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ISA (International Society of Automation) News

ISA EXPO 2005 Attracts Automation Professionals From Around the World

Research Triangle Park, NC (21 November 2005) -- ISA EXPO, North America's number one event for automation professionals, was held 25-27 October at the McCormick Place Lakeside Center in Chicago, Illinois.

With automation professionals attending from 72 countries, ISA EXPO featured 87,500 square feet of product and services exhibits, a cutting-edge technical conference, and an exceptional continuing education and training program.

Registrations totaled 10,600, consistent with recent ISA EXPO events in Chicago. Attendees came from three major industrial sectors - 35% from discrete manufacturing, 34% from engineering services and systems integration, and 31% from process industries, with nearly 60% in engineering, IT or management jobs - a higher percentage than in previous years.

"The mix of discrete and process representatives is exactly the reason why ISA holds an event in Chicago. The Midwest has the second highest concentration of ISA Members in the United States. As the organization that's setting the standard for automation, it's our duty to bring education and technology to all of our markets. We are continuing to expand our influence and value to audiences outside of our traditional focus on process industries. The strong attendance from the manufacturing sector reinforces the success of recent initiatives like our affiliation with OMAC," said Don Zee, ISA President.

"This year's ISA Expo was truly an eye opening experience for me. I have been to many events in the past, and got what I expected out of them. This time, however, the security issues really connected with what I needed to know. The IT person we brought with us also felt that he learned a lot about process control and its security issues," said William J. Cotter, Instrumentation Specialist -Process Instrumentation and Control, 3M.

The exhibition portion of the event was comprised of 484 exhibitors including long-term participants, many new innovators, and the major consortia that represented all of the key players in the industry - giving attendees an opportunity to hear all the latest information in one place.

In addition, a new discrete optimization pavilion that was hosted by OMAC included 15 suppliers, as well as innovative machine tool demonstrations and presentations by suppliers that have implemented OMAC guidelines.

The attendees at the event were exposed to a diverse program of practical application information and innovations at the keynote presentations, special forums, and automation standards updates. The keynotes attracted as many as 500 attendees and included presentations on MES, technology trends, and the engineering challenges in food safety and security. The forums also attracted hundreds of attendees and addressed the important topics of manufacturing and control systems security, security aspects of hybrid wireless applications, and corporate diligence in food safety and security.

Automation standards updates sessions conducted on the exhibit floor attracted standing room crowds. The sessions included reviews of the industry-critical work underway within ISA in security (ISA-SP99), enterprise integration (ISA-SP88 and ISA-SP95), wireless (ISA-SP100), and HMI (ISA-SP101). OMAC presented sessions on their work with packaging automation (PackSoft, PackConnect, PackML, PackAdvantage, PackLearn), use of Microsoft software in manufacturing (MSMUG), manufacturing architecture, and machine tool applications (STEP-NC, HMI-API).

"We were delighted with the response we had at our sessions at ISA EXPO. It was an excellent opportunity to communicate our accomplishments, reach some new audiences, and recruit new volunteers. It was further proof of the value of our new affiliation with ISA and we look forward to future ISA EXPO events," said OMAC Board of Directors Chair Andy McDonald (Unilever).

The technical conference registrations were 20% higher than last year. Safety, security and industrial networking conference sessions were especially popular throughout the conference. Sessions on ISA-SP84 focused on Safety-Instrumented Burner Management and sessions focused on Control Systems for Cyber Security had the highest attendance numbers.

In addition, several sessions on industrial networking and communications drew large crowds. Those sessions included Wireless Practices, Industrial Wireless in the Plant Environment, Foundation Fieldbus Applications, and Fieldbus Network Design.

The education and training sessions were attended by over 300 professionals, also an increase of 20% from last year's event held in Houston, Texas. Customers like Denise Lue Leuong-Dixon of Con Edison in New York, NY, were excited to bring new technology and information back to their workplaces. "I'm here to attend a Control Systems Design course to be able to perform my job better. My company has older systems, so I'm looking to integrate new technology," she explained.

In an example of exhibit commerce, Fluke's Larry Wilson said things got so busy at his booth they sold six of their thermography products off the show floor. "I guess they just liked what they saw," he said.

Tim Donaldson, ICONICS Director of Marketing, said, "This event was extremely successful for us. The quality of the leads we generated was higher than at other shows - we were talking to decision makers who had a serious interest in our company. Plus, our theater was consistently packed with people who asked intelligent questions and were there to learn." ICONICS, set to celebrate its 20th anniversary and 20 years at ISA EXPO, will be exhibiting again next year in Houston.

"ISA is extremely pleased with the feedback that we've received from EXPO 2005 attendees and exhibitors. The technical exchange at the event was excellent, and our training sessions were very well attended - especially the review course for our signature Certified Automation Professional program," said Dale Lee, ISA Director of Convention, Education and Certification Services.

ISA EXPO 2006 will be held 17-19 October 2006 at the Reliant Center in Houston, Texas.

About ISA
Founded in 1945, ISA (www.isa.org) is a leading, global, nonprofit organization that is setting the standard for automation by helping over 30,000 worldwide members and other professionals solve difficult technical problems, while enhancing their leadership and personal career capabilities. Based in Research Triangle Park, North Carolina, ISA develops standards; certifies industry professionals; provides education and training; publishes books and technical articles; and hosts the largest conference and exhibition for automation professionals in the Western Hemisphere.

About OMAC
OMAC is an authoritative knowledge marketplace for open, interoperable control and automation systems technologies for end-users, technology providers, OEMs, and other interested parties. OMAC fosters business improvement by giving members access to leading edge theory, practice, experience, and training in open, interoperable control and automation systems technology.

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