Infacon (International Ferro-Alloys Congress) was founded in South Africa in 1974 by the SAIMM (Southern African Institute of Mining and Metallurgy), Mintek (then the National Institute for Metallurgy), and the Ferro Alloys Producers' Association (FAPA) when the first Infacon was held in Johannesburg. The secretariat for ICFA is provided by Mintek. The founding members of ICFA were: ABRAFE (Brazil), FAPA (South Africa), IFPEO (Europe), JFA (Japan), and TFA (North America). The intention of Infacon is to stimulate technical interchange on all aspects of ferro-alloy production.
CHAIRMAN
Rodney Jones
Mintek & SAIMM
Johannesburg, South Africa
E-mail: rtjones@global.co.za
SECRETARY GENERAL
Isabel Geldenhuys
Mintek & SAIMM
Johannesburg, South Africa
E-mail: isabel@pyro.co.za
IMMEDIATE PAST CHAIRMAN
Nic Barcza
Consultant to Mintek
Johannesburg, South Africa
E-mail: NicB@mintek.co.za
Members of ICFA
Brazil
ABRAFE:
Leandro Gustavo Mendes de Jesus
China
CSM - Chinese Society for Metals:
CFIA - China Ferroalloy Industry Association:
Haijuan Wang (University of Science and Technology, Beijing)
European Union
EuroAlliages: Nadia Vinck
India
IFAPA:
Japan
JFA - Japan Ferroalloy Association:
Akira Sasakawa, Shingo Katayama (Nippon Denko)
Kazakhstan
Chemical Metallurgical Institute:
Zhanibek Nurmukhanbetov (Kazchrome)
North America (Canada and USA)
AIST / CIM / SME / TMS: Brian Bliss (AIST)
Norway
FFF - Norwegian Ferro Alloys Association: Erlend Olsen (Finnfjord)
Aud Warnes (Sintef)
Russia
Russian Academy of Sciences:
Igor Shepetovsky (Kosaya Gora Iron Works)
South Africa
FAPA - Ferro Alloys Producers' Association: Henk Bouwer
South Korea
Hanyang University: Prof. Joohyun Park
Turkey
ETI: Yavuzhan Kaya
Ukraine
Ukrainian Ferroalloys Association: Sergii Kudryavtsev
ICFA arranges a meeting of representatives from ferro-alloy producing and consuming countries or regions during each Infacon. The primary purpose is to discuss and decide on the country or region that will host the subsequent Infacon congress. Additional objectives are to discuss the relevant technical content for and consider the frequency of holding future Infacon events, as well as to review the experience from the current Infacon congress.
Prospective host countries are invited to make submissions to ICFA, three weeks in advance of the meeting, of their intention to propose the hosting of the next Infacon congress. This will ensure that provision is made in the agenda for the proposals to be presented briefly (in about five minutes) at the ICFA meeting. A brief summary of the submissions should preferably be sent to ICFA at least one week prior to the meeting, for circulation to ICFA members if the host region wishes to do so.
Criteria for selection include the appropriate professional standing of the organising entity, the suitability of the location with regard to accessibility and facilities, and the necessary level of local and regional support from major stakeholders, such as industry, government, and relevant technical institutions. A track record of hosting similar events will be a distinct advantage, as will the ability to obtain underwriting of the financial commitments.
The rotation of geographic location from ferro-alloy producing regions in the northern and southern hemispheres, as well as eastern and western continents, needs to be given consideration in addition to the above criteria.
Designated ICFA representatives who attend the meeting are permitted to vote for only one host region after the presentations have been reviewed.