IMTS Blog

Three Degrees of Separation from John Stewart and IMTS

Mon, 07 May 2012 19:54:00 -0400

Yes, IMTS is that famous and influential – or really our exhibitors are. Elon Musk, founder and chief designer of Tesla Motors, appeared on the The Daily Show (April 10, 2012.)

What has that got to do with the International Manufacturing Technology Show? This year at IMTS 2012 we will be featuring in the Emerging Technology Center, Additive Manufacturing. One of the participating companies, The Ex One Company, LLC, provides parts for the Tesla motor and these are created in one of their “3D” printers. To say Elon Musk is an out of the box thinker is an understatement. In the ETC we hope to inspire all of you to think beyond traditional design, let your imagination take part and see what amazing things you can create.

The Daily Show with Jon Stewart

Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c

Elon Musk

www.thedailyshow.com

Daily Show Full Episodes

Political Humor & Satire Blog

The Daily Show on Facebook

Visit the Emerging Technology Center (N-650) at IMTS!

Learn about Clean Technology and Get a Live IMTS Update

Thu, 26 Apr 2012 11:44:00 -0400

If you’ll be in Chicago on May 9, you can get a first-hand update on IMTS from Peter Eelman, VP-Exhibitions & Communications at AMT. Peter will be speaking at the Brinks Innovation Competition Luncheon, the theme of which is “Where Are They Now?” – an update on last year’s competition winners.

Other discussion topics at the luncheon include a panel on trends in clean technology investment.

This luncheon is affiliated with Midwest Clean Tech 2012, which will be held at McCormick Place in conjunction with IMTS. You can learn more about that event at www.midwestcleantech2012.com.

Admission to the luncheon is free. It takes place May 9 from 11:30 am-1 pm at the offices of Brinks Hofer Gilson & Lione, 455 North Cityfront Plaza Drive, NBC Tower Suite 3600, Chicago. RSVP by May 1 to Tracy Rudd at trudd@usebrinks.com.

“Maker Schools”: A Way to Bridge the Skills Gap?

Thu, 19 Apr 2012 19:43:00 -0400

An article from Wired pointed to a recent phenomenon of classes and schools that teach “maker skills” – hands-on, DIY skills geared toward 9-5 desk jockey-types who are great with, say, a Power Point presentation, but maybe not so much at the skills necessary to make tangible objects.

The schools and programs teach everything from quilting to welding to plasma laser cutting. They’re popping up in major metropolitan areas and small towns alike. And they’re not just in the U.S. – you can find them all over the world.

So it begs the question … is this the beginning of a revolution, where herds of office drones trade their Aeron chairs for welder’s helmets, or a career as a CNC machinist? It’s too early to say. But as the trend toward DIY takes root — manifesting itself in everything from backyard vegetable gardens to garage-housed 3-D printers — it’s possible that more than a few folks are eager to spend their days getting their hands on something other than a mouse and keyboard.

If nothing else, it appears to be a fantastic opportunity to educate a segment of the population who otherwise would not be aware of the technical know-how necessary for today’s manufacturing industry. It might not be the magic bullet that closes the skills gap, but it’s certainly a step in the right direction.

Pinterest, Third Most Popular Social Media Channel

Tue, 10 Apr 2012 15:49:00 -0400

Behind Facebook and Twitter

Below, the top 10 social sites in Experian Hitwise's Social Networking & Forums category, ranked by total visits* in March:

Facebook: 7.0 billion
Twitter: 182.2 million
Pinterest: 104.4 million
LinkedIn: 85.7 million
Tagged: 72.5 million
Google+: 61.0 million
MySpace: 43.3 million
MyYearbook: 38.1 million
MyLife: 29.7 million
Tumblr: 29.6 million

From Experian's 2012 Digital Marketer: Benchmark and Trend Report. Read more

What is Pinterest?

In a nutshell, it is a virtual bulletin board. Back in the day, when I used to read magazines, I would tear out pictures and ads of items that I loved or wanted. A visual dream board. Pinterest allows you to "pin" pictures or websites that you like and categorize them, for example Home Decor is a category. If you run across a picture of your dream livingroom - you can Pin it, along with pictures of the dream bathroom or even your dream car!

What if your customers are designing their dream shop floor? What if you started a "board" for them?

Exhibitors - don't forget about free publicity at IMTS

Wed, 04 Apr 2012 18:08:00 -0400

Steve Miller of The Adventure marketing tip:

Watch the full webinar at www.IMTS.com/webinararchive

Manufacturing – Caring Enough to Give Back!

Tue, 03 Apr 2012 17:36:00 -0400

The Manufacturing Industry currently fights against some antiquated stereotypes. One example is that “Manufacturing is a cold business that cares only about the bottom line.” That isn’t the case, as exemplified by Hydrotech, Inc. When I heard their story I was inspired to share it.

Since November 2008 they have supported the efforts of Tamara Andersson, President/Founder of Got-Autism, LLC. Tamara, whose son was diagnosed with Asperger Syndrome, was hard pressed to find instructional tools and therapeutic resources to assist her family. In an effort to help herself and other families, Got-Autism was created.

In her words:

“Our mission is simple: to help those with autism achieve satisfying and productive lives. Ultimately, we want to encourage and give hope to families raising children with autism. In this endeavor, Got-Autism donates 5% of every purchase back to the autism community. Each year we financially support seven local and national autism non-profit organizations. From sponsoring awareness events, funding therapy services, to helping with the costs of training autism service dogs, we believe in paying it forward.

We not only want our customers to be inspired, but also empowered. This is the inspiration for our work. “

So not only does Hydrotech, Inc. support this tremendous effort, but the site itself gives back 5% of each purchase to benefit local and national autism organizations. UPDATE: If you enter "Hydrotech" in the coupon box, you will receive a 10% discount!

It is an admirable endeavor and I wish you the best of luck!

If you are a manufacturer and you also have a “cause” – please email me at: lorange@amtonline.org – I would love to share your story too!

Day 3 of Building the IMTS Rally Fighter

Sat, 24 Mar 2012 17:29:00 -0400

Bonnie Gurney and Jake Ervin on location at Local Motors in Chandler, Arizona on Day 3 of 5 in building the IMTS Rally Fighter Car. 5 days to build a car with a team of economists and marketers. See how it's coming together.

And Bonnie is itching to drive the car, but there seems to be some parts missing.

You can see the second IMTS Rally Fighter Car being built live at IMTS 2012 - Sept. 10-15, 2012 at McCormick Place, Chicago, Illinois.

Day 2 of Building the IMTS Rally Fighter Car

Thu, 22 Mar 2012 20:35:00 -0400

On location at the Local Motors car factory - IMTS is building the IMTS Rally Fighter car in 5 days. We're on day 2 of 5 - installing all of the suspension: the front control arms, shocks, the uprights, brakes and then rear axle ...

You can see the second IMTS Rally Fighter Car being built live at IMTS 2012 - Sept. 10-15, 2012 at McCormick Place, Chicago, Illinois.

Building the IMTS Rally Fighter Car - Day 1

Wed, 21 Mar 2012 17:45:00 -0400

Bonnie Gurney reporting on the progress of the IMTS Rally Fighter Car on day 1. The build team of four wheeled in the car chassis, installed the fuel tank, brake lines and the engine.

You can see the second IMTS Rally Fighter Car being built live at IMTS 2012 - Sept. 10-15, 2012 at McCormick Place, Chicago, Illinois.

Building the IMTS Rally Fighter Car - Intro

Tue, 20 Mar 2012 19:54:00 -0400

The IMTS team is in Chandler, Arizona at Local Motors building the first ever IMTS Rally Fighter Car. You voted on the design and now watch us build the car! The winning design by Heather True, Marketing Assistant/Graphic Designer at BIG Kaiser Precision Tooling Inc. is coming to life.

Day 1 - IMTS Rally Car Build

Tue, 20 Mar 2012 15:35:00 -0400

Be sure to follow our progress on Facebook.

Social Media in Manufacturing - UPDATE

Tue, 13 Mar 2012 16:46:00 -0400

Facebook Usage grew 4x in 8 Months!

In April, 2011 I researched every IMTS exhibitor to see what social media channels they were currently using, I repeated the research in December, 2011. Here are the results.

Usage increased on every channel that we measured. **FB-Lite, is what I called Facebook Lite. These are company Facebook pages that you can “LIKE” but they are little more than a company listing – not really an engagement page. I wanted to share this graphic because I have heard several times that “machine tool guys aren't on Facebook” – this shows that they are, and more are using social media to ask questions, make appointments and share their comments. The conversations are happening – are you missing an opportunity?

A great article and resource for manufacturers using social media tools is this post by, ERP Analyst, Software Advice, Derek Singleton, “How Manufacturers Can Use Social Media to Win Business.” In the article Derek says, “Each of these tools can be valuable mechanisms for increasing brand awareness, improving engagement and information sharing, and ultimately winning more business.”

Social Media is now main stream. When you watch TV, you will see the familiar “#” hashtags on the screen. When you read magazines, you will see many ads that have QR codes that you can scan for more information. People are constantly talking about their posts on Facebook. Your customers are already on these channels – it is up to you to join in the conversation.

Be useful, be friendly, be funny ----- and you will be REMEMBERED.

8 Year Old Designs IMTS Car Skin

Wed, 29 Feb 2012 10:11:00 -0400

Gary L. Schmidt wrote to us a couple of weeks ago to share with us his 8 year olds skin design. It was really awesome! So awesome that it inspired Aurel, the Local Motors Lead skins designer, to transform the 8 year old's pencil drawing into a photo-realistic mockup. In doing so, it really showed the potential the child's design had.

Local Motors sent Gary the photo-mockup and this was his response:

I can't wait to get home with it. The poor guy had the flu last weekend and I always encourage them to push themselves. Never say you're bored is our motto. So I rough sketched the configuration of the car. Then took it home to inspire him.

During the exercise We did things like - OK you want to use the Flag! Then questions to make him learn. How many Stripes? How many Stars? What is the color of the first stripe? You get the picture! He was doing a puzzle with all the states in it. He asked - can I put this on the top of my car? He really likes creating things and has no interest in sports like his brother. That was his big project for the weekend. It's something I'll never forget. He is one of those kids that is up for anything.

Being an Engineer and Toolmaker my whole life has been fun and interesting and my big dream is to take both Grandsons to the IMTS this year for they have never been and I think what better way to inspire them. You have no idea how much what you have done to our family means. Logan lost his other grandfather in a car accident just a few weeks back and that man was the sole reason Logan is so fun loving.

Local Motors wrote him back and tried to encourage him to team up with another designer and enter his design into this contest but Gary got the e-mail too late. We encouraged him to participate in our community and try to work with a designer for the 2nd IMTS skin contest-- that way he has time to do so, and he was so excited. He said his grandson now has a laminated copy of the rendering Local Motors did. It's just awesome to see what the next generation is doing, but also how exciting of a moment this was for a whole family.

Nyko de Peyer at Local Motors said - I am really hoping we can figure something out for Gary and his family because the story is really powerful. I've attached all the work below so you can see it.

What's going on with the economy?

Fri, 17 Feb 2012 19:15:00 -0400

Did you know that job shop owners represent about 17% of IMTS attendees. Is the job show industry growing? Oh yes - find out just how much.

Watch the full webinar for free at www.IMTS.com/education/webinar_archive.html.

We sift through all of the information out there and bring you what you need to know to make the most of your trade show experience at IMTS! You can also watch all of the IMTS Exhibitor Workshop sessions - go to www.IMTS.com/workshopvideos

A Big IMTS Welcome to Our First 2012 Visitor!

Thu, 16 Feb 2012 10:49:00 -0400

IMTS 2012 visitor registration is going full-steam ahead. We’d like to pause to say “thank you” to the man who started it all – Scott MacNaughton, President of Mac-Tech International!

Scott was the first visitor to register for IMTS 2012. His company offers consulting services to the manufacturing industry, as well as placement and recruitment for positions related to lasers, robotics, automation, and others, both domestically and internationally. He’s been to IMTS four times previously.

“We go to the show to meet with a lot of our existing customers, and also gain new customers,” he said. “It’s always a good networking event, but it’s also nice to see a lot of the new technology that’s out there.

“It’s always been a big show in this industry, and it’s nice to see everyone in one spot. You get to see the capital goods, but also the consumables that go along with it. It’s also a great place to find out where the industry is headed as a whole.”

Scott has also done work with students at IMTS to promote careers in manufacturing and educate them about their opportunities and the industry in general.

“There’s such a shortage of talented people in the industry right now,” he said. “I’ve been working with companies and schools and other organizations as to how to get the message out there, to get some of the young people into the industry.

“There are a lot of people in the industry who’ve been in it for a long time, and they’re looking to retire now. Companies are looking to build up the next wave for the future,” he said. “There are all kinds of mixed numbers out there regarding the number of technically skilled jobs that go unfilled, but overall it’s amazing to see how high those numbers can be.”

Scott, we wish you luck at IMTS 2012 … and thanks for kicking things off. See you in Chicago!