The World Foundry Organization (WFO) has welcomed a new President and new members of its Executive Committee for 2026.
Taking over as president of the WFO, Prof Rafal Danko of Poland, said it was a “great honour”. He said: “I would like to express my sincere appreciation to my predecessor, Professor Lou Yanchun (China), for his outstanding leadership and dedication to the WFO. His term marked a period of strong international co-operation, important organisational initiatives, and successful global events that have further reinforced the role of the WFO as the leading worldwide platform for the foundry community.”
He spoke of 2026 as “a truly exceptional milestone” for the organisation – the one hundredth anniversary – saying it offers “a moment to define our ambitions for the decades ahead.”
In setting out his ambitions in the role during this “transformative” time for the foundry industry, Danko said: “My vision for the WFO is to strengthen international co-operation, support technological excellence, and promote responsible and sustainable foundry production worldwide. Special attention will be devoted to engaging young professionals, enhancing global knowledge exchange, and supporting initiatives that respond to environmental, economic and societal challenges.”
He said the “true strength” of the WFO “lies in its members – their expertise, commitment and willingness to collaborate across borders…together…we can continue to build a strong, innovative and globally connected foundry community.”
In addition, the WFO announced a “renewed executive board” for 2026. General secretary Jose Javier Gonzalez said: “Along with the new presidency in Poland and vice presidency in the UK, the executives from China, Germany, Spain and Japan will be joined by new executive members from Turkey and France, along with the ones from South Korea, United States and Czech Republic who entered the group in different stages during the past year.”
The new executives are: Ali Esat Kutmangil (Turkey), Guillaume Allart (France), Seung Mok Yoo (South Korea), Bradford D Muller (United States) and Vladimír Krutiš (Czech Republic).
The centenary celebrations will be held at the 76th World Foundry Congress, Istanbul, Turkey (18-24th October 2026). www.thewfo.com