UPM Runners Do The Shamrock Shuffle!

Each spring, businesses and citizens of West Chester, Ohio and the surrounding area participate in a community race called The Shamrock Shuffle. This 6th annual event brings people together to celebrate community, wellness, and of course, St. Patrick’s Day!

Over 4000 participants met at the Square @Union Centre on a sunny but cold Saturday morning. UPM’s Export Account Manager Lisa Collier, IT Manager Kim Skelton, Plant Manager Roger Haire, Coil Segment Manager Dawn Haire, and Executive Vice President Annette Tiesman joined the group of runners and walkers this past weekend.

We’re thrilled to report that Roger Haire finished 32nd out of 2069 5K runners with a run time of 21:13 minutes. He commented, “It was a very challenging day for me, however, I did manage to shuffle through.”

Annette Tiesman added, “It was a good way to start off a cold Saturday morning. Everyone had fun and the beer was cold.”

Proceeds from the Shamrock Shuffle support the Community Foundation of West Chester/Liberty Township. This foundation gives other groups the unique opportunity to utilize this outstanding event as a fundraiser for the charity of their choice. These are near and dear charities such as 3 Little Halos, Paige’s Princess Foundation, PARACHUTE, Reach Out Lakota, and Pets Helping People, as well as many others.

Connect with United Performance Metals at www.upmet.com.

Stainless Steel Frames Surround Artwork at UPM

The newest art addition to adorn United Performance Metals is a colorful one. Thanks to the use of our in-house laser cutting system, it also incorporates our stainless steel products.

“It’s an innovative way to showcase the artwork as well as our materials and our laser cutting capabilities” says Jason Barrial, Laser Cell Leader.

These five paintings, while lovely on their own, seemed a bit lost on the tall lobby wall of our Hamilton, Ohio facility. That was until 17-4 stainless steel frames were laser cut, buffed and secured around each picture. The resulting group is a stand out beauty! We hope you agree.

Connect with United Performance Metals at www.upmet.com.

United Performance Metals Recognized Employees for Milestone Years of Service

Three employees reached milestone years of service with United Performance Metals during the first quarter of 2012;


Lynne Kent, Sheet Segment Account Manager, 5 years of employment,


JoAnne Breehne, Customer Service Manager, 10 years of employment,


and Dawn Haire, Coil Segment Manager, 25 years of employment.

Congratulations to these valued members of our organization.

Connect with United Performance Metals at www.upmet.com.

UPM Thrill Seekers Are At It Again!

We recently shared a story on Scott Fasse, our VP of Marketing, racing Go Karts at an indoor karting track in Sprindale, Ohio. Now it looks like he’s wrangled a few more people from the office to test drive his favorite pastime.

Full Throttle Indoor Karting was created by avid motorsports enthusiasts as a fun, competitive, and safe place to race. Staff members of United Performance Metals tend to agree. Six staffers joined Fasse for a little lunchtime competition as they made their paces around the track.

John Neihaus , VP of Sales; Lisa Collier, Export Account Manager; Brian Romans, Purchasing Manager; Roger Haire, Plant Manager; Jeff Magee, Quality Lead; and Brian Bick, Sheet Segment Manager each took a turn at the wheel.

“It was fun!” “It was a good way to challenge my coworkers.” “It was harder than it looked!”

These were just a few comments from the drivers who were up for the challenge of an indoor race. Who took first place? Scott Fasse, of course!

Connect with United Performance Metals at www.upmet.com.

United Performance Metals Joins the Formula SAE Race

Seniors from Cal State Fullerton want to win. It’s what the Mechanical Engineering Senior Design team has been preparing for all year. The Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) annual competition pits mechanical engineering students and club members against one another from over 140 universities across the globe as they conceive, design, and fabricate a one-of-a-kind race car. The scaled down formula-style race cars will compete in the Formula SAE-West annual competition in the Lincoln Nebraska Airpark this June.

This year, United Performance Metals was asked to provide laser cut brake parts made from 321 annealed stainless steel for Cal State Fullerton’s Formula SAE Collegiate Design Series entry.

Kurosh Jozavi is the team’s Lead Brake System’s Design Engineer. It’s his responsibility to ensure the brake system of the car is functional, efficient, cost effective, and feasibly machined. When asked why he turned to United Performance Metals for help, Kurosh had this to say:

“In looking for material selections, we considered various grades of steel but many vendors were limited in what they could offer us. UPM not only offered to assist us in material selection but also tested a number of grades of stainless steel for us to ensure that we would be working with the best material.”

Kurosh added, “Not only has UPM assisted us with the material selection, they went above and beyond by utilizing their in-house laser to manufacture the designed components which has been a great donation to our project.”

Cal State is implementing a full floating rotor for this year’s brake system. Simply put, the rotor will be allowed to have lateral movement within the brake caliper, thus preventing frictional loss and/or brake failure. United Performance Metals precise laser cutting and manufacturing capabilities have allowed for the exact dimensions of the rotor and the mount to work as specified.

Formula SAE is a great opportunity for tomorrow’s engineers to gain practical experience while still in school. Scott Fasse, Vice President of Marketing for United Performance Metals, was eager to be involved in this project.

“Specialty stainless steel and high temperature alloys are finding their way into new applications every day,” said Fasse. “We hope that learning more about the metals and alloys we sell will be beneficial to these students as they find their way into our industry.”

Connect with United Performance Metals at www.upmet.com.

We're All That...

Now a NADCAP/GE approved source for laser cutting!

United Performance Metals is working hard to be 'all that' for you, our valued customer. In addition to our comprehensive inventory of stainless and high temperature alloys, we also have comprehensive processing capabilities including slitting, leveling, edging, shearing, and laser cutting.

Connect with United Performance Metals at www.upmet.com.

Father and Daughter Make Racing Their Passion

Racing is an addictively fun hobby. Just ask Scott Fasse, Vice President of Marketing for United Performance Metals. Scott championed the inaugural winter racing league at Full Throttle, an indoor karting track in Fairfield, Ohio.

Full Throttle Indoor Karting was created by avid motorsports enthusiasts as a fun, competitive, and safe place to race. Scott took full advantage of the facilities as he participated in a ten-week adult league and took home the trophy for 1st place!

Racing at Full Throttle was appealing not only on a competitive level, but it also satisfied to his desire to have a place to drive during the cold winter months. “Full Throttle has a very well-thought out course” said Fasse. With 14 turns over a quarter mile track, “It really made me think about the mechanics of driving.” Racing there reminded him of his younger days when he started out road racing go karts at age 12.

Although the race track is typically male-dominated, one female racer has emerged in the junior league. She just happens to be Scott’s daughter, Samantha Fasse, age 15. Samantha finished third in her league. She’s not intimidated by being the only girl on the track. “It’s competitive and fun” she says.

When asked if he sees a future racer in Samantha, Fasse expressed fatherly concern, “It’s nice to have something we like to do together, and I’m proud of her success, but I’ll be too nervous if she continues racing more seriously!” For the rest of us race fans, we’ll just have to wait and see what the future brings for this father-daughter karting duo.

Connect with United Performance Metals at www.upmet.com.