DETROIT,
Plastics News' second annual automotive plastics event, Plastics in Automotive Conference 2016: Driving Change, will feature a wide breadth of industry leaders from automakers and Tier 1 suppliers addressing the future challenges and opportunities surrounding the use of plastics in vehicle development.
The conference will be held Jan. 11-12, 2016, at the Detroit Marriott at the Renaissance Center and is organized by Plastics News. Coinciding with Industry Preview at the North American International Auto Show and Automotive News' World Congress, the conference will focus on automotive materials, technologies, trends and issues facing plastics manufacturers.
"The automotive sector of the plastics industry is growing impressively and is among the most vibrant end markets for plastics," said Plastics News Publisher Brennan Lafferty. "Plastics in Automotive: Driving Change promises to offer insights and advances that will support the robust growth of the automotive plastics industry, with a lineup of top industry executives."
Mark Voss, engineering group manager for body structures advanced technology with General Motors Corp., will kick off the conference with a keynote address on the use of carbon fiber composites in vehicle bodies, sharing his expertise as lead design engineer at GM for structural composites.
Attendees will learn from speakers on a variety of key automotive topics. These include a critical look at automotive manufacturing from Laurie Harbour, president of Harbour Results, a panel on design and modeling featuring David Compeau of FCA North America and a view of advances in exteriors from Tom Pilette, global vice president of product and process development at Magna International.
In addition, a purchasing panel will discuss the needs of automakers and Tier 1 suppliers. The panel includes Saber Haidous, senior manager – global raw material - global purchasing & supply chain at General Motor Corp., Jim Bos, vice president of global procurement for YanFeng Automotive Interiors, and John Erwin, vice president of purchasing with SRG Global.
Plastics News Publisher Brennan Lafferty
Plastics News Publisher Brennan Lafferty also will conduct an onstage interview with Dave Prater, president/CEO of SRG Global on future trends and prospects.
Other speakers include top executives with Fiat Chrysler Automobile North America, Amcor Rigid Plastics, International Automotive Components (IAC), Faurecia North America, Autodesk, IHS Chemical, Solvay Polymers, design firm Sundberg-Ferar Inc. and DuPont.
Attendees also will receive an exclusive opportunity to register to attend networking dinners at Automotive News' World Congress with keynote addresses from Carlos Ghosn, president & CEO of Nissan Motor Co., and Mark Fields, president & CEO of Ford Motor Co.
About NAIAS Industry Preview As part of the conference registration, attendees will receive tickets to attend Industry Preview at the North American International Auto Show on Jan. 12-13 at Detroit's Cobo Center. Industry Preview provides an up-close-and-personal opportunity reserved specifically for those related to the auto industry such as engineers, designers, branding and marketing executives, technicians and many others
