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You deserve a break . . . network with peers, exercise, relax and enjoy the fresh air
MPAC Golf Outing
Friday, June 27, 2008
Willow Crest Golf Course at Oak Brook Hills Marriott * 3500 Midwest Road, Oak Brook
For details, visit https://www.ima-net.org/mpacgolf08.cfm or contact
Kimberly McNamara at 630-368-5300, ext. 2109, email kmcnamara@ima-net.org
Sponsorship opportunities available.
BRIEFLY:
City of Chicago Treasurer's 7th Annual Small Business Expo: August 1st
The City Treasurer's 7th Annual Small Business Expo is a forum, free to attendees, designed to provide assistance to small business owners and those that would like to become business owners. The Expo will be held on Friday, August 1, 2008, from 8:00 a.m.–3:30 p.m. at the UIC Forum at 725 West Roosevelt Road in Chicago. The expo will bring local government, lending institutions, and technical advisors together to provide information and direction that is vital to the success of a small business. Existing and prospective business owners can attend workshops, network with other business professionals, and obtain useful information from technical advisors and representatives of financial institutions. Also, this year a procurement component to address the growing need for supplier diversity with the small business community has been added. This will allow minority companies to establish partnerships with majority companies as well as government agencies. For additional information, call 312-744-3365 or go to
www.chicagocitytreasurer.com.
Bullock to participate in Higher Education Summit
IMA Chairman Ronald Bullock and former Illinois Governor Jim Edgar will be among panelists at the Illinois Higher Education Summit scheduled for June 24 at the Chicago Cultural Center in Chicago. Leaders from government, business and civic organizations will meet at the summit to launch a statewide dialogue on the future of Illinois and the role of higher education. The summit is sponsored by the University of Illinois. For registration and more information visit:
www.igpa.uillinois.edu/events/registration.asp?t=4.
Production growing, new orders, employment and inventories contracting, supplier deliveries slowing
Economic activity in the manufacturing sector failed to grow in May, while the overall economy grew for the 79th consecutive month, say the nation's supply executives in the latest Manufacturing ISM Report On Business®.
The report was issued by Norbert J. Ore, C.P.M., chair of the Institute for Supply Management™ Manufacturing Business Survey Committee. "The manufacturing sector failed to grow in May as the PMI fell below 50 percent for the fourth consecutive month. In relative terms, May was down slightly from April as the rate of contraction in manufacturing slowed. The Production Index was a bright spot as it moved above 50 percent after declining for two months. Manufacturers find themselves caught between rising costs and weakening demand in many industries. Exports continue strong due to the weak dollar — without the weak dollar the story would be much more negative in manufacturing."
The seven industries reporting growth in May — listed in order — are: Computer & Electronic Products; Miscellaneous Manufacturing; Primary Metals; Paper Products; Chemical Products; Food, Beverage & Tobacco Products; and Fabricated Metal Products. The industries reporting contraction in May are: Apparel, Leather & Allied Products; Electrical Equipment, Appliances & Components; Wood Products; Machinery; Plastics & Rubber Products; Transportation Equipment; Nonmetallic Mineral Products; Printing & Related Support Activities; and Furniture & Related Products.
Siemens Exiderdome makes it U.S. debut at Navy Pier in Chicago July 21st
IMA member Siemens is bringing the latest manufacturing automation innovations to Siemens customers in the U.S. debut of exiderdome, a traveling technology expo and learning laboratory in Chicago on Monday, July 21 at Navy Pier. The expo will provide new insight to building businesses through programming presented by both Siemens executives and outside experts.
"As an automation leader, Siemens has created exiderdome to enable customers to experience first hand how Siemens can benefit their businesses by making them more productive," said Thomas Varney, vice president of Communications for Siemens Energy & Automation.
Exiderdome provides an up-close view of the latest technology and also creates a forum for exchanging ideas about building businesses.
A completely portable and self-contained modular building, exiderdome has 10,000 square feet of exhibit and teaching space on its three floors. It takes up half a football field and is airtight, watertight and in order for the rotating atrium walls to operate properly, must be perfectly level. "The building itself has a very high ‘wow' factor, but it's the content — the multimedia show, the tour and the opportunity to interact with experts in their fields — that gets the real conversations started," Varney said. "Our experience has shown that we can translate those conversations into stronger customer relationships."
On a global tour since 2005, exiderdome has wowed visitors with its size, scale and technology. The building has seven product rooms, an eighth room that will feature a global overview of Siemens technologies and two central atriums that will be used for receptions, training sessions, multi-media presentations and thought leadership events.
"This tour is about our commitment to the U.S. market and our belief in the long-term strength of American manufacturing," Varney said. "We want our customers to see that, because of our size and reach, we can offer them more ways to strengthen their operations than any other automation technology supplier."
Surrounding attendees with a distinctive and compelling vision of manufacturing's future, Siemens customers will have the opportunity to attend a wide range of training and learning events on the latest thinking in security, innovation, energy and the environment, productivity and other important challenges in business. These events will be led by Siemens executives and other experts such as futurists, analysts, academics and dignitaries.
Siemens expects more than 9,000 people to visit exiderdome during its nine stops in major U.S manufacturing centers between July 2008 and May 2009.
For more information about exiderdome, visit www.exiderdome.com.
Caterpillar announces expansion plan for Illinois operations
Demonstrating confidence in its ability to compete globally from a strong U.S. manufacturing base, Caterpillar Inc. recently announced a multi-year $1 billion capacity expansion that will position key factories in Illinois and other areas to compete for the long term. The investments will allow Caterpillar to meet continued demand and bolster its global leadership for machines used primarily in mining and large infrastructure applications. In support of this capacity expansion, the company will invest more than $1 billion from 2008 through 2010 in five existing facilities in Illinois (East Peoria, Joliet, Decatur, Aurora and Mossville).
The company's expansion plan also includes the following contemplated operational changes, which will be finalized after further study by Caterpillar:
To support the significant off-highway truck capacity expansion, Caterpillar will study alternative locations for a U.S. manufacturing facility for motor grader production, currently located in Decatur, Illinois;
To facilitate expanded capacity in East Peoria, Decatur and Aurora, Illinois, lower power train production located in those facilities could be moved to U.S. Caterpillar locations to be determined;
To better focus on prime product opportunities for wheel loaders and excavators produced in Aurora, tube manufacturing will likely be sourced with a U.S. supplier that specializes in tube production;
The company is exploring a number of options for moving manufacturing operations into the existing Caterpillar facilities in Mossville; and Caterpillar is also examining options to centralize engineering and design functions by locating a new machinery and engine product design center in Mossville for large products.
Deere & Company sets goal to reduce greenhouse gas emissions
Deere & Company has announced plans to further reduce its total global greenhouse gas emissions by 25 percent per dollar of revenue from 2005 to 2014. The company has committed to the reduction goal in conjunction with its participation in the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Climate Leaders program, which Deere joined in 2007.
"John Deere's greenhouse gas reduction goal shows the company's commitment to sustainable practices and environmental stewardship," said Laurie Zelnio, Director, Safety, Environment and Standards at Deere & Company. John Deere locations worldwide will implement energy-saving projects to meet the target.
Climate Leaders is a voluntary industry-government partnership that works with companies to develop long-term comprehensive climate change strategies. Participants set a corporate-wide greenhouse gas emissions reduction goal and annually report their progress to the EPA. Through program participation, companies create a credible record of their accomplishments, reduce their impact on the global environment, and identify themselves as corporate climate leaders.
Besides finding ways to reduce emissions of greenhouse gases from its operations, John Deere will continue to look for ways to incorporate energy efficiency through new technology into product design, new facilities and facility updates, Zelnio said.
Update your IMA membership records . . .
Here at the IMA, we strive to keep our members informed. Are the right people in your company receiving the right publications? Please let us know specifically who in your company should receive the following publications:
- Executive Memo
- Human Resources Memo
- Tax Policy Memo
- Healthcare Memo
- Springfield Highlights
- The Illinois Manufacturer magazine
Send the email addresses of the people and the publication(s) they should be receiving to Katie Carroll at
kcarroll@ima-net.org.
Stay informed and up-to-date!
Join the IMA Energy Program . . .
IMA members looking to compare their electric supply options can go to http://www.newenergy.com/ima
and receive a free, no obligation rate quote.
OfficeMax Advantage can save you 30% or more on your office supplies . . .
IMA members and OfficeMax — a first-class partnership
Go to: http://www.ima-net.org/membership/programs.cfm
to download your OfficeMax Retail Connect Card and start saving today!
Annual Holiday Survey Report . . . now ONLINE!
http://www.ima-net.org/08IMAHolidayRpt.pdf
The IMA's Annual Holiday Report highlights employers' plans on select holidays throughout the year. This year's survey was conducted from August 10-31, 2007 for the 2008 calendar year. Four questions were asked ranging from total number of paid days off to a breakdown of full or half day paid holidays, and on which days the member company is actually closed throughout the year. Nearly 450 IMA members responded.
For the results, visit http://www.ima-net.org/08IMAHolidayRpt.pdf.
Order the IMA's 2007-2008 Benefits Report at https://www.ima-net.org/ben_report_order.cfm
Order the IMA's 2006 Annual Compensation Report at http://www.ima-net.org/reportorder/login.cfm
For more information, go to one of the links above, or contact Janie Stanley at 800-875-4462, ext. 3020, or email:
jstanley@ima-net.org
DATES OF NOTE:
More information/events may be found at http://www.ima-net.org/calendar.cfm and
http://www.ima-net.org/MIT/open.cfm
June 24, 2008
Illinois Higher Education Summit
Chicago Cultural Center, 78 E. Washington St.,
5th Floor, Chicago, 9:00 AM–3:00 PM
Join top Illinois leaders, including former Illinois Governor Jim Edgar and IMA Chairman Ronald Bullock as they discuss the state of the state . . . major trends and issues facing the state of Illinois and how higher education will be affected. Lunch is included. Sponsored by the University of Illinois. FREE — registration required. Visit
http://www.igpa.uillinois.edu/events/registration.asp?t=4
to register
June 27, 2008
MPAC Golf Outing
Willow Crest Golf Course at Oak Brook Hills Marriott, Oak Brook. Call 630-368-5300, ext. 2109 to register.
Failure Mode and Effects Analysis (FMEA)
July 14, 2008 — Decatur Conference Center & Hotel, US Hwy 36, Decatur
July 15, 2008 — DePaul University, 150 W. Warrenville Rd., Naperville
Maximize the benefits of performing FMEA activities, eliminate or minimize effects of potential failures, gain ideas for other applications and learn about risk evaluation and management.
July 17, 2008
Behavioral Interviewing Skills
DePaul University's O'Hare Campus, 3166 River Rd., Des Plaines
NOTE: Registration is limited to 16. Participants leave with the interviewing skills to successfully select the best staff based on competencies and ensuring legal compliance.
Kanban/Pull System/Inventory Reduction
July 28, 2008 — Decatur Conference Center & Hotel, US Hwy 36, Decatur
July 29, 2008 — DePaul University,
150 W. Warrenville Rd., Naperville
A key component of most Lean Manufacturing strategies, this one-day Kanban workshop incorporates basic skills necessary to participate in Kanban implementation. Kanban automates manufactured and purchased parts inventory cycles to reduce unwanted inventory and create waste-free processes.
July 29, 2008
NFPA 70E: Standard for Electrical Safety in the Workplace, Decatur Conference Center & Hotel, US Hwy 36, Decatur
This class is for individuals that work on or near electrical hazards and is a must for maintenance personnel, electricians, engineers, safety professionals, supervisors, contractors, service personnel and vendors entering NFPA 70E compliant facilities.
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