Written on 10.08.2012 - Industry
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SPE and SPI to cooperate on Antec 2013, 2014 and 2015

SPI: The Plastics Industry Trade Association and the Society of Plastics Engineers (SPE) have reached an agreement that will attract more corporate exhibitors and sponsors, and increase attendance at the next three annual SPE Antec conferences, the associations announced.

The agreement combines SPE's expertise as organiser of plastics technical conferences with SPI's strength as the producer of the triennial plastics exposition NPE. Of the 2013, 2014 and 2015 Antec conferences covered by the agreement, the third, Antec 2015, will co-locate with NPE2015 in March 2015 in Orlando, FL, USA.

SPI's role in all three Antec events will include producing a “Business of Plastics” conference to be held alongside SPE's technical conference, selling co-located exhibit space as well as promotional opportunities for corporate sponsors, and contributing to the marketing of the entire Antec programme.

“Building on the successful co-location of our Antec conference with NPE2012, the agreement between SPE and SPI will benefit both organisations by creating new avenues for growth,” said Willem (Wim) De Vos, SPE’s CEO. “Our collective efforts will increase attendance at technical sessions, expand the trade show held during Antec in non-NPE years, add valuable new educational content, and support SPE’s strategy for international diversification.”

The agreement will also generate special benefits for SPI, according to William R. (Bill) Carteaux, SPI’s president and CEO. “Following strong attendance at our Business of Plastics conference during NPE2012, SPI is delighted at the prospect of making this programme into an annual event, creating what amounts to a new product stream and increasing our visibility as a provider of educational content,” said Carteaux. “At the same time, our sales and promotional work on behalf of Antec-related events will generate new marketing opportunities for the companies that make up our own membership.”

The Antec conference consists largely of original, peer-reviewed technical presentations. During NPE2012, Antec 2012 provided 623 presentations and attracted 1,432 attendees. The trade show that is traditionally associated with the Antec conference was not held in 2012 but in 2011 included 84 exhibitors. The show will be held again in conjunction with Antec 2013 (22 – 24 April 2013 in Cincinnati, OH) and Antec 2014 (27 April – 1 May 2014 in Las Vegas, NV).

SPI’s Business of Plastics conference at NPE2012 had 779 attendees. In contrast to the technical presentations in the Antec conference, the SPI programme focused on current issues affecting business strategy. It included 28 presentations of original content by industry experts.