News | October 14, 2005

2006 National Manufacturing Week Attracts Top Business Leaders, Covering Full Spectrum Of Manufacturing Process

The 2006 National Manufacturing Week and National Manufacturing Week Conference, to be held March 20-23 in Rosemont, IL, promises to deliver unmatched business building opportunities for U.S. manufacturers by bringing together more global manufacturing thought leaders than ever before. Gilles Bouchard, Executive Vice President of Global Operations for Hewlett Packard joins a stellar Conference line-up of keynote speakers and sessions on topics covering the entire manufacturing process. The 2006 event is the best resource for U.S. manufacturers to gain the knowledge, contacts, technology, products and services they need to grow business and compete globally.

"We are thrilled and excited to present such an outstanding selection of manufacturing industry thought leaders and seminar sessions," said Kel Marsden-Kish, industry vice president, National Manufacturing Week. "The depth of skill and experience and the wide range of topics, from design to factory floor to customer location, cover the entire manufacturing process and provide a business opportunity found nowhere else."

Reflecting broad support from the manufacturing community, the National Manufacturing Week Conference will present an expanded real-world conference geared to the needs of small and mid-sized manufacturers. The Conference, which begins on March 20th, will contain 16 tracks and features more than 400 speakers offering the latest business insight and thought leadership. Mr. Bouchard will deliver remarks on Managing Multiple Routes-to-Market in the global marketplace. Other keynote speakers include:

  • ASIMCO's Chairman & CEO, Jack Perkowski on "China: Opportunities and Challenges". Perkowski was featured in the best-selling non-fiction book, The World is Flat, by NY Times reporter Thomas Friedman
  • Caterpillar Chairman & CEO, James Owens, on "Manufacturing Leadeship in the Global Marketplace"
  • China Business Sources' President, Colin Wu on "What's Behind Chinese Competitiveness"
  • Deloitte and Touche USA LLP's Doug Engel, Vice Chairman and U.S. Manufacturing Industry Leader, and Chairman of the Deloitte Center for Health Solutions Tommy Thompson, the former Health and Human Services Secretary and four-term Governor of Wisconsin, team up on "Managing Structural Costs and Maintaining Competitive Edge: Improving Your Position in the Global Marketplace"
  • National Instruments Automation Fellow, Mike Santori on "How to Compete in a Global Economy"
  • Schneider Electric's Vice President, Operations, North American Operating Division, Mary Frances Cox will speak on achieving a $100 million reduction in Schneider's manufacturing cost base

More than 1,000 exhibitors will be uniquely organized on the National Manufacturing Week show floor according to the entire manufacturing process. The show floor will feature 13 special focus and technology pavilions. In addition, the show is sponsored and supported by 15 associations and analyst sponsors. The exhibition floor will open on Tuesday, March 21st, providing more time on Monday for Conference educational offerings to go into greater depth and detail.

New Venue Sets the Stage for Networking
In an effort to further enhance the show experience for exhibitors and attendees, the 2006 National Manufacturing Week has moved to Chicagoland's newly renovated Donald E. Stephens Convention Center in Rosemont, IL. The move will significantly reduce the total cost of exhibiting while greatly increasing value of the event for manufacturers focused on succeeding in the face of intense competitive pressure. The venue offers 840,000 square feet of exhibition space, 50 state-of-the-art meeting rooms, and is just five minutes from Chicago's O'Hare International Airport. The 'community' feel of Rosemont will offer both exhibitors and attendees the opportunity to network more frequently and continually throughout the show.

National Manufacturing Week is the only event for engineering teams and executives responsible for design to manufacturing process to finished goods. Tens of thousands from the U.S. manufacturing community, especially small to mid-size manufacturers, come together for in-depth education and exhibits spanning the broad spectrum of enabling technologies, systems, products and solutions necessary to grow and compete in the global economy. As part of the four-day event, four focused individual shows will be held. These include:

  • The 56th National Design Engineering Show, which attracts OEM, product and systems design engineers and senior managers from across the country responsible for rapid, innovative, reliable product design development through the latest precision technology electronics and electrical components, fluid power, motion control systems, engineered materials and micro manufacturing technologies.
  • The National Enterprise IT Show and Conference, which attracts the enterprise team of IT, manufacturing and business decision-makers from across the country responsible for changing how work gets done in manufacturing and the supply chain, while better handling changing customer demands through products and services designed to enhance operations at a lower cost.
  • The National Industrial Automation Show and Conference, which attracts automation and control engineers, manufacturing managers and systems integrators from across the country responsible for increased production uptime, improved accuracy, optimized plant operations and lower costs through the latest automation technology, systems and solutions.
  • The 58th National Plant Engineering and Maintenance Show and Conference, which attracts MRO engineering professionals, operations teams and executives from across the country responsible for the planning, specification, installation, maintenance, efficient operation and compliance of industrial and institutional facilities and systems through new ideas and products for HVAC, material handling, software and computers, safety and security, tools, paints/coatings, lighting, flooring, cleaning technologies, environmental technologies, maintenance and reliability.

For more information on National Manufacturing Week 2006, exhibits March 21-23, Conference March 20-23, visit www.ManufacturingWeek.com.

The National Association of Manufacturers is the nation's largest industrial trade association, representing small and large manufacturers in every industrial sector and in all 50 states. Headquartered in Washington, D.C., the NAM has 10 additional offices across the country. Visit the NAM's award-winning web site at www.nam.org for more information about manufacturing and the economy.

Reed Exhibitions, which manages more than 430 trade shows annually worldwide, is a member of Reed Elsevier Group plc, a world-leading provider of information-driven services and solutions. Reed Exhibitions offers integrated market access programs covering exhibitions, trade publications, direct marketing and the Internet to a database of 3.5 million in North America. Reed has North American offices in Norwalk, CT; Waltham, MA; Palm Beach, FL; Las Vegas, NV; and Toronto, ONT (Canada) and also and operations offices worldwide. (NYSE:RUK/ENL).