussed their sessions for AISTech 2023 and asked for session chair volunteers. 
Two presentations were given: one from Mike Fox of RHI Magnesita and the other from Tom Connors of Connors Industrials. 

Valoree Varick (right) presented Chase Ault (left) with the  LSRTC service plaque.

The LSRTC met 17 May 2022, Pittsburgh, PA, USA.
The following officers were elected:

• Chair and Decarbonization Liaison: Chase Ault  /  Steel Dynamics Inc. – Flat Roll Group Butler Division

• Vice Chair: Valoree Varick  /  Steel Dynamics Inc. – Structural and Rail Division

• Papers Chair: Judy Qiujin Li  /  Cleveland-Cliffs Indiana Harbor

• Digitalization Liaison: April Pitts-Baggett  /  Nucor Steel

• Education Chair: Jimmy Barrett  /  Allied Mineral Products Inc.

• Young Professional Chair: Andrea Aller  /  Nucor Steel

The LSRTC met 29 March 2022, Virginia Beach, Va., USA.
The LSRTC began their meeting with a review of the latest Steel Industry Fatalities report. The group then previewed its upcoming sessions for AISTech 2022 and upcoming 2022–2023 committee officer elections.
Presentations:

•  “Primary Inclusion Formation and Refining Routes for AK Steel,” by Eloy Rehlaender, SvMet Engineering S.A.

•  “Ladle Modeling,” by Xipeng Guo, Purdue University Northwest.

Following the technical presentations, the group toured Busch Vacuum Solutions’ vacuum pump manufacturing facility.
The next day, the LSRTC reconvened for a tour of Nucor Steel–Hertford County.

Members of the Ladle & Secondary Refining Technology Committee (LSRTC) presented a plaque of appreciation to Tom Burke and Mike Krupitzer, Busch Vacuum Solutions, for hosting the LSRTC’s tour on 29 March 2022 (left to right): Xipeng Guo, Eloy Martinez, LSRTC chair Chase Ault, Burke, LSRTC education chair Jimmy Barrett, Krupitzer and Mike Fox.

The LSRTC enjoyed a tour of Nucor Steel–Hertford County on 30 May 2022 (left to right): Mike Fox, Mariah Hunter, Paul Bradley, Chris Williams, Jimmy Barrett, Pat Quiney, Maddi Depinet and Eloy Martinez.

The LSRTC and RSTC met jointly 7 October 2021, Colorado Springs, Colo., USA.
The committee members along with the attendees from the Secondary Steelmaking Refractories — A Practical Training Seminar toured Evraz Rocky Mountain Steel. After the tour, the LSRTC and RSTC met for their meeting, which included a safety discussion of steel industry fatalities focused on how more people are traveling now and coming in and out of facilities after a long time of mills being restricted on visitors; the main idea was to be aware and keep an eye out for everyone.
Both groups discussed their AISTech sessions as well as a potential joint session between the two committees.
The location for the October 2022 Secondary Steelmaking Refractories course will be Orlando, Fla., USA, with a tour of Nucor Steel Florida.
The RSTC is also working on dates for its Study Tour across Japan visiting a number of steel mills and refractory companies.
The second half of the meeting focused on refractory scanning for vessel life including ladles, furnaces and well blocks to determine efficient sand usage, etc. Presentations were given by Alan Stauffer, Nucor Steel–Texas, and David Thomas, MINTEQ; Sean Guy, Process Metrics/Vesuvius; and Jamie Lash, AJF Refractories.

	Chase Ault (left) presented Matt Hallam (right) with the LSRTC service plaque at AISTech 2021.

The LSRTC met 30 June 2021, Nashville, TN USA.

The following officers were elected:

• Chair: Chase Ault, Steel Dynamics Inc. – Flat Roll Group Butler Division
  Vice Chair and Digital Transformation Liaison: Valoree Varick, Steel Dynamics Inc. – Structural and Rail Division
  Papers Chair: April Pitts-Baggett, Nucor Steel–Decatur LLC
  Education Chair: Jimmy Barrett, Allied Mineral Products Inc.
  Young Professional Chair: Jake Reynolds, Larpen Metallurgical Services

The LSRTC and MSCTC held a Joint virtual meeting 18 February 2021.
The LSRTC and MSCTC’s joint meeting began with a welcome from LSRTC chair Matt Hallam and MSCTC chair Bryan Webler. After reviewing each committee’s current membership, the group went over the latest Steel Industry Fatalities Report, followed by a discussion on industry safety and COVID-19 mitigation measures.
The committees outlined their respective AISTech sessions, sought out committee officer nominations, and announced the winners of the 2021 MSCTC and LSRTC best paper awards.
Presentations:

• “Discussion on Thermo-Calc Process Metallurgy Module and TCOX Database,” by Drew Huck, Carnegie Mellon University.

• “Advances in Automated Inclusion Analysis,” by Gary Casuccio, RJ Lee Group.

• “Automated Inclusion Analysis With Desktop SEM,” by Rogier Miltenburg, Thermo Fisher Scientific.

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The LSRTC held a virtual meeting 8 October 2020.
The LSRTC discussed the steel industry fatalities and reviewed the current statistics. They also reviewed the papers for AISTech 2021 and solicited volunteers for session chairs.
The committee had just held their annual training conference, Secondary Steelmaking Refractories — A Practical Training Seminar, on 6–7 October, which was the first time the event had been held in a virtual format. The event had 48 registered attendees.
The LSRTC concluded their business meeting to move into the technical content, which was a separate webinar. The webinar was titled “Kent D. Peaslee Memorial Webinar: Understanding Effective Inclusion Control,” featuring Sridhar Seetharaman, Colorado School of Mines, who presented “Studies on Transient Trajectories of Inclusion Evolution,” and Stanley Sun, ArcelorMittal, who presented “Effective Control and Modification of Inclusions With Ca Injection.” The webinar had time for each speaker to present, followed by a panel discussion on inclusion evolution.

The LSRTC held a virtual meeting 12 May 2020.
The LSRTC kicked off their meeting with Jimmy Barrett, LSRTC education chair, discussing plans for the Secondary Steelmaking Refractories training course to take place 6–8 October 2020 in Nashville, Tenn., USA.
The committee also developed their objectives for the coming year, including plans for their fall 2020 and spring 2021 meetings. The LSRTC will host a joint meeting with the Refractory Systems Technology Committee in conjunction with the Secondary Steelmaking Refractories training course in Nashville, Tenn., USA, in October 2020.
The following committee officers were elected for the 2020–2021 term:

• Chair: Matt Hallam, Steel Dynamics Inc. – Roanoke Bar Division.

• Vice chair: Chase Ault, Steel Dynamics Inc. – Flat Roll Group Butler Division.

• Papers chair: Valoree Varick, Steel Dynamics Inc. – Structural and Rail Division.

• Education chair: Jimmy Barrett, Allied Mineral Products Inc.

• Young Professional chair: Jake Reynolds, Larpen Metallurgical Service.

Presentations:

• “Discovery of New Magnesia Source Extends Performance of MgO-Carbon in EAF, BOF and Ladles,” Bill Porter, PRCO America.

• “Guidance for Making Ferroniobium Additions During Ladle Steelmaking — Optimizing Niobium Recovery,” Steven Jansto, Research & Development Resources, and C. Matthew Enloe, CBMM North America.

The LSRTC met 18–19 February 2020, Charleston, S.C., USA.
The LSRTC reviewed the 2019 AIST Steel Industry Fatalities report and held a safety roundtable discussion, which included discussion on water leak detection and safety from a psychological standpoint. In addition, the committee reviewed where to find Safety First articles on aist.org. These articles can be used as potential topics for crew meetings.
The committee then finalized its AISTech 2020 sessions. The roles of session chair and papers chair were reviewed, and volunteers for session chairs were solicited.
Nominations were taken for LSRTC officers for the 2020–2021 term. In addition, the group discussed nominating a Digitalization Applications liaison and a Young Professional chair.
Jimmy Barrett, LSRTC education chair, then reviewed  the 2019 Secondary Steelmaking Refractories training conference. The 2020 edition of the course will be held 5–8 October in Nashville, Tenn., USA, with a tour of Hoeganaes Corp.

Presentations:

• “Proximity Systems for Personnel and Physical Assets,” by Frederico Ahualli, AustralTek LLC.

• “Automation and Robotics,” by Jeremiah Brandon, Vesuvius.

• “Robotic Installations With Foundry Robots,” by Mark Cianciosa, Concept System Inc.

• Safety measures at Steel Dynamics Inc. to get people off the floor were presented by Matt Hallam, Steel Dynamics Inc. – Roanoke Bar Division.

• Installations of robots around Nucor Steel–Berkeley reviewed by Helmut Oltmann, Nucor Steel–Berkeley.

The group toured Showa Denko Carbon Inc. the next morning.

Matt Hallam presented Kevin Beers, Showa Denko Carbon Inc. side operations director, and Tim Saxon, Showa Denko Carbon Inc. global sales and marketing coordinator, with a plaque of appreciation for hosting the LSRTC’s tour (left to right): Saxon, Rob Doty, Hallam, Jimmy Barrett, Valoree Varick, Beers, Mike Fox, Greg Dressel and Darrell Sturgill.

The LSRTC met 17 October 2019, San Antonio, Texas, USA.
The LSRTC reviewed its AISTech 2020 session development, for which there are 14 abstracts that will be organized into four sessions. Two will be joint sessions with the Metallurgy — Steelmaking & Casting Technology Committee and one will be a joint session with the Digitalization Applications Technology Committee.
The committee reviewed the instructions for papers chair and session chair.
The LSRTC reviewed the status of the 2019 Secondary Steelmaking Refractories — A Practical Training Seminar. 
The 2020 Continuous Casting South Korea Study Tour was discussed. This International Study Tour will take place 22–27 March. 
Presentations:

• “Refractory Shapes and Recycling,” by Dave Ehrhart, RHI Magnesita.

• “Refractory Laser Measurement and Refractory Lift Assistance Technologies,” by Corey Forster, Harbison­Walker International.

The LSRTC met 7 May 2019, Pittsburgh, PA, USA.
The following officers were elected:

Chair: Matt Hallam, Steel Dynamics Inc. – Structural and Rail Division

Vice chair: Chase Ault, Steel Dynamics Inc. – Flat Roll Group Butler

Papers chair: Valoree Varick, Steel Dynamics Inc. – Structural and Rail Division

Education co-chairs: Jimmy Barrett, Allied Mineral Products Inc., and Deepoo Kumar, Praxair Inc.

The CCTC, LSRTC and RSTC met jointly 13–14 February 2019, Jacksonville, Fla., USA.
CCTC and LSRTC Highlights:
The CCTC and LSRTC met jointly while the RSTC met separately in the morning on 13 February. Later that afternoon, the three committees convened for technical presentations. 
The CCTC and LSRTC opened their meeting with a review of the Steel Industry Fatalities report. It was noted that the number of fatalities was down, even with a high production level. Discussion included overhead cranes, man lifts, demolition and construction projects.
The CCTC and LSRTC reviewed their respective AISTech 2019 technical sessions, and session chairs were reminded of their responsibilities.
Jimmy Barrett gave some comments on the most recent Secondary Steelmaking Refractories training conference. Seventy-five people attended the conference, including 35 from steel-producing companies representing 17 different facilities.
The next Secondary Steelmaking Refractories conference will take place in San Antonio, Texas, USA, on 14–17 October 2019, with a tour of CMC Steel Texas.
Jeff Brower discussed the Continuous Casting training seminar. This year the seminar will take place in Memphis, Tenn., USA, on 21–24 October 2019 with tours of Nucor Steel Memphis Inc. (bar) and Nucor Steel–Arkansas (sheet).
Nominations for CCTC and LSRTC officers for the 2019–2020 term were discussed.
The Continuous Casting Roundup was reviewed. Ron O’Malley will email the roundup to the CCTC to enter their 2018 data. This roundup will be published in the July 2019 issue of Iron & Steel Technology.
The CCTC discussed locations for its next International Study Tour. Possible locations included South Korea and France.
RSTC Highlights:
The RSTC began its meeting by reviewing the 2018 Steel Industry Fatalities report, followed by a roundtable discussion. 
The committee finalized its technical session lineup for AISTech 2019.
Mike Anderson shared his experiences from the 2018 AIST Leadership Conference. 
Nominations for RSTC officers for the 2019–2020 term were discussed.
The AIST Digital Transformation Task Force meeting at AISTech 2019 will be held on Wednesday, 8 May. Rakesh Dhaka will represent the RSTC.
The RSTC’s Fall 2019 meeting will be held either in conjunction with the training seminar in San Antonio or at another tour site in September 2019. This will be determined during the RSTC’s meeting at AISTech 2019.
The Refractory Systems Best Paper Award was discussed. The award will be presented during the RSTC meeting at AISTech 2019.
The following presentations were given when the three committees gathered in the afternoon:

• “Steel Cleanliness Analysis at Nucor Steel–Berkeley,” by Abhishek Bhansali, Nucor Steel–Berkeley.

•  “An Update on Steel-Refractory Interactions Research at the PSMRC,” by Ron O’Malley, Missouri University of Science and Technology. 

• “CFP: Clean Flow Port SEN Design for Flow Optimization,” by Josef Riccio, Krosaki USA.

• “Physical Water Modeling of Slab SENs to Improve Steel Cleanness and Clogging by Assessing In-Mold Fluid Flow and Associated Turbulence,” by Andy Smith, Materials Processing Institute.

• “Steel Interactions With Refractory Focus: Ladle to Mold,” by Gregor Arth, RHI Magnesita.

The next day, the three committees toured CMC Steel  Florida.

The CCTC, LSRTC and RSTC toured CMC Steel Florida on 14 February. Ty Hall, works manager, and Bill Rider, plant engineer, accepted a plaque of appreciation from Ron O’Malley, AIST first vice president from Missouri University of Science and Technology (left to right): Helmut Oltmann, LSRTC chair; Hall; O’Malley, Rider; and Ian Deeks, CCTC chair.

The LSRTC met 25 October 2018, Charleston, S.C., USA.
Chase Ault, papers chair, reviewed the LSRTC’s AISTech 2019 technical session development. Sessions will include: Calcium Treatment (with Metallurgy — Steelmaking & Casting Technology Committee (MSCTC)); the Peaslee Memorial Session (with MSCTC); Ladle Slag Engineering; Ladle Degassing Operations; Ladle Processing of Advanced High-Strength Steels; and Ladle Metallurgy Processes.
There are still a few openings for session chairs. The responsibilities of both papers chair and session chair were reviewed.
The winner of the 2019 Ladle and Secondary Refining Best Paper Award was determined. This award will be presented during the LSRTC meeting at AISTech 2019.
Jimmy Barrett of Allied Mineral Products Inc. discussed Secondary Steelmaking Refractories — A Practical Training Seminar. A recap of the seminar can be found on pages 187–188 of this issue.
Next year’s Secondary Steelmaking Refractories course will be held on 14–17 October in San Antonio, Texas, USA.
Tour ideas for future conferences suggested were  alloy suppliers (ferrosilicon — Global Industries), electrode plants, suppliers (Vesuvius and Heraeus), and sites in other complementary industries (Boeing and Nissan).

Matt Hallam (left) presented Helmut Oltmann (right) with the LSRTC service plaque at AISTech 2018.

The LSRTC met 8 May 2018, Philadelphia, PA, USA.
The following officers were elected:

• Chair: Helmut Oltmann, Nucor Steel–Berkeley

• Vice chair: Matt Hallam, Steel Dynamics Inc. – Structural and Rail Division

• Papers chair: Chase Ault, Steel Dynamics Inc. – Flat Roll Group Butler

• Education chair: Jimmy Barrett, Allied Mineral Products Inc.

• Membership chair: April Pitts-Baggett, Nucor Steel Tuscaloosa Inc.

The LSRTC met 14–15 February 2018, San Antonio, Texas, USA. A safety roundtable discussion was held, based on the 2017 Safety Industry Fatalities Report put together by the Safety & Health Technology Committee.
Chase Ault went over the AISTech 2018 technical program. He reviewed the upcoming deadlines for authors as well as session chairs. Session chair responsibilities were discussed, and a tutorial was given on the new abstract management system, Hubb, for how to view and evaluate papers.
Upcoming officer positions were reviewed, as well as who will be filling them. There will be no rotation this year, with the same people staying in their current spots.
The Ladle and Secondary Refining Roundup was discussed, with work set to begin on updating the roundup before AISTech.
Jimmy Barrett reviewed the Secondary Steelmaking Refractories training course curriculum and tour site. The course will be held on 22–25 October 2018 in Charleston S.C., USA.
The following presentations were given:

• “Yield Improvements at SDI Structural and Rail Division,” by Matt Hallam, Steel Dynamics Inc.

• “Inclusion Evolution and Sampling Depth Study,” by April Pitts-Baggett, Nucor Steel Tuscaloosa Inc.

• “Dust Capture Improvements During Ladle and Secondary Refining at Nucor Gallatin,” by Mike Callahan, Nucor Steel Gallatin.

• “Japan Caster Study Tour Review,” by Matt Hallam.

Helmut Oltmann (right) presented a plaque of appreciation to Ronaldo Davila (left), Commercial Metals Company – Texas, for hosting the LSRTC on a tour of the facility.

The LSRTC met 26 October 2017, Milwaukee, Wis., USA, during Secondary Steelmaking Refractories — A Practical Training Seminar. The LSRTC reviewed the 2017 Steel Industry Fatalities report, followed by a safety roundtable discussion.
The committee decided to re-establish a members chair post. April Pitts-Baggett was nominated and elected to this position.
Chase Ault, papers chair, discussed the LSRTC’s AISTech technical session development. Seven sessions are scheduled, including three joint sessions with the Metallurgy — Steelmaking & Casting Technology Committee (MSCTC). The instructions for papers chair and session chair were also reviewed.
The recipient of the 2018 AIST Ladle and Secondary Refining Best Paper Award was announced. This award will be presented at the LSRTC meeting during AISTech 2018 in Philadelphia, Pa., USA.
A new Technology Committee award is being planned: the AIST Kent Peaslee Award. This is a joint-committee award between the LSRTC and the MSCTC. The award subcommittee is comprised of Ron O’Malley, Eugene Pretorius, Helmut Oltmann, Sunday Abraham, Bill Jones, Scott Story, Pallava Kaushik and Chad Cathcart. This subcommittee will meet in the future to determine specific award guidelines before this award is presented at an AISTech conference.
Jimmy Barrett, education chair, reviewed the Secondary Steelmaking Refractories training course, which had 101 attendees. A recap of the course can be found on pages 193–194 of this issue. The 2018 Secondary Steelmaking Refractories seminar will be held on 22–25 October 2018 in Charleston, S.C., USA, with Nucor Steel–Berkeley serving as host plant.
DeePoo Kumar, Carnegie Mellon University, gave a presentation titled, “Challenges in Developing a Reliable Kinetic Model for Ladle Refining Process.”

	Helmut Oltmann (right) presented Sunday Abraham (left) with the LSRTC service plaque.

The LSRTC met 9 May 2017, Nashville, Tenn., USA.

The following officers were elected:

• Chair: Helmut Oltmann, Nucor Steel–Berkeley

• Vice chair: Matt Hallam, Steel Dynamics Inc. – Structural and Rail Division

• Papers chair: Chase Ault, Steel Dynamics Inc. – Flat Roll Group Butler

• Education chair: Jimmy Barrett, Allied Mineral Products Inc.

	Sunday Abraham (left), LSRTC chair, presented a plaque of appreciation to Eugene Pretorius (center) and Helmut Oltmann (right), Nucor Steel–Berkeley, for hosting the LSRTC and MSCTC’s tour.

The LSRTC and MSCTC met 15–16 February 2017, Charleston, S.C., USA. The LSRTC and MSCTC finalized their respective AISTech 2017 technical sessions.
The winner of the AIST 2017 Ladle and Secondary Refining Best Paper Award was announced. This award will be presented at AISTech 2017 during the LSRTC meeting.
Bill Jones presented the award, named after Kent Peaslee. The MSCTC award subcommittee will coordinate with the Refining and Casting Technology Division to evaluate the nominees.
Ron O’Malley moved the motion to award the Kent Peaslee Award to the best inclusion engineering paper from the previous year’s AISTech conference. The motion was seconded and carried unanimously.
Committee officers for 2017–2018 were discussed and elections will take place at each committee’s meeting during AISTech 2017.
Jimmy Barrett reviewed the activities and attendance of the last training seminar, Secondary Steelmaking Refractories — A Practical Training Seminar. The next seminar is scheduled on 23–26 October 2017 in Milwaukee, Wis., USA. Charter Steel – Saukville will serve as host plant.
The 2017 Caster Japan Study Tour will be held on 5–11 November 2017. The program for the tour, which is  awaiting approval from the ISIJ, was presented. The producers of the MSCTC and LSRTC were invited to register and attend this study tour.

The following technical presentations were given:

• “High Definition — High Performance HD Mold,” by Joseph Laughlin, SMS USA LLC.

• “Ladle Free Open – Ladle Well Sand,” by Scott Story, U. S. Steel Research and Technology Center.

• “Designing Mold Powder,” by Darrell Sturgill, IMERYS.

• “Investigation of Mold Flux Crystallization by Continuous Cooling and Isothermal Methods,” by Elizabeth Peterson, Missouri University of Science and Technology.

• “Computer Modeling of Refining in the Ladle,”   Chenn Zhou and Sotiri Hovardas, Purdue University Northwest.

• “SiC Production and Its Use in Steelmaking,” by Brad Meibers, Washington Mills.

• “SiC as a Tap Ladle Deoxidizer,” by Scott Story.

The committees discussed their fall meetings. The LSRTC will meet after Secondary Steelmaking Refractories — A Practical Training Seminar in Milwaukee, Wis., USA, on 26 October 2017. The MSCTC will meet on 4–5 October 2017 at the Colorado School of Mines.
The LSRTC and MSCTC capped off their meeting with a tour of Nucor Steel–Berkeley’s steelmaking operations.

The LSRTC and MSCTC enjoyed a plant tour of Nucor Steel–Berkeley during its 15–16 February 2017 meeting.

The LSRTC and RSTC met 13 October 2016, Birmingham, Ala., USA co-located with Secondary Steelmaking Refractories — A Practical Training Seminar. The LSRTC and RSTC held separate business meetings and convened as a group for technical presentations.
During their separate meetings, each committee reviewed the 2016 Steel Industry Fatalities report, followed by a safety roundtable discussion on the cause, age, area and annual breakdown of incidents.
Rakesh Dhaka, RSTC papers chair, led a discussion on the RSTC’s AISTech 2017 technical sessions. Twenty-nine papers have been selected and organized into six sessions, three of which will be held jointly with other committees. Matt Hallam discussed the LSRTC’s technical session development, which includes 21 abstracts. Session titles and chairs were identified and the roles of the session chairs and papers chair were reviewed.
The 2017 AIST RSTC Best Paper Award was discussed, along with the development of evaluation criteria. The winner of the 2017 AIST Ladle and Secondary Refining Best Paper Award was announced. These awards will be presented at each committee’s respective meeting at AISTech 2017 in May.
Jimmy Barrett, LSRTC education chair, reviewed Secondary Steelmaking Refractories — A Practical Training Seminar, noting a good producer turnout this year. The next conference will be held 23–26 October 2017 in Milwaukee, Wis., USA. Charter Steel – Saukville will serve as host plant.

The following presentations were given:

• “Refractory Choice for Steel Ladles,” by Cassie Martin, D. Martin Enterprises.

• “Effect of Steel Mill Refractory Practices on Ladle Shell Lives and Update on Technical Report No. 9,” by Matt Nousak, Middough LLC.

The LSRTC met 13 October 2016, Birmingham, Ala., USA. The LSRTC reviewed the 2016 Steel Industry Fatalities report, followed by a safety roundtable discussion.
Matt Hallam led a discussion on AISTech 2017 technical session development. Twenty-one abstracts have been scheduled by the LSRTC, with one panel discussion. Session chairs selected, and the roles of papers chair and session chair were reviewed.
The recipient of the 2017 Ladle and Secondary Refining Best Paper Award was selected. This award will be presented at the LSRTC meeting during AISTech 2017.
Jimmy Barrett, LSRTC education chair, discussed the 2017 Secondary Steelmaking Refractories — A Practical Training Seminar. The seminar will be held on 23–26 October 2017 in Milwaukee, Wis., USA, with Charter Steel – Saukville serving as host plant.
The following presentations were given:

• “Refractory Choice for Steel Ladles,” by Cassie Martin, D. Martin Enterprises.

• “Effect of Steel Mill Refractory Practices on Ladle Shell Lives” and an update on AIST Technical Report No. 9 was presented by Matt Nousak, Middough LLC.

Helmut Oltmann (left) presented the LSRTC service plaque to Sunday Abraham (right).

The LSRTC met 17 May 2016, Pittsburgh, PA, USA.

The LSRTC and RSTC met 10–11 February 2016, Mobile, Ala., USA. The 2015–2016 Steel Industry Fatalities statistics were reviewed, followed by a safety roundtable discussion.
The committees reviewed their technical sessions for AISTech 2016. LSRTC has five sessions scheduled, and the RSTC has four. The role of the session chair was reviewed.
Nominations for committee officers for the 2016–2017 term were accepted and approved.
Jimmy Barrett discussed the evaluations from Secondary Steelmaking Refractories — A Practical Training Seminar attendees. Seminar presenters were given their individual appraisals from the attendees.
The LSRTC and RSTC will hold another joint meeting in October in Birmingham, Ala., USA, with a tour of CMC Steel Alabama. The meeting will focus on ladle campaigns/ladle deformation.
The following technical presentations were given:

• “Technology Update on Laser Monitoring of Metallurgical Vessels,” by Michel Bonin of Process Metrix.

• “Experiences With Laser Monitoring at SSAB Mobile,” by Greg Manfredi of SSAB.

• “Latest Techniques in IR Thermal Imaging of Metallurgical Vessels,” by Tom Connors of Connors Industrials Inc.

• “Experiences With Laser Monitoring at ArcelorMittal Burns Harbor,” by Sanjay Kumar of ArcelorMittal Burns Harbor.

• “Auto Tracking of Steel Plant Ladles Using RFID-Wireless Systems,” by Federico Ahualli of AustralTek LLC.

The Ladle & Secondary Refining Technology Committee and the Refractory Systems Technology Committee toured SSAB Mobile during their joint meeting on 10–11 February 2016.