Schedule of Events

Monday, July 30

3:00 PM
Registration Desk Opens
6:00 - 7:00 PM
Welcome Reception

Tuesday, July 31

7:30 - 8:00 AM
Continental Breakfast
8:00 AM - Noon
General Sessions
  • Factories of the Future: What Does the Future Workforce Look Like?
    Dr. Irene Petrick, Market Innovation Director
    Industrial Solutions Division/Internet of Things Group, Intel Corporation

    An internationally recognized expert in strategic road mapping, Dr. Irene Petrick has worked with a wide variety of companies ranging from small businesses to Fortune 100 companies, and the U.S. military. As Director of Business Strategy for Intel's Industrial and Energy Solutions Division in the Internet of Things Group, she provides leadership in the integration of business and technology strategy to develop solutions. Her presentation will focus on the future of manufacturing and the manufacturing workforce.

  • Trends in Additive Manufacturing
    Todd Grimm, Founder and President
    T.A. Grimm & Associates, Inc.

    What are the trends in additive manufacturing (AM), and what impact on your business or operations will they have? Is it a threat or opportunity? In this discussion, Todd Grimm will offer insights on the AM industry and high-level guidance that will assist thermoprocessing and finishing business leaders in devising strategy and tactics to leverage, or counter, AM's impact. Addressing metal and non-metal AM, this presentation will cover the landscape - in terms of trends, technology, applications and capabilities - and observations that will assist in planning for AM's growing impact on engineering and manufacturing.

  • Manufacturing USA Initiatives: What They Are and How You Can Benefit
    Thomas Kurfess, Ph.D., P.E., HUSCO/Ramirez Distinguished Chair in Fluid Power and Motion Control and Professor in the Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering
    Georgia Institute of Technology

    Manufacturing USA is an initiative focused on coordinating public and private investment in emerging advanced manufacturing technologies that bring together industry, academia, and government partners to leverage existing resources, collaborate, and co-invest in advanced manufacturing innovation. Dr. Kurfess will provide an overview of these initiatives and how manufacturers can benefit from these efforts.

  • Trump's Washington: The New Normal?
    Omar Nashashibi, Founding Partner
    The Franklin Partnership

    President Trump has kept his campaign promise to shake up Washington and it is anything but business as usual in the nation's capital. Omar S. Nashashibi lobbies Congress, the White House, and federal agencies on behalf of manufacturing companies and other groups. This is your chance to hear directly from a Washington insider about the latest on trade, workforce training, regulations, and implementation of the new tax law, among other timely issues.

Noon - 1pm
Lunch
1:00 - 4:30 PM
ThermProcess Breakout
  • Opportunities & Threats in the ThermProcess Industry
  • Tim Lee, Vice President & General Manager Honeywell Thermal Solutions
  • OEM Perspective on the ThermProcess Industry
  • Chad Spore, Materials Engineering Supervisor John Deere
  • Risk Management Strategies for Industrial Combustion Systems
  • Chris Della Mora, Risk Consultant HUB International Risk Services

    • Industrial furnaces and ovens are used in various industries throughout the world. Although this equipment is vital for day-to-day business, specific risks are involved with the maintenance and operations of these furnaces. Successful companies are able to identify, assess, and mitigate these risks to maintain an efficient and safe workplace.

  • Cutting Edge Trends: A Consultants Panel Looks at the Future
  • Thomas Wingens, President Wingens International Industry Consultancy
  • John Young, President Young Metallurgical Consulting
  • Madhu Chatterjee, President AAT Metallurgical Services
  • Doug Glenn (moderator), Founder and Publisher Heat Treat Today
Finishing & Coatings Breakout
  • Opportunities & Threats in the Finishing Industry
  • TO BE ANNOUNCED
  • OEM Perspective on the Finishing Industry
  • Mark Prehar, Purchasing Manager North America AGCO
  • Anteneh Kebbede, Manager Coatings & Surface Technologies GE Global Research
  • Chris Misorski, Technical Advisor Materials Science Mercury Marine

    • Experts from the agriculture and marine industries will share insights on the finishing industry from their perspective including trends, quality/performance requirements, manufacturing technologies, purchasing processes, and more. A moderated discussion will conclude this informative session.

  • Finishing Economics
  • Michael Guckes, Chief Economist Gardner Intelligence

    • Michael analyzes the Gardner Business Index each month to report on the Finishing Index contained therein. This presentation takes a deeper dive into economic indices that can be directly related to the finishing industry. Data is derived from a monthly survey of finishing shop owners and managers that follows new orders; production; backlog; employment; business expansion and more.

  • Benchmarking Your Finishing Shop: Steps to Improve Efficiencies and Profits
  • Tim Pennington, Editor Products Finishing
6:00 - 8:00 PM
Taste of the South Dinner

Following a day of interesting and informative presentations, you'll have the chance to network with other executives and speakers at the Taste of the South Dinner. Exchange conversation, ideas and knowledge with all those in attendance in a casual setting.

Wednesday, August 1

8:00 AM - 12:30 PM
General Sessions
  • Driving Consistent Performance Excellence
    Dr. Amber Selking, Founder
    Selking Performance Group

    From the manufacturing floor to the football field, delivering consistent performance excellence is critical to team success. Through her experiences working in manufacturing for SPX Corporation and as the mental performance consultant for the University of Notre Dame football team, Dr. Amber Selking will share insights from the field of human performance psychology that will help you deliver your best on a more consistent basis. The mind is an often untapped and unrealized source of energy, efficiency, and effectiveness. This presentation will lead you to discover the power of your mind and share strategies to help you deliver your absolute best, consistently.

  • Cybersecurity: Keeping Your Business Secure
    Chad Hunt, Supervisory Special Agent
    FBI Atlanta Office

    SSA Hunt leads a team of agents and analysts who conduct investigations in support of the FBI's Cyber Division mission to identify, pursue, and defeat cyber adversaries. As manufacturing becomes increasingly digitized, industrial internet hacking is of rising concern to businesses. Learn how the FBI is addressing this important issue.

  • Managing in an Unpredictable Economy
    Chris Kuehl, Co-founder and Managing Director
    Armada Corporate Intelligence

    As Armada's economic analyst, Chris Kuehl has worked with a wide variety of private clients and professional associations. His presentation will focus on economic trends and their impact on manufacturers. He serves as CCAI & IHEA's economist and delivers monthly updates on a variety of economic indices that impact manufacturing.

  • Tomorrow's Talent Today
    Noel Ginsburg, CEO
    CareerWise Colorado

    Even in times of low unemployment, skilled labor is difficult to find and keep, in part because our education system is not preparing students with skills that translate directly to the manufacturing workforce. This presentation outlines the skilled-workforce shortage facing manufacturing today, and how the CareerWise modern youth-apprenticeship program can help address it by moving business from being merely a consumer of talent to becoming a producer of talent. With elements of the Swiss model, Colorado's modern youth apprenticeship system is designed to be industry-led and mutually beneficial to both businesses and apprentices, with each realizing a meaningful, tangible benefit.

  • OEM Manufacturing Perspective
    Susanne Lauda, Director, Global Advanced Manufacturing Technology
    AGCO
    Brian Westfall, Vice President Advanced Manufacturing Engineering
    TRANE

12:30 - 2:00pm
Lunch with Presentation
  • Transitioning Your Business to the Next Generation
    Mike Brown, Founder
    The Brainzooming™ Group

    It's no secret that US manufacturing stands to lose an enormous amount of business intelligence and knowledge via retirements occurring in the next 5 to 10 years. Are your company executives thinking about this? Can you fill the increasing gap by connecting upper management and your workforce to recharge your organization? This presentation is designed to help you develop a plan that every manufacturer should be implementing now.