Supply Chain Professionals and Vendor Partners Converge at Prime Advantage’s Spring Conference to Plan for Growth and Form Powerful Relationships
Chicago, Illinois (PRWEB) May 07, 2015 -- Prime Advantage, the leading buying consortium for midsized manufacturers, hosted more than 200 procurement, engineering, operations, executive, and sales professionals at its 35th conference in Las Vegas, NV. The semi-annual event, which took place April 21-23, brought together manufacturers from more than 30 industries, including: commercial foodservice equipment, packaging, truck and trailer equipment, material handling, food processing, HVAC, and construction.
Highlights from the Supply Chain Conference
Prime Advantage Members and Endorsed Suppliers gathered for one-on-one meetings and attended seminars to share best practices for supply chain management, growth, and profitability. Prime Advantage’s Spring Conference kicked off with former auto racing pit crew trainer Breon Klopp, who is founder and managing partner at Sestrana. Mr. Klopp analyzed how the competing interests that occur on a NASCAR® team are funneled together to work towards a common goal. Klopp said many businesses today are similarly faced with competing interests they must sublimate to reach an ultimate corporate goal. He shared that the major key to successful teamwork and achievement is devoted trust in your colleagues.
The Spring Conference also features an Engineering Symposium. Engineers worked together to share ideas around design, compliance, technology, and communication. The meetings featured presentations on "Emerging Technologies and Trends Driving the Kitchen of the Future" from Don Fisher of Fisher-Nickel, Inc.; "Latest Innovations in Motor Applications and Trends" from Tim Wiemer of Motor Sourcing; "How to Avoid Software Problems and Increase Robustness" from Brent Melson and Chris Thompson of Intertek; "Myths and Facts Regarding Product Safety: A Practical Guide to Compliance" from attorney Quin Dodd; and "The Better I Communicate, The Better I Lead" from sales and communications consultant Andy McNulty.
Each Prime Advantage Conference provides attendees with access to industry experts that lead conversations around topics crucial to manufacturing professionals. The 2015 Spring Conference also featured Chad Smith, partner at Demand Driven Institute, who hosted round-table discussions around "Why Won’t Our Planning Systems Work in Today’s Manufacturing Environment?" Mr. Smith explained how today's planning systems are fundamentally broken because old tools and old rules cannot be instituted to combat new pressures. He provided the knowhow and innovative thinking needed to get forecasting back in line with the times.
Prime Advantage also presented awards to Members and Endorsed Suppliers who exhibited exemplary performance at the Conference. Centimark-Questmark and Signature4 each won "Best Supplier Booth Presentation"; Kloeckner Metals won "Most Prepared Endorsed Supplier"; and Hatco Corp. landed "Most Prepared Member."
"At the award-winning Prime Advantage Conferences, we unleash the competitive power of our resilient supply chains,” said Louise O'Sullivan, Founder, President and CEO of Prime Advantage. “We are relentlessly focused on elevating the prowess of both Members and Suppliers, while consistently reducing their total cost of ownership. The advantages to buyers and sellers in our group, through the partnerships attained in our network, are truly unmatched anywhere else in manufacturing.”
Prime Advantage concludes each Conference by distributing rebates earned by Member companies based on negotiated programs with its Endorsed Suppliers. In the past fifteen years, Prime Advantage has paid more than $170 million in rebates and discounts to its manufacturing industry Members.
The success of Prime Advantage has been continuously recognized in the industry. Prime Advantage was recognized as a finalist of the Expo EXCITE Awards in the category of Best Buyer-Seller Event in 2014 and won the award in 2013.
Founded in 1997, Prime Advantage is a buying consortium for manufacturers with more than 750 Members and 125 Endorsed Suppliers. To learn more about Prime Advantage and the benefits you can find in a buying consortium, visit http://www.primeadvantage.com.
PETER WILTJER, PWMG, INC., +1 (630) 701-3363, [email protected]
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