Apr 19 2019
To accelerate the integration of emerging technologies into manufacturing applications, AMT – The Association For Manufacturing Technology has created the MT360 Conference. Held June 18 to 20, 2019, at the Santa Clara Convention Center, Santa Clara, Calif., MT360 will feature more than 30 TED-type talks. Presentations focus on four transformative technologies: additive manufacturing, augmented reality, cognitive automation and the digital thread. A simulated factory will provide demonstrations and a forum to interact with representatives from leading legacy and 16 start-up companies.
Those who should attend include tech companies looking to apply their innovations, venture capital providers and manufacturing leaders responsible for driving company growth, including operational directors, CTOs, CIOs and senior manufacturing, engineering and R&D personnel. The event is limited to 600 participants. Visit MT360Conference.com for details and registration.
Presenting companies include Oracle Corporation, HP, Ready Robotics, EOS, Humatics, ThyssenKrupp, IBM Watson, GE Global Research and others (see agenda). Keynote presentations will be delivered by John B. Rogers, Jr., CEO and co-founder of LM Industries (Local Motors) and Mickey McManus, a research fellow in the Office of the CTO at Autodesk as well as principal and chairman of the board at MAYA Design, a technology design and innovation lab.
Sponsors include Cisco, AM Ventures, Mazak, Autodesk, Heidenhain, Makino, Athena, Traction Technology Partners, Festo, Grail, Fictiv, Humatics, nTopology, Osaro and Digital Alloys. Media sponsors include Gardner Business Media and Modern Machine Shop, Additive Manufacturing, Manufacturing Engineering, Mechanical Engineering and SMART Manufacturing magazines. Association sponsors include NTMA, ASME and SME.
What Makes MT360 Different?
“The Silicon Valley and manufacturing technology communities evolved separately and don’t routinely interact. We created MT360 to bridge the gap so they can leverage each other’s strengths and market potential,” says Douglas K. Woods, President of AMT.
AMT represents and promotes U.S.-based manufacturing technology. Its members design, build, sell and service the equipment that U.S. manufacturing relies on to be productive, innovative and competitive. These include CNC systems for subtractive (metal cutting) and additive manufacturing, process automation, digital controls, connected devices, CAD-CAM software and quality assurance systems. AMT acts as the industry’s voice to speed the pace of innovation, increase global competitiveness and develop manufacturing’s advanced workforce of tomorrow.
“Where other events focus on selling products or learning concepts, MT360 provides practical guidance on integrating technology innovations that manufacturers can immediately use to transform their business,” says Tim Shinbara, Vice President – Technology for AMT.
MT360 is organized into two primary venues: concise presentations in the Tech Theatre and the simulated factory for demonstrations of the technologies presented in the theater. Tech Garages (knowledge centers) enable attendees to interact with subject matter experts and get hands-on assistance for their businesses.
As an example, one Tech Garage will feature SmartBox, a platform for easy and secure entrance into IIoT and associated access to real-time manufacturing data. SmartBox resulted from the joint efforts of machine tool builder Mazak, IT leader Cisco and manufacturing communications platform provider MEMEX. SmartBox uses the MTConnect® standard, an open, royalty-free standard that provides a semantic vocabulary for devices used in the discrete parts manufacturing sector. All net proceeds from MT360 will go to the MT Connect Institute (a subsidiary of AMT) for further awareness and adoption of MTConnect.
The MT360 Conference is part of AMT’s lifecycle strategy around transformative technologies. Related AMT activities include the opening of an AMT Tech Lab in the San Francisco area later this year, The Manufacturing Tech Council (an ongoing virtual forum for manufacturing technology leaders) and IMTS – The International Show for Manufacturing Technology. IMTS 2018 was the second largest trade show in the U.S. last year, featuring 1.42 million sq. ft. of exhibit space, 129,415 registrants and 2,563 exhibiting companies.