2007-03-22 - ABB President and CEO Fred Kindle opened ABB's annual forum for the automation industry today by encouraging customers to become more competitive by sharing knowledge and expertise.
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By Editorial services
In his opening address at ABB Automation World in Orlando, Florida, Kindle outlined some of the issues facing business leaders today, including increasing globalization and competition and how these challenges can be met through collaboration, operational excellence and aggressive investment in people and innovation.
This year's event is being held under the banner “Collaborate for Results.” As in previous years, it features keynote speeches and a series of technical workshops alongside 40,000 square feet of exhibition space for products and services from across the industry.
Kindle also reminded participants of the opportunities Automation World provides for building and strengthening relationships between industry leaders. New this year is an expanded executive forum; a selection of executive workshops and panel discussions on a variety of topics, including global business issues and operational excellence.
Automation World, which is organized by ABB with the help of a diverse customer advisory board, has become a key event for the industry and for the company. Its importance is underlined by the presence of the full ABB executive committee for the second year running.
The event's main sponsor, IBM, was represented by Nicholas Donofrio, the company’s Executive Vice President, Innovation and Technology, who spoke of the importance of innovation and collaboration in today’s competitive environment. He cited IBM’s recent collaboration with Toshiba and Sony to develop processors that are now used in all major computer games systems.
“Innovation is a culture, not a department,” he told his audience.
Wealth of experience
IBM has a long-running and successful alliance with ABB, based on the companies’ complementary expertise and common aims to create value for their joint customers – a working example of Automation World’s theme.
Don Macmillan, Vice President, Technology and Operational Excellence at ABB’s long-time partner, Alcan, spoke about his company’s relationship with ABB and Alcan’s AP smelting system. It is the aluminum industry’s most comprehensive smelting technology and provides the benchmark in reliability, energy efficiency and productivity. Macmillan also recognized the importance of innovation in business today.
“Alcan creates value by extending the periphery of innovation through the entire organization,” he said, “including customers and suppliers.”
Alcan recognizes ABB as a world-class supplier of substations and equipment for use in the aluminum industry and sees continuing collaboration with ABB as essential to its aim of maintaining and enhancing its leading position in smelting technology.
In addition to helping participants interact with ABB, its partner companies and customers, the event provides an opportunity for ABB to listen to customers and for all participants to set up the collaborations that are so important in today’s fast-moving marketplace.