Dynamic Houston Event Suggests Industrial Markets Are Bouncing Back
Houston,Texas (24 October 2003) – Few things are as invigorating as a busy trade show floor. And busy unquestionably described the scene at ISA EXPO 2003, held this week at the sparkling new Reliant Center in Houston. Exhibitors are leaving Houston happy, with qualified leads in their pockets and renewed enthusiasm in their faces. “We were elated at the turn-out and the optimism here,” said Russ Agrusa, president & CEO of Iconics, Inc., an ISA EXPO exhibitor.
“The number and type of people at the show were great. It was extremely beneficial and productive for us. Iconics did well at ISA EXPO 2003, and we’ll be back!” Iconics is a Foxborough, Massachusetts-based developer of Web-enabled industrial automation software. ISA EXPO 2003, held 21-23 October, offered up a feast of 100+ conference sessions, daily keynotes from top executives of Dow Chemical, Cisco Systems, and Microsoft, a series of thought-provoking forums led by well-known industry pundits like Dick Morley, Jim Pinto, and Dick Caro, dozens of ISA Training Institute courses, and expert advice from more than 500 companies showcasing their technology. Said Bill Hendrick, executive director of sales for Magnetrol International, “ISA EXPO 2003 exceeded our expectations.
We were busy from Tuesday morning all the way until the last couple hours of Thursday afternoon. The leads were excellent - We had a lot of good discussions with customers about real applications and real things they’re doing. The ISA show was a success for Magnetrol.” Located in Downers Grove, Illinois, Magnetrol offers a comprehensive line of level and flow instrumentation. “At this point, I’d say the show was good for the number of people coming through,” said Doug Lenz of Falconeer Technologies.
“It was better attended than other shows I’ve been in this year.” Williamsville, New York-based Falconeer provides software for process control systems in a wide range of industries. “I was pleased to see the back-up of attendees in the registration area,” commented Bruce Fuller of Fluke Corporation. “We saw a good number of prospects for our product line. Also, I really like this facility.
The layout is great, and it was nice to have food available at reasonable prices, with plenty of seating. We’ll be back next year; we’re always in the ISA show.” Fluke, a Corporate Associate Program (CAP) member of ISA based in Everett, Washington, provides electronic test tools used by technicians and engineers. According to preliminary counts, more than 14,500 people attended ISA EXPO 2003, representing about 70 countries and hailing from a diverse range of industries, including petro-chemicals, power generation, research & development, water and waste management, software manufacturing, and industrial networking.
Journalists from all the major automation and controls trade publications covered the week’s activities, and a crew from News24, a local cable news TV station, plans to air some of the hottest technology displayed at ISA EXPO the week of 26 October. The annual ISA Honors and Awards Banquet kicked off ISA EXPO 2003 festivities on Monday, 20 October. Also, 10 teams competed in the 2003 Student Games, with British Columbia Institute of Technology earning first place in the practical, and the Invensys Foxboro-sponsored team of students taking home the gold in the All Star Bowl. “I think this show was a tremendous opportunity for any company in instrumentation,” said Jon Barnard of PFU Systems Inc. “Buyers seemed motivated.
The folks who needed embedded PCs were excited when they got to our booth. It appears the economy is finally improving.” PFU Systems in Santa Clara, Calif., manufactures System-on-Module components. ISA EXPO will return to Houston next year, scheduled for 5-7 October 2004, at Reliant Center.
For information about ISA EXPO 2004, contact ISA at (919) 549-8411 or [email protected] .About ISAISA—The Instrumentation, Systems, and Automation Society is a 38,000-member global, nonprofit, educational organization. The Society fosters advancement in the theory, design, manufacture, and use of sensors, instruments, computers, and systems for measurement and control in a wide variety of applications. In addition to hosting the largest conferences and exhibitions for instrumentation, systems, and automation in the Western Hemisphere, ISA is a leading technical training organization and a respected publisher of books, magazines, and standards.
ISA also serves the professional development and accreditation needs of Control Systems Engineers (CSE), instrument technicians, and others within the field of instrumentation, systems, and automation.