The American Composites Manufacturers Association (ACMA)'s Composites 2010 conference and exhibition takes place in Las Vegas next week. The exhibitor listing currently holds 180 companies and there's a whole range of technical papers, educational sessions and networking events on offer.
There's also a conference registration list online so you can see who's already signed up to be there.
Of course, this event has a strong US focus, and in an interview with Reinforced Plastics last year, John Tickle, ACMA immediate Past President, highlighted some of the issues the US market needs to address to enable the increased use of composites:
"We need design standards so that engineers know how to design with these materials for specific applications. In addition we need national codes and regulations that allow the safe use of composites in critical applications where safety is a key issue (e.g. buildings). We also need to maintain the ability of the composites industry to manufacture consistent and quality products."
"At the same time we need to ensure that experienced personnel are not lost by companies due to budget reductions and cutbacks because when the economy does turn around, we’ll need to be ready to build the same products again."
It will be interesting to see if the economy is becoming to turn, and if US business is starting to pick up.
I'll be at the show all week and (technology permitting) will be posting blog updates during the show. Watch this space.