Letter from the Chair
We are all working in the new virtual world now. From conferences and tradeshows to customer meetings, we are all becoming experts at using Zoom, GoToMeeting or some other similar platform. It will be very interesting, once we work through the pandemic, to see how much of the virtual communication will remain part of our everyday lives. I certainly believe we will find ourselves having meetings and doing business more and more virtually.
However, I also believe strongly that in-person conferences and tradeshows will make a fast comeback when this all subsides. Human nature drives us to want to have in-person interaction, and there will be a place for in-person events for sure. When? That is something we still don’t know. SPE is planning to have ANTEC® 2021 be a hybrid event with in-person programming scheduled March 21-23 in Denver, Colorado, and virtual programming to take place March 29-April 9. To see more details on ANTEC, visit www.4spe.org. Paul Uglum is our Decorating & Assembly Division Chair for ANTEC, and we are planning to sponsor at least one session of papers. If you are interested in presenting (most likely virtual), please contact Paul at paul.a.uglum@gmail.com.
Our SPE Decorating & Assembly Division is currently exploring an in-person Topical Conference of some type next fall. It will have been more than two years since we have sponsored a TopCon by then, and we are hoping it will work out for us to host one. We are planning the details now and will announce our plans by the beginning of the year.
Let’s all hope by early spring we are seeing many things back to normal. I think it is very important for our well being as well as our businesses. I will plan to see many of our SPE members and Plastics Decorating readers this spring at either ANTEC or NPE in May. I am very much looking forward to that in-person interaction (masks or not). I hope everyone stays safe, and I look forward to seeing you in 2021.
Jeff Peterson
President, Peterson Publications, Inc.
Chair, SPE Decorating & Assembly Div.
SPE to Present ANTEC® 2021 as Hybrid Event
The Society of Plastics Engineers (SPE) has announced that ANTEC 2021 will be presented as a Hybrid Edition composed of live, real-time remote and on-demand components. Here is a rundown of what is expected:
- ANTEC® Live is tentatively scheduled as an in-person event taking place in Denver, Colorado, March 21-23. Schedule and speakers will be confirmed shortly.
- ANTEC® Virtual, slated for March 29-April 9, will offer real-time, remote presentations occurring over 10 days with 20 technical tracks. Additionally, ANTEC® will include International Spotlights with real-time global presentations broadcast online from various regions including Asia, India, Australia/New Zealand, Europe and the Middle East. Dates for International Spotlights will be forthcoming.
- ANTEC® On-demand will encompass additional paper/presentations recorded without a live audience but will be available to all ANTEC® registered attendees.
Full program and ANTEC® activities will be publicized soon. To learn more, visit www.4spe.org and click on Events.
