
THE MELTMINDER
A PUBLICATION BY BENTON FOUNDRY, INC.
Web Site: www.bentonfoundry.com
O
ur expansion is coming together and we would like to share a few updated pictures of both the equipment and the building. The picture on the right is of the structure along Route 487. The insulated translucent panels allow natural light to illuminate the work areas inside. The picture below is the South side of the facility and shows the four new loading docks, explosion proof amine building, new generator, dry additives room and sand room. The building is expected to be completed in May of this year.
Pictures going counter clockwise, starting at the top left: Two new 200 ton sand silos, plus a silo for the bentonite / Mixer deck with 750 pound and 300 pound capacity OMCO mixers / Inside the new core room / Resin room with two 6,000 gallon capacity resin tanks/ Weigh deck for measuring the sand additives and Solex heating and cooling unit to control the sand temperature / One of the two 12,500 cfm MT Systems scrubbers. The core room is expected to be in operation in July of 2022.






I
f you regularly wake up with stiff muscles, creaky joints or the general feeling that your body simply isn’t as limber as it was when you went to bed, the first thing to know is that you are not alone. Waking up with a tight body is “almost a universal human experience,” said Maryclaire Capetta, a physical therapist and assistant professor in the department of kinesiology at the University of Connecticut. And, she added, it’s quite common for it to happen every day.
While feeling stiff in the morning is normal and typically dissipates quickly, it’s also uncomfortable while it lasts. The good news, experts say, is that there are a few tricks you can use – when you feel stiff and even before the feeling arises – to help you get relief, faster.
Why you feel stiff
Most of the time, that tight feeling when you wake up is a result of overnight changes to the lubrication in two different features of the body: the joints and the fascia.
The fascia is a complex group of connective tissues that surround and support the muscles, soft tissues, organs and bones. Think of fascia as a fibrous web that wraps around and through muscle tissue to give it structure and stability. It forms multiple layers, with a gel-like lubricant in between that allows the layers to slide and glide smoothly, and which helps you to feel loose and limber, said Dr. Antonio Stecco, a fascia researcher and professor of rehabilitation medicine at New York University.
In certain situations – like when your body temperature drops, when you’ve been still for an extended time or when lactic acid builds up in the muscles and fascia during intense exercise – the lubricant becomes thicker and more viscous and the layers of fascia can’t glide as easily, leading to feelings of stiffness.
When you sleep, many of those thickening situations occur: you’re usually still for a long time (say, eight hours) and your body temperature tends to drop.
Your joints may also contribute to feeling stiff in the morning. In healthy joints, a thick fluid lubricates the space between the ends of your bones, which are capped with cartilage, to help them move freely and comfortably. Whenever you’re still for a long period of time (like when you’re sleeping), the cartilage sucks up the lubricant like a sponge, Dr. Capetta said, making your joints feel creaky.
How to feel better
The good news is that the remedy for stiffness in the morning – whether it’s caused by your fascia or your joints – is the same: movement.
While you’re still in bed and lying on your back, start by doing a full-body stretch, like a cat or a dog when they first wake up,
by extending your legs and arms wide and in opposite directions. Then, try pointing and flexing your toes or stretching just your arms and torso, mimicking the cliché‚ “just woke up” stretch. To bring fluid back into your joints, try gently bending and unbending your knees and elbows, rolling your wrists and ankles or gently nodding your head from side to side.
If you still feel stiff once you’ve gotten out of bed, try marching in place, continuing to bend and re-bend any joints that feel stiff, Dr. Capetta said. If your back and the sides of your body feel tight, you could try a gentle stretch, like a loose forward hang toward your toes with slightly bent knees or side bends and cat-cow yoga poses. Studies suggest that a regular yoga practice can be effective in reducing discomfort associated with joint and muscle stiffness and chronic back pain. Do whatever feels good. If you have a dog, taking it out first thing in the morning might get your body’s juices flowing and help you feel nimble more quickly. If it’s cold in the morning, try a hot shower.
While it’s healthy and normal to feel a little tight after a night of stillness, you might feel even more tight if your baseline flexibility is already limited. You can lessen this by staying limber and maintaining an active lifestyle in general. If you don’t already stretch regularly, adding even 15 minutes of stretching to your day may help you feel less stiff upon waking, Dr. Stecco said. If you sit in front of a computer for work, try moving around and changing positions throughout the day.
If you’re waking up frequently with a stiff neck and shoulders, you may want to re-evaluate the position you sleep in most often. If you’re a side sleeper, for example, your pillow should support your head so that your neck is in the same line as your spine. If you consistently wake up with a stiff lower back, you may also want to consider whether your mattress is the culprit. There isn’t one universal mattress type that will cure all tight-ness, but experts recommend different firmness levels depending on your needs. If your joint stiffness lasts for longer than an hour after you’ve gotten out of bed and persists for weeks or even months, you should consult with a health care provider, Dr. Capetta said. Joint stiffness that lasts for an hour or longer could be an early indicator of arthritis. You should also see a doctor if you stretch regularly but still feel chronic tightness throughout the day.
Most of the time, morning tightness will naturally recede as you go about your morning. “But everyone has a different threshold for what is bothersome,” Dr. Capetta said. If it troubles you, some movement and stretching first thing in the morning may be enough “to reduce the time or to reduce the impact of this particular experience,” she said – whether it’s a universal one or not.
The New York Times , Katie Okamoto, Feb. 15, 2022
P
ennsylvania remains a leading energy producer and exporter according to a new report by Independent Fiscal Office (IFO). Pennsylvania remains the country’s leading producer and exporter of energy.
The report looked at data published by the U.S. Energy Information Administration and found that Pennsylvania was the largest net exporter of electricity in the country. The state exported 85.5 million megawatt hours, which was 79.9 percent higher than the second largest exporter of energy, Alabama, with 30.3 million megawatt hours.
The state produced 241.6 million megawatts of electricity from natural gas, coal, nuclear and other sources. The state also consumed 156.2 million megawatts of electricity, leaving 35.3 percent of the energy to export. Only West Virginia, with 46.1 percent, had a higher percentage of energy exported among those in the Appalachia region.
Pennsylvania was also the largest regional producer of electricity. The state generated more than 127 million megawatts of natural gas electricity and more than 75 million megawatts of nuclear electricity, more than any other state in the region. Only Ohio and West Virginia (with more than 45 million mega-watts and more than 59 million megawatts, respectively) exceeded Pennsylvania’s coal-based electricity production.
The report also found that Pennsylvania’s average price for electricity fell by 0.5 percent – from 13.86 cents per kilowatt hour in 2016 to 13.79 cents per kilowatt hour in 2021.
Researchers attributed the price reduction to increasing natural gas production, which provided a relatively low-cost input for electricity generators in the state. The share of Pennsylvania plants using natural gas increased from 28 percent in 2016 to 53 percent in 2021.
Prices in New York, New Jersey, Massachusetts and Connecticut were higher than those in Pennsylvania, while rates in Maryland, Ohio, West Virginia, Virginia and North Carolina were lower. North Carolina, the lowest, boasted electricity rates at 11.50 cents per kilowatt hour, while Massachusetts had rates of 22.91 cents per kilowatt hour.
The report also found that even though electricity generation rose, net emissions in the state fell. In 2016, the state produced 226.1 million megawatt hours of electricity, compared to 241.6 million megawatts in 2021. Net emissions fell from 129.3 million metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions in 2016 to 81 million metric tons of emissions in 2021.
Researchers attributed the reduction in emissions to a significant switch from coal to natural gas in the state’s electricity generation mix.
https://pennbizreport.com
W
e have experienced approximately 10 fraudulent unemployment claims here at the Foundry.
Thousands of fraudulent attempts to get benefits from the state that have been filed by thieves since the start of the pandemic. Pennsylvania’s unemployment compensation system is still grappling with the tsunami of claims two years into the pandemic. The State Department of Labor & Industry must figure out how to reject fraudulent claims, while still paying legitimate ones.
Legislators and advocates say the problem is massive with serious consequences for people who are owed money. It is unclear how many total fraudulent claims have been filed, but state officials have said the fraud problem is enormous, and ever-shifting. In the early months of the pandemic, fraudsters targeted Pandemic Unemployment Assistance—a new program created by the federal government to help people who wouldn’t have qualified for traditional unemployment benefits. In recent months, state officials say, fraud attempts have tended to target traditional Unemployment Compensation.
“Since the beginning of the COVID-19 crisis, foreign and domestic fraudsters have been exploiting unprecedented demand on the nation’s unemployment compensation systems that exist to protect hardworking Americans and their families during times of hardship,” L&I Secretary Jennifer Berrier said in a statement earlier this month. “Fraud-detection measures have revealed an increased level of sophistication in the most recent attacks on our system.”
Since the new computer system went online last June, the department says it has prevented more than $4.7 billion in state and federal dollars from being paid out to fraudsters.
State Rep. Nick Pisciottano, D-West Mifflin, and a member of the House Labor and Industry committee, said the state has a fine line to walk between preventing fraud and still allowing ordinary people to receive aid.
To report fraud, call the PA Fraud Hotline at 1-800-692-7469.
Remember—if someone files a fraudulent unemployment claim on you, they have your personal information.
90.5 WESA
Kate Giammarise
January 20, 2022
Congratulations to Ana Ponce (above), Benton Foundry’s 1st Shift Employee of the Quarter. Ana has worked at the Foundry for several years. She works in our Quality Lab as a lab technician and is currently completing a rotation throughout the foundry. Ana lives in Berwick with her son Samuel, and she enjoys spending time with her family when she isn’t working.
Awesome Job Ana!
Congratulations to Chris Miller (below), Benton Foundry’s 2nd shift Employee of the Quarter. Chis has been employed at the Foundry since August 2021. He works in our Maintenance Department. He lives in Benton with his wife, Amanda and their daughter, Madison. He enjoys spending time with his family, woodworking and being outdoors in his spare time.
Congratulations Chris!
Dave Straub – Highest Molding Efficiency Plus the Lowest Scrap Rate
Travis Hayman – Highest Grinding Efficiency
Nuria Artero – Highest Core Machine Operator Efficiency
Mirian Magorga – Highest Core Assembly Efficiency
We would also like to welcome Xenia Ponce to the 2nd shift Quality Department.
Congratulations to Eric Malcein in his new role as ISO Administrator.
In our last newsletter we published information about our successful LED Lighting Project. While the information was accurate, we failed to mention an integral part of the project and would like to thank Ed Whitmoyer and Ruth Dawson for their hard work on this project. They are our electricians and they physically replaced each one of the lighting fixtures and wired the control box. Their efforts were appreciated and indispensable to the project.
Thank you for your hard work and dedication!
H
ow best to save and invest for your retirement is a matter to be considered carefully. One increasingly popular investment option is target-date funds. Why Target-Date Funds? Target-date funds are designed to help manage investment risk. You pick a fund with a target year that is closest to the year you anticipate retiring, say a “2050 Fund.” As you move toward your retirement “target date,” the fund gradually reduces risk by changing the investments within the fund. That said, target-date funds are not risk free, even when the target date has been reached. Like all investments, target-date funds can lose money if the stocks and bonds owned by the fund drop in value. The major advantage is your money is being managed by fund investment advisors. One of the issues 401K participants make is they choose one or two mutual funds and let them ride for years, without re-evaluating or re-adjusting.
Interested investors may find that target-date funds provide an easy way to hold a diversified investment portfolio that re-balances over time to become less focused on potential growth and more focused on producing income. For example, if the target date is a long time from now, the target-date fund initially will be more heavily weighted toward stock investments—that is, more focused on growth. As the target date approaches, the investment mix becomes weighted more heavily toward fixed-income or cash equivalent investments, including bonds and Treasury securities, with aim for capital preservation and/or in-come.
A target date fund’s gradual shift to more conservative investments is called the “glide path.” A fund’s glide path is generally designed to reduce investment risk over time—but target-date glide paths can vary considerably from fund to fund. Importantly, although stocks have historically provided a higher return than bonds and cash investments (albeit, at a higher level of risk), it is not always the case that stocks outperform bonds or that bonds are lower risk than stocks. Both stocks and bonds involve risk, and their returns and risk levels can vary depending on prevailing market and economic conditions and the manner in which they are used. So, even though target-date funds are generally designed to become more conservative as the target date approaches, investment risk exists throughout the lifespan of the fund and is difficult to foresee.
However long-term the market direction has been up.
© 2002 FINRA
Year of Retirement | 2020 | 2025 | 2030 | 2035 | 2040 | 2045 | 2050 | 2055 | 2060 | 2065 |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Growth Funds | 5% | 14% | 21% | 32% | 40% | 43% | 44% | 45% | 45% | 45% |
Growth & Income | 24% | 26% | 30% | 32% | 33% | 35% | 38% | 40% | 40% | 40% |
Income Funds | 15% | 10% | 8% | 7% | 7% | 5% | 2% | |||
Balanced Funds | 12% | 12% | 13% | 13% | 13% | 12% | 11% | 10% | 10% | 10% |
Fixed Income | 44% | 38% | 28% | 16% | 7% | 5% | 5% | 5% | 5% | 5% |
American Funds:
Growth Funds: | New Perspective (Fund A) – International Stock |
Growth Fund of America A – Large Cap U.S. Stock | |
SMALL CAP (World Fund A) – International Stock | |
New World (Fund A) – International Stock | |
Growth & Income Funds: | Fundamental Investors (A) – Large Cap U.S. Stock |
American Mutual (Fund A) – Large Cap U.S. Stock | |
Cap World Growth and Income (A) – International Stock | |
Investment Company of America – Large Cap U.S. Stock | |
Income & Equity Funds: | Capital Income Builder (Class R-6) |
Balanced Funds: | American Balanced (Fund A) |
Capital Income Builder | |
Fixed Funds: | Bond Fund of America (A) – Diversified Bond |
U.S. Government Money Market (A) – Capital Preservation |
S
ue Hanna spent several years in Industrial Sales for ThomasNet calling on Benton Foundry. Sue was relocating to Florida, so Fritz asked Sue to join Benton’s sales team. She would handle the Southeastern US territory for Benton Foundry. Sue’s background prior to ThomasNet was in real estate, resort planner and education, as a physical education, health and driver’s education teacher. During her eighteen years with Benton Foundry, Sue has successfully developed many relationships and accounts. Her smile and personal flare will be missed.
Upon retirement, Sue said she is “taking time to explore and do the things I always wanted to do when I didn’t have the time to do them.” She plans on traveling for pleasure upon retirement, playing golf and enjoying life in Florida with her significant other (Ed) and her two kitties. We wish Sue a long, happy and healthy retirement. Thank you for your many years of service.
Save The Date: Saturday – August, 13, 2022
Ed Fedder
Ed Posluszny
Cynthia Newhart
Tyler Johnson
John Hospodar
Cheryl Brown
Cody Snyder
Bo Boston
Jeff Hall
James Monk
Travis Hayman
Lynn Miller
Chad Davis
Julia Minnicks
Pedro Rivera
Matt Kittle
Sabina Lopez
Rob Smith
Justin Lloyd
David Emmett
Crystal Applegate
Brock Smith
Glenn Cregar
Jackie Showers
Nick Wilson
Robert Houser
Xenia Ponce
Colin Jandrasitz
Boyd Lore
Cristian Magliocca
Brent Morphis
Morgan Hoover
John Harvey
Irving Wolfe
Robbie Swigart
Dave Eveland
Jordan Winn
Taylor Berkey
Joy Wolfe
Cody Bown
Albert Phillips
Kendra Ferguson
Steven Saxe
Ben Gonzalez
Don Copeland
Bobby Campbell
Elizabeth Strauch
Rashad Bellamy
Theresa Kubasek
Brittan Kittle
Will Ferguson
Jose Ramos
Tim M. Schechterly
Amanda Carrasquillo
Bill Ferguson Jr.
Fred Kessler
Chris Miller
Kevin Trychta
Duane Eshleman
Sergio Aguilera
Rob Bowman
Jim Lechleitner
Dave McLucas
Deb Clocker
Mike Parsons

What was Fritz Hall’s favorite marketing campaign of the 1970’s?
Answer will be in 2nd Quarter 2022
Answer from 4th Quarter question: How many national parks are in the United States?
63
I
n September of 1991, a handshake deal was reached between Fritz Hall of Benton Foundry and Dennis Raber & Associates. At the time, Benton Foundry needed additional sales support in the Mid-Atlantic region and Denny was in the process of building his sales consulting business, as a casting and machining representative.
Denny was previously employed by York International. While at York, Denny spent time in machining, quality, casting purchasing and international sourcing. This diverse background gave Denny a unique perspective. He was able to troubleshoot machining and fixturing issues in addition to being able to relate to the buyer on the other side of the desk. Denny conducted himself honorably and in a manner that we expect from our direct salespeople, providing regular customer communications and call reports that were of the highest quality with excellent feedback.
After 30 years of growing the business, Denny has decided that it is time to slowdown and retire. This was a 30-plus year outstanding relationship built on trust and a handshake.
Upon retirement, Denny plans on fishing more often and spending more quality time with his wife Jackie, their children and grandchildren at their shore home in Delaware. We wish Denny a long, happy and healthy retirement. Thank you for your amazing 30-year commitment.
- Relax
- Enjoy your time off
- Try something different
- Inspire somebody
- Remember to enjoy the small things
- Explore new places
- Make time for yourself
- Entertain your friends and family
- Nap frequently
- The Best Has Yet to Come
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“Congress can raise taxes because it can persuade a sizable fraction of the populace that somebody else will pay.”
~Milton Friedman, World Renowned Economist