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Assembly Technology Expo to Celebrate 25th Anniversary
June 21, 2004 |Estimated reading time: 4 minutes
Norwalk, Conn. — When thousands of manufacturing professionals converge at Assembly Technology Expo (ATExpo) this September it will mark the 25th anniversary as the industry's leading trade event.
ATExpo, the world's largest "all assembly" trade event will take place September 28 through 30, 2004, at the Donald E. Stephens Convention Center in the Chicago suburb of Rosemont, Ill. The ATExpo Conference opens one day earlier on September 27.
The event, sponsored by ASSEMBLY magazine, features the world's most comprehensive showcase of assembly solutions, from advanced robotic systems to hand tools. Nearly 600 leading suppliers will display and demonstrate new products in more than 50 categories, for use in a wide range of manufacturing industries, including automotive, electronics, industrial equipment, computers, household appliances, motors and generators, medical, telecommunications, and aeronautics/aerospace.
ATExpo 2004 will be offering 10 free special events as part of the Free Educational Program. The program is highlighted by three entertaining and informative keynote presentations.
The expo opens on Tuesday morning, September 28, with the Opening Keynote, "Made in America," presented by television star John Ratzenberger, the producer and host of the Travel Channel's John Ratzenberger's Made in America series. Day two starts with an exciting multimedia presentation, "A Tale of Two Rovers — Integrating, Testing, and Operating the Mars Exploration Rovers," delivered by Christopher Salvo, mission manager, Mars Exploration Rover for NASA/Jet Propulsion Laboratories. On Thursday, September 30, Karl Eberle, vice president and general manager of Harley-Davidson's Kansas City assembly facility will share their manufacturing successes in the revolutionary, "Relationship Driven Leadership, a Unique Manufacturing Environment." All three keynotes will start at 9 a.m.
Other free educational program events scheduled include:
- "Shingo Prize Approach to World Class Manufacturing," Ross Robson, executive director, Shingo Prize for Excellence in Manufacturing, on Tuesday, September 28 at 11 a.m.
- ATExpo 25th Anniversary Networking Reception, Tuesday, September 28 at 5 p.m.
- "The Human Side of Lean," Pascal Dennis, P.Eng., M.Eng., Lean Productivity Systems, Wednesday, September 29 at 11 a.m.
- "Original Design Manufacturers: A Viable Outsourcing Alternative with Distinct Business Practice," Eric Miscoll, senior consultant and chief operating officer, Technology Forecasters Inc., Wednesday, September 29 at 2 p.m.
- OktoberFest Networking Reception, Sponsored by Global Automation, Stein Automation, MTA Automation, Visicontrol and Bartec, Wednesday, September 29 at 3 p.m.
- APICS Panel — "Distributing Manufacturing into the Supply Network for a Competitive Edge," Moderated by Richard Godin, CFPIM CIRM, Improvement Is People, Thursday, September 30 at 1 p.m.
The ATExpo Conference, developed by the industry's leading associations, offers more than 30 in-depth sessions organized into six tracks: Adhesives, Automated Assembly, Lean Manufacturing, Manufacturing Management, Materials Joining, and Wire Processing. The highly respected organizations presenting conference sessions at the ATExpo Conference include The Automated Imaging Association (AIA), APICS — The Educational Society for Resource Management andThe Adhesive and Sealant Council (ASC), The Edison Welding Institute (EWI), The Robotic Industries Association (RIA), The Wiring Harness Manufacturers Association (WHMA), and ASSEMBLY magazine. Sessions will focus on a variety of high-interest topics, including lean production, flexible assembly, robotics in assembly, and many more.
The AIA and RIA will be joining the ATExpo list of associations that develop conference sessions in 2004. As part of a previous agreement to co-locate their International Robots & Vision Show with Assembly Technology Expo in 2005, the AIA and RIA start their relationship with ATExpo this year by developing five conference sessions on robotics and machine vision. For 2004, the AIA and RIA will also endorse and support the ATExpo Robotics Pavilion.
Attendees from the electronics manufacturing industry can update their technical skills at the co-located SMTA International Conference (organized by the SMTA) taking place from September 26 through 30, 2004. The conference features eight new courses, more than 120 technical papers, 32 tutorials and workshops on such leading-edge technologies as lead-free, flip chip, MEMS, 0201 assembly, BGA, automotive, lead-free rework, selective soldering, failure analysis and more. SMTA International also offers two focused symposia on contract manufacturing and lead-free soldering technology, and the return of the Emerging Technologies Summit. For more information on sessions and to register, visit www.smta.org/smtai.
Three dedicated technology pavilions help ATExpo attendees locate specific products and suppliers. The Electronics Manufacturing Pavilion features nearly 200 top suppliers offering state-of-the-art solutions for every phase of the electronics manufacturing process, from design, packaging and fabrication to assembly and test. The pavilion also features the EASi Line, a working assembly line that incorporates sample equipment from the areas of material handling and transport, stencil printing, component pick-and-place, reflow wave solder, visual and X-ray inspection, robotic point-to-point soldering, packaging, microcontroller programming, and factory modeling and simulation. This year's line will manufacture a "Light Chaser" game that visitors can take home.
The Robotics Pavilion at ATExpo, endorsed by the RIA and AIA, is the place to find state-of-the-art industrial robotics, flexible automation, machine vision solutions, and related technologies. The Wire Harness Pavilion showcases wire-processing solutions. Endorsed by WHMA (the Wire Harness Manufacturers Association), the Wire Harness Pavilion features new products and services for electronic cable assemblies, cord sets, wiring harnesses and other products within the wire processing industry.
The focal point of the Wire Harness Pavilion will again be the Wire Processing Assembly Line (WPAL). This year's theme is, "Lean Sigma Technologies to Support Wire and Cable Processing." Lean Sigma in wire and cable processing focuses on process excellence. It incorporates the elements of TQM, world-class manufacturing and lean enterprise with Six Sigma tools to provide both improved cost and consistency of products and processes. The cable and harness industry is continually looking for opportunities for cost and quality improvement. On display will be new equipment and techniques for "leaning up" and "reducing variations" in the manufacturing processes for harnesses and cables. Attendees will see the latest equipment and technology to meet the Lean Sigma challenges.
For more information about Assembly Technology Expo or to register for free show admission and conference discounts, visit www.atexpo.com.