FABTECH, AWS Welding Show combine

Three industry-leading trade show organizers have combined forces to better serve the needs of their trade show exhibitors in the fields of forming & fabricating, tube & pipe, and welding & cutting processes. The new joint trade show will be branded, FABTECH International and The AWS Welding Show. The first event will take place November 13 to 16, 2005 at Chicago's McCormick Place.

The show alliance was formed by a triad that includes the two organizers of FABTECH [the Society of Manufacturing Engineers (SME) and the Fabricators and Manufacturers Association (FMA)] and the organizer of the AWS Welding Show [the American Welding Society (AWS)]. Recent surveys indicated that a majority of AWS attendees would prefer a show that features all welding and fabricating processes used by metalworking manufacturers. Large numbers of FABTECH attendees identified AWS as a potential event partner to add desired welding and cutting technology exhibits and broaden the range of value-added technologies on the show floor.

The new show is expected to cover 350,000 net square feet with 900 exhibiting companies, becoming the "one-stop shop" and dominant trade show for all metalworking, forming & fabricating, and welding & cutting technologies. The product displays are expected to be even larger than they have been at either FABTECH or The AWS Welding Show in the past, and they will introduce even more new products. The value-added flow of sheet, plate, and tube metal utilized in many manufacturing plants (cutting, bending, punching, joining) will be mirrored on the show floor. Exhibit space sales for the event begin immediately.

Said Nancy Berg, SME executive director and general manager, "This alliance is a highly effective way to serve manufacturing companies even better than we have in the past. Our customers have asked for expanded access to metalworking and fabricating technologies and we are pleased to have been able to respond while at the same time consolidating two good shows to help reduce exhibitor costs."

Gerald M. Shankel, FMA president and CEO said, "This is a good move for the industry. The AWS Welding Show brings an in-depth level of welding and cutting technologies and, together with FABTECH's unmatched quality of fabricating machinery, will offer a first-rate venue."

"AWS is proud to have an alliance with FABTECH International," said Ray Shook, executive director, American Welding Society. "This strategic initiative will enhance our long history of service to the welding and cutting industry. We're confident that this alliance will add significantly to exhibitor and attendee value."

FABTECH and AWS will conduct independent professional conferences and educational programs during the 2005 show. AWS will focus its technical programming during the show on welding and allied processes, including brazing, soldering, thermal spraying and adhesive bonding and testing, and inspection of joints made by these processes.

FABTECH exhibitors are leading equipment manufacturers and importers of key manufacturing technologies including forming & fabricating, tube & pipe, and welding processes. Displayed products include automation/robotics; bending and folding; coil processing; contract manufacturing; controls; cutting (water jet and plasma); finishing; hydroforming; lasers; material handling; plate and structural fabricating; punching; roll forming; safety equipment; saws; software; stamping; tooling; tube and pipe technology; and welding.

SMA and FMA will produce this year's FABTECH International on October 26-28 at the I-X Center in Cleveland, Ohio. Likewise, AWS will produce the 2005 Welding Show on April 26-28 at the Dallas Convention Center in Dallas, Texas.