Naturally this issue is a very special one for our team. After 10 years, MFN has become an established publication in its industry and is distributed to nearly 70 countries. Furthermore, the organisation conducts various training courses in different languages all over the world, publishes books and market studies.

Nowadays it is rare to hear good news from the printing media, since newspapers and magazines seem to be disappearing from the market somewhere in the world almost everyday. That is why it is especially noteworthy that MFN has managed to find a strategy to keep it successful in the industry for 10 years. And it looks like it has the right team and business concept to continue reporting and providing information about the metal finishing industry around the globe for many years to come.

After some discussion and quite a bit of persuasion, the publisher and founder Steven Baiker finally agreed to be interviewed by myself for the first time. He tells the complete story about MFN with all the struggles and obstacles that are normal for a newcomer in the business. It is certainly worthwhile to read about what it takes to turn an idea into a successful company. You will find his unusual interview on page 6.

In this issue some of the articles and columns are a bit different from usual. They are dedicated to the special occasion. So I asked our various Contributing Editors such as Giovanni Gregorat to reflect on his "Off The Beaten Track" columns, whereas I persuaded Erwan Henry to focus his "Global Outlook" column on various successful business models, including MFN, and Paul Huyton to look at a decade of specifications in his "Standard Forum". I hope you like the result.

Finally allow me to thank all of our loyal readers for showing such keen interest in our magazine and for frequently giving us valuable feedback and suggestions concerning our organization. Their contributions really help us to improve our publication. It is a pleasure to have such involved readers and I would like to express my deep appreciation!

Last but not least, I also would like to thank our whole international MFN team, truly motivated and inspired at all times!

Best Regards
Andrzej Wojtas (Ph.D.), Chief Editor of MFN, E-mail: andrzej@mfn.li

Author: Andrzej Wojtas