Countdown to ICE USA 2013

The countdown to ICE USA 2013 has begun. Only a few weeks remain until thousands of converting industry professionals will come together in Orlando to take part in North America's largest converting event, April 9 -11, 2013, at the Orange County Convention Center.

Going into the home stretch, ICE USA 2013 is already 25 to 30 percent larger than the 2011 biennial event, and will feature more than 100 first-time exhibitors that will join nearly 200 returning exhibitors. The show is also on track to attract a record number of attendees from throughout the Americas and overseas. Pre-registration is well ahead of the 2011 event when 3,000 converting professionals visited the show floor.

Learning opportunities

In addition to the larger exhibition floor, ICE USA 2013 will also feature a comprehensive educational program. This year's conference will feature nearly 40 educational sessions covering a variety of technical management and operational issues. Leading industry associations will bring together top experts from various industry segments to conduct a variety of seminars and conference sessions addressing the most important issues and solutions impacting the converting industry today and in the future.

AIMCAL will again be sponsoring the ICE USA Conference, which will host more than two dozen sessions offered in three parallel categories—Web Coating, Web Handling, and Adhesives/Adhesion. These sessions will be featured all three days of the show. In addition, several Pre-Show Seminars will be presented on Monday, April 8, by several of the converting industry's leading associations including: TAPPI PLACE, RadTech, CEMA, and the Pressure Sensitive Tape Council (PSTC). These seminars address a variety of topics ranging from web slitting and rewinding to understanding new innovations like novel nanotechnology.

In a special presentation taking place during the Pre-Show Conference, Alexander Watson Associates (AWA), will also present its popular DecTec - Label & Packaging Decorating Technology Seminar 2013. This offering will feature the insights of key industry leaders as they dive into product decoration in its broadest context as a prime component in packaging.

Keynote and special features

The comprehensive educational program will also include three complimentary keynote presentations, one each morning of the show to kick off the day's events. Paul Gaster, director of flexible packaging at PCI Films Consulting will present the Tuesday and Thursday keynotes on "Opportunities and Threats in the Global Flexible Packaging Market" and "BOPBET and BOPP Film Trends to 2016." Thomas E. Blaige, chairman and CEO, Blaige & Company, will present Wednesday's keynote entitled "Merger & Acquisition Trends in the Converting Industry". Blaige & Company is an international investment-banking firm dedicated exclusively to the plastics, packaging, and chemicals industries.

One of the most popular features that will be returning from ICE USA 2011 is the "Ask the Experts" Pavilion. Attendees can pick the brains and find solutions to their technical and operational problems from five leading industry gurus. The complimentary feature offers one-on-one sessions with experts in five key areas: Web Coating, Flexogaphic Printing, Static Control, Web Handling & Converting, and Slitting & Rewinding.

A new feature for this year's event is the Technology Showcase Theater where exhibitors will present their latest innovations in brief 15-minute sessions. The theater is a great way for attendees to get a preview of what is new and exciting in the converting industry. Participation is free to all registered attendees. pP