The "Introduction to Powder: Follow the Yellow Brick Road" cast stands with Goyer Management's Anne Goyer. From the left: Roger Cummings; Jerry Trostle; Bruce Bryan; Anne Goyer; Steve Houston; Ron Cudzilo; Rodger Talbert; and front and center, Chris Merritt.

One of the many conference sessions at Coating 2005 was "Introduction to Powder Coating: Follow the Yellow Brick Road." Here, attendees journeyed to the Land of Powder with the parodied characters from the Wizard of Oz. Audience members agreed that it was "no place like home," and one said, "it was the best session I ever attended. It was entertaining and I learned something!"

Although the comprehensive presentation was light-hearted, it didn't lack substance. This conference session covered materials, pretreatment, application, curing, material handling, system design and quality control. Speakers, or rather cast members, included Chris Merritt, ITW Gema, as the Scarecrow who couldn't get control; Steve Houston, DuPont Powder Coatings, as "Dorky," who had Toto in tow; Ron Cudzilo, George Koch Sons LLC, as the Lion; Bruce Bryan, Industrial Paint & Powder magazine, played Liquidia, the Wicked Witch of Wet; Roger Cummings, Industrial Polishing Services, played the Glen the Good Witch; Rodger Talbert, R. Talbert Consulting, was the Tin Man; and Jerry Trostle, Wagner Systems Inc., was the Wizard of Powder.