AeroMat, the International Thermal Spray Conference (ITSC), and Microstructural Characterization of Aerospace Materials and Coatings (IMS) came together last month for the first-ever combined mega event in Long Beach, Calif. The four-day event attracted over 2000 aerospace and thermal spray technologists, researchers, manufacturers, and suppliers from 34 countries. It featured 180 booths on the combined show floor from a mix of 130 companies. The technical program had more than 450 oral and poster presentations, and featured speakers from over 30 countries across the globe. While each show had separate programming, attendees were free to explore any session as well as the shared show floor, making it a truly unique and cross-functional experience.
Kicking off the event on Monday, attendees heard keynote speaker John Grotzinger discuss his participation as the chief scientist and head of strategic planning for NASA’s $2.5 billion Curiosity Rover mission to Mars. His talk on the Curiosity mission included an inside look at the unique challenges facing his team of more than 200 engineers to land a large, state-of-the-art vehicle 240 million miles away. During his talk it became clear that careful materials selection was key in the mission’s success.
Each show also had its own industry-specific plenary talk. For AeroMat, Humberto Luiz de Rodrigues Pereira of Embraer gave an enlightening talk on the future of advanced materials and the opportunities within the aerospace industry for lightweight, multifunctional, flexible materials. Robert Vassen spoke for ITSC, and gave a technical talk on recent advances with TBCs, or thermally sprayed barrier coatings, including the rise in popularity of suspension plasma spraying and physical vapor deposition as well as an intensive study of advanced materials. Finally, Frank Muecklich spoke on behalf of IMS and gave a case study presentation on AL-SI alloys to further understanding on microstructure formation by 3D analysis in the micro, nano, and atomic scales.
All three shows also featured several exciting special events. On Monday morning before the show floor opened, over 100 select guests were invited to the pre-show VIP Expo Tour which highlighted new equipment from 10 companies, followed by a VIP brunch. The exhibitor reception took place later that evening and featured wine, cheese and craft beer tastings, as well as a picture drone capturing the party from above. At the reception, Oerlikon Metco received an ASM Historical Landmark Award.
On Tuesday, early risers took part in the first 5K Fun Run/Walk and later that evening the Queen Mary networking reception drew over 500 people. Guests gathered at the historic docked ocean liner for a high class evening of hand-rolled cigars, dueling pianos, and a special fireworks show. Wednesday afternoon capped off the special events with a tour at Allied High Tech Products, Inc.
Attendees and exhibitors alike had good things to say about this co-located show. John Barr, Lab Manager at Watson Grinding and Manufacturing and a fifth time attendee of ITSC, was impressed with the caliber of attendees at this year’s show. “I meet high quality people here. Within the expo, there’s also good mix of equipment manufacturers and providers.” He also mentioned that at ITSC, you often learn things you weren’t quite expecting. “During the sessions, you often find out things you didn’t even know you were looking for. And more often than not, you are finding out what NOT to do. For that reason alone, I encourage anyone in the industry to attend ITSC.”
AeroMat attendee James T. LaFollette of GeoCorp mentioned Southern California is a great location for aerospace. “This is aerospace mecca, and as an exhibitor you are getting that local traffic. You meet someone here, make an appointment—that one person and one company could be worth the exhibition price. Next year, we are increasing our space at the show.” He was also enthusiastic about the VIP Expo Tour. “This is an event that needs to be done every year. You interact with people and get the ball rolling, and that sets the stage for the whole show. It’s a great opportunity for leads before the show even begins.”
AeroMat 2016
The 27th AeroMat Conference and Expo will take place in Bellevue, Wash., on May 23-26, 2016. Call for papers is now open.
ITSC 2016
ITSC 2016 takes place in Shanghai, China on May 10-12, 2016. To submit an abstract, visit the event site. To reserve exhibit space for either show, contact: Kelly Thomas, Senior Manager, Events.
