Steel Products
SMU Steel Summit Conference Was a Huge Success
Written by John Packard
August 30, 2017
Over the past three days, Steel Market Update (SMU) had all hands on deck for our 7th SMU Steel Summit Conference. The conference was once again held at the Georgia International Convention Center next to the Atlanta International Airport.
We had record attendance with 661 steel and manufacturing executives registered compared to 434 last year. There were 309 companies registered from the United States, Canada, Mexico, the United Kingdom, Egypt, Japan, Ecuador and Poland.
Here are what a number of manufacturing companies, steel service centers and members of the financial community had to say about our conference.
I spoke with the president of a Midwest service center earlier today who told me that he and the rest of his team who attended were “beat” by the time they returned home. They would have breakfast, lunch and dinner meetings and then run to make all of the presentations because they didn’t want to miss anything. Of course, they had to have a nightcap with the approximately 80-100 steel people who were at the Marriott lobby bar at any one time during the evening (except Monday when that number was more like 200-300 people).
We have heard nothing but positive comments from attendees about the 22 speakers on the program.
“I have to say, I was absolutely floored at your conference. The speakers keep getting better and better. It’s incredible what you’ve built. Soon you’re going to need to move the event to a stadium! It really makes an impact on our company.” Brian Blaushild, President, Heating & Cooling Products.
“First off, John, great conference once again. Really enjoyed the last session. Was nice to see the younger generation providing insight; one of the highlights of the conference. I took a number of notes and will work with my HR department moving forward. Loved the manufacturing section, as well; was by far one of my favorites…” Christopher Shipp, General Manager, Priefert Steel
Bill Stenard of Viking Materials told us in an email, “Great conference, very engaging at times!!!”
One of the goals of any Steel Market Update event is to provide information that is relevant and timely for our attendees. The goal is to provide information by people who have something to share and know how to do it.
“I really like that you don’t have a bunch of companies getting up there and telling people sh*t they already know…” is what Tim Stevenson, partner at Metal Edge Partners, LLC, told us. He went on to say, “The political commentator was fantastic [Michael Smerconish], and I also thought the guy from WSD was super good [Philipp Englin]. Not too much to improve upon in my mind.”
Karl Schmidt of Hartree Partners told us, “I just wanted to congratulate and thank you for a wonderful conference!” He went on to say, “It was very well organized, the presentations great and the audience very relevant…your conference was attended by people who are at the coalface every day, which made it so much more productive.”
Our next SMU Steel Summit Conference will be held in Atlanta at the Georgia International Convention Center (same facility as this year) on Aug. 27, 28 and 29, 2018. Mark your calendars and put a note in your budgets for 2018.
If you are interested in becoming a sponsor or exhibitor for the 2018 conference, please contact our office at info@SteelMarketUpdate.com. Believe it or not, some of the existing sponsors want to cement their position for 2018.
A special thank you to my team for their hard work leading up to the conference and over the past few weeks: Ray Culley, Brett Linton, Diana Packard, Tim Triplett, Sandy Williams, Alison and Jeff Lalonde, Steve Painter, Mario Briccetti and John Eckstein.
I also want to thank each and every one of the attendees at this year’s conference.
John Packard, Publisher
John Packard
Read more from John PackardLatest in Steel Products
Market says cutting interest rates will spur stalled domestic plate demand
Market sources say demand for domestic plate refuses to budge despite stagnating prices.
U.S. Steel to halt slab conversion at Granite City Works
U.S. Steel said it plans to reduce slab consumption at its Granite City Works near St. Louis, a company spokesperson said on Monday. The Pittsburgh-based steelmaker will shift the production and processing of steel slabs to its Mon Valley Works near Pittsburgh and its Gary Works near Chicago. Citing a United Steelworkers (USW) union memo, […]
SMU Week in Review: September 1-5
Here are highlights of what’s happened this past week and a few upcoming things to keep an eye on.
HR Futures: Market finds footing on supply-side mechanics
As Labor Day marks the transition into fall, the steel market enters September with a similar sense of change. Supply-side fundamentals are beginning to show signs of restraint: imports are limited, outages loom, and production is capped, setting the stage for a market that feels steady on the surface but still unsettled underneath.
Beige Book: US markets remain cautious amidst volatile pricing environment
Sluggish economic activity across the US was largely attributed to uncertainty caused by tariff policies and growing cost pressures, according to the US Federal Reserve’s (The Fed) latest Beige Book report. The Fed’s latest economic report, posted on Sept. 3, consists of economic findings from the six weeks preceding Aug. 25 throughout 12 districts. Economic […]