Two Weeks Until Manufacturing Conference - Monday Memo 9/16/24
September 16, 2024
Manufacturing Conference with Legends Awards Luncheon in TWO WEEKS
One of ABI’s most popular annual events will be held two weeks from this Wednesday. The 2024 ABI Iowa Manufacturing Conference will be held at the FFA Enrichment Center on the campus of Des Moines Area Community College (DMACC) in Ankeny on October 2nd. Register now for this important event at https://web.cvent.com/event/bad58f54-6483-422b-b7ef-e27949815bc8/summary.
A terrific program has been developed for the event. High-value workshops, manufacturing tours, and two great keynote presentations are on tap for the event. The day starts big right out of the gate, with Former ABI Chair Kirk Tyler (Atlantic Coca-Cola Bottling Company, Des Moines) and ABI Board Member Rob Feeney(Atlantic Coca-Cola Bottling Company, Des Moines), who will keynote the morning session. Kirk and Rob shared remarks at a previous ABI board meeting and members couldn’t get enough of this fabulous Iowa manufacturing story. This session will be an expanded version of those remarks and you will not want to miss it. The afternoon session will be keynoted by Technology Futurist Jack Shaw, who will speak on a topic everyone is talking about these days, the role of artificial intelligence in manufacturing.
Also include in the conference are the annual Legends in Manufacturing Awards, which will be presented during the conference luncheon. Click here to read about the terrific folks named Legends this year: ABI’s Elevate Iowa to Name Legends in Manufacturing | Iowa Association of Business and Industry (iowaabi.org).
Thank you to the leading sponsors for the event: ABI, EMC, Agri-Industrial Plastics, the Center for Industrial Research and Service at Iowa State University (CIRAS), Community State Bank, and Sukup Innovations - RAMCO Division. This event has become a must-attend for ABI members in recent years and the Legends Awards are always a fun celebration of Iowa manufacturing. See you at DMACC in two weeks.
Session Two of the New ABI Pre-Employment Testing Process Webinar Series Tomorrow
For some time, you have read that ABI has created a new webinar series, all focused on getting the latest information and best-practices related to pre-employment testing. This is in response to YOUR feedback as for years, ABI produced a one-day seminar on this topic. Now, over three dates between July and December, your HR and risk management teams can get the information by Zoom in three one-hour sessions. The first session was held July 30th and the second session will be held tomorrow. There is still time to register for this one-hour virtual session. Click here her for more information and to register: Summary - Pre-Employment Testing Process Webinar Series (cvent.com).
November 20 Board Meeting to be Held at ABI
The ABI Board of Directors will hold its next meeting on Wednesday, November 20. The board will meet at ABI Headquarters at 400 East Court Avenue in Des Moines' East Village. Watch for more information soon.
The board will also meet in Des Moines at ABI on January 15, March 12, and May 21 of next year. Finally, ABI will host a fabulous (and I mean fabulous!) annual conference in Council Bluffs next June.
ABI Advisory Council Convenes Thursday
As you know, the members of the ABI Advisory Council provide important support to the association and to all ABI members. Certainly the financial support provided is of value, but even more valuable are the resources and business solutions provided by the council members.
The advisory council will hold its monthly meeting this Thursday. Thank you to ABI Advisory Council members Anthologic, AssuredPartners, Bankers Trust, BCC Advisers, BrownWinick, CliftonLarsonAllen, EideBailley, EMC, Fredrikson, G&A Partners, HDH Advisors, Principal Financial Network of Central Iowa, The Iowa Clinic, Wellmark, and Wells Fargo.
CIRAS Council to Meet
The Center for Industrial Research and Service at Iowa State University is a key ABI partner and the CIRAS Industry Advisory Council will meet a week from Thursday at ISU. Several ABI member companies are represented on the council and over the years, many members of the ABI Board of Directors have also played leadership roles on the CIRAS Council. Watch for news of CIRAS events and services to come your way in the future.
Midwest Environmental Compliance Conference Next Week
As you have been reading about in recent editions of this Memo, ABI and a number of other organizations partner each year in producing the Midwest Environmental Compliance Conference. The 2024 conference will be held next week (September 26 and 27) at the Overland Park Convention Center in suburban Kansas City. The agenda for the conference is packed full of information and your team members who attend will receive the very latest in environmental regulatory information. Find more information and register by clicking on http://mecconference.com/.
ABI Board Holds Great Meeting
This memorandum is meant to be a forward-looking report, but on behalf of our officers, THANK YOU to the many of you who made the September ABI board meeting so successful. As it is the first meeting of the fiscal year, it is always important that the September meeting goes well. Thanks to you, it did.
The board meeting had great participation, it was substantive, and it was marked by strong engagement and good discussion. That is not just rhetoric, as your participation in board meetings is critical to ABI's success. So, again on behalf of ABI Chair Chad Reece (Winnebago Industries, Forest City) and our officers, THANK YOU for your support.
As always, one of the highlights of the board meeting was the business reports provided by all of you, the member of the ABI Board of Directors. It is always of interesting to hear about what is happening in your business, your industry, and your part of the state.
Several board members hared some big news. For example ABI Board Member Rick Tollakson (Hubbell Realty Company, West Des Moines) is marking 40 big years with the company he leads. Board Member Mary Lisle Landhuis (Lisle Corporation, Clarinda), announced another expansion of Lisle Corporation’s campus, adding another 32,000 square feet of manufacturing capacity. And Board Member Rich Dwyer (Kent Corporation, Muscatine) shared news of a brand new Kent Pet Group cat food plant being built. The plant will have 113,000 square feet of manufacturing space under roof. ABI salutes these big developments; congratulations all around!
Community Colleges, Others Hosting Manufacturing 4.0 Webinar; View it Here
The State of Iowa some time ago created the Manufacturing 4.0 program to help manufacturers take their operations to the next Level. ABI has played a key role in this initiative and we are excited to see it succeed (and even more excited by the help it has provided to ABI members). A key ABI partner on this project is the Center for Industrial research and Service(CIRAS) at Iowa State University. In addition, Iowa’s community colleges are great ABI partners and we appreciate their work here. In fact, the latest changes to the program, and information about how to participate, are the subject of a series of webinars being produced by the community colleges. The latest webinar was produced by Northeast Iowa Community College and you can view it here: Industry 4.0 Webinar (youtube.com).
Bankers Trust, Baton Global, ConnectifyHR Partnering on FREE Workforce Event
Former longtime ABI Board Member (and staff member) Michele Farrell (ConnectifyHR, Clive) and ABI Advisory Council Member Jayme Fry (Bankers Trust, Des Moines) have asked me to share with you news of a new workforce event they have developed along with ABI member Baton Global. The event will be held from 2:00 to 5:00 p.m. at Glen Oaks Country Club in West Des Moines on September 25th.
Entitled “WORKING SMARTER: Driving Workforce Success with Innovation, AI, & Sustainable Talent Strategies,” the event will examine the statewide and national workforce landscapes, talent recruitment and retention strategies, and how AI technology and innovation can foster sustainable businesses. The event will also provide learning and networking opportunities for business leaders across Iowa. Light appetizers and refreshments will be provided. Register and find more information here WORKING SMARTER: Driving Workforce Success with Innovation, AI, & Sustainable Talent Strategies (constantcontactpages.com). See you there!
Nicole Crain Elected to BIPAC Executive Committee
One of ABI’s key national partners is Washington, DC-based BIPAC. BIPAC provides terrific resources to bolster business groups’ efforts related to campaigns and elections and ensuring that pro-business candidates are successful. ABI Executive Vice President Nicole Crain was some years ago elected to the BIPAC Board of Directors. Last Thursday and in recognition of her leadership, we learned that Nicole has now been elected to the group’s Executive Committee. This a big deal and we salute Nicole; congratulations!
Al Jennings to Celebrate 90th Birthday; Card Shower Planned
Former ABI Chair Bill Bywater (Bankers Advertising/TruArt, Iowa City) has asked me to share some news. That is that another former ABI Chair Al Jennings (EFCO, Des Moines) will be celebrating his 90th birthday on October 2nd. Al’s daughters are having a card party for Al and cards may be sent to him at Brio Senior Living Community, Unit 105, 6901 Peckham Street, Johnston, Iowa 50131. Thank you for sharing, Bill, and happy birthday, Al!
Stanton Technology Park Can Host Your SW Iowa Expansion
Last year at this time, ABI members contacted us about a new development in the SW Iowa community of Stanton. Community partners there developed a state-of-the-art technology campus and they have again asked that it be brought to your attention. If you are considering a SW Iowa expansion and are looking for land, incentives, and access to high-speed connections, this could be just right for you. Click here for more information: Stanton-Technology-Park-Information.pdf (stantoniowa.com).