IMTS 2012 Forecast Raises Expectations

Oct. 13, 2011
Ambitious plans for more exhibitors, conferences, and new presentations

The organizers for next year’s IMTS 2012 report that plans are advancing for the September 2012 event at Chicago’s McCormick Place, with expectations of more than 80,000 attendees and indications that exhibit space will surpass 2010 bookings.

IMTS – The International Manufacturing Technology Show will be held next September 10-15, at the McCormick Place conference and exhibition center in Chicago. The theme of the event, “Be There,” is said to be “a call to action” for visitors and exhibitors to collect ideas and answers to manufacturing challenges, and to stay ahead of their competition.

In addition to the exhibition plans, the IMTS 2012 Conference will be expanded to a five-day program with over 70 sessions on five topic tracks: materials engineering, manufacturing technology and trends, alternative manufacturing processes, metrology/quality and plant operations.

“We are making an investment in innovative and strategic thinking to make IMTS 2012 the must-attend manufacturing event. From never-before-seen technology to an abundance of educational opportunities, IMTS is the place to be next September,” stated AMT vice president - Exhibitions & Communications, Peter Eelman. AMT-The Association for Manufacturing Technology produces and owns the biennial IMTS event.

The organizers expect more than 1,000 exhibits, which they plan to organize into 10 pavilions according to the relevant process technology:
• Abrasive Machining/Sawing/Finishing;
• Controls & CAD/CAM;
• Electric Discharge Machining (EDM) ;
• Gear Generation;
• IANA - Industrial Automation North America ;
• Machine Components/Cleaning/Environmental;
• Metal Cutting;
• Metal Forming, Fabrication, Waterjet and Laser-Based Machining;
• Quality Assurance; and,
• Tooling & Workholding Systems.

More planning is underway for parallel presentations, including the Emerging Technology Center (ETC), the Advanced Manufacturing Center, the National Institute for Metalworking Skills (NIMS) Student Summit, the co-located Midwest Clean Tech 2012 Conference, as well as the IMTS 2012 Conference.

The Emerging Technology Center (ETC) plans to build a Local Motors car, in real time, on the show floor, as part of the Collaborative Manufacturing section of the ETC. “Local Motors is the first disruptive U.S. automaker to enter the market in decades, and is built on the principle of collaborative manufacturing,” the IMTS planners announced. “The designs for its cars come from an open-source design community.”

Other presentations in the spotlight will address additive technology and MTConnect®, the open-source communications and interconnectivity standard for manufacturing equipment and devices.

"At one year out, we can say with confidence that IMTS 2012 will feature the innovative and game-changing manufacturing technology, educational opportunities and quality networking with industry experts that people have come to expect," Eelman said. "We're looking forward to another great show."