The table for ATE-CON at the NCPN conference was a success thanks to Julie at OP-TEC. Here is a picture of the setup:
Friday, October 31, 2008
Wednesday, October 29, 2008
ATE-CON Website is Live
The placeholder website for ATE-CON is now live. Please visit www.ate-con.org and leave any feedback as a comment to this post. This is a placeholder site for now until the third party management team is in place since they will take over the website design (with input from the marketing committee).
Of particular note is the sponsorship page. Thanks to all of the centers who have already committed. You will see a link to the order form for securing your pre-paid registrations here: http://www.ate-con.org/pdf/Order_Form.pdf
So far, one center (MATEC) and one project (eSyst) have paid for their registration codes. We encourage others to start the ordering process in order to receive your codes in time for the registration site going live in January. Order forms will also be available at the PI conference. Please stop by the ATE-CON booth (#3) if you are at the PI conference this week.
Of particular note is the sponsorship page. Thanks to all of the centers who have already committed. You will see a link to the order form for securing your pre-paid registrations here: http://www.ate-con.org/pdf/Order_Form.pdf
So far, one center (MATEC) and one project (eSyst) have paid for their registration codes. We encourage others to start the ordering process in order to receive your codes in time for the registration site going live in January. Order forms will also be available at the PI conference. Please stop by the ATE-CON booth (#3) if you are at the PI conference this week.
Wednesday, October 8, 2008
ATE-CON at the ATE PI conference
ATE-CON will make its grand debut at the ATE PI Conference on October 29-31 in Washington, DC. ATE-CON will have a booth during all three days of the showcase. If you will be attending the ATE PI Conference and would like to volunteer to man the ATE-CON booth (#3), please leave a comment with your name, affiliation, and the time that you are available. Here is the showcase schedule:
Showcase 1: Centers Showcase
Wednesday, October 29, 2008
Showcase Set-up: 3:30 - 6:00 p.m.
Showcase Sesssion: 7:30 - 10:00 p.m.
Showcase Tear Down: 10:00 - 11:00 p.m.
Showcase 2: Project Showcase
Thursday, October 30, 2008
Showcase Set-up: 7:30 - 8:45 a.m.
Showcase Session: 12:00 - 2:30 p.m.
Showcase Tear Down: 2:30 - 3:15 p.m.
Showcase 3: Project Showcase
Friday, October 31, 2008
Showcase Set-up: 7:30 - 8:45 a.m.
Showcase Session: 10:00 a.m. - 12:30 p.m.
Showcase Tear Down: 12:30 - 1:15 p.m.
MATEC will take care of set up and tear down - we just need volunteers for the times that the showcase is open.
Another strategy that the ATE-CON planning committee is going to employ is visiting other booths during the showcase. The ATE-CON executive committee and any other interested planning committee members will visit the ATE project and center booths that aren't aware of ATE-CON to talk to them personally about how they can get involved.
Also, the marketing committee is working on some posters that sustaining and contributing centers can have at their booths to show their support of ATE-CON, as well as stickers that ATE center personnel can wear saying "Ask me about ATE-CON" in the hopes that this will generate interest about ATE-CON at other centers' booths. Here are samples of those marketing strategies that are in the works:
Friday, October 3, 2008
Business Update
The business/venue subcommittee met on Wednesday, October 1 and reviewed the budget, discussed the RFP, and got an update on the venue options.
The budget has been updated with decorator fees, a column for 800 attendees, and 1 more night for the hotel rebate. There is also a section for exhibit revenue, but it is not populated yet. This will be populated once the third party management company is selected and the revenue sharing strategy is determined.
The conference will break even at 350 attendees, but the goal is 600 attendees so that there are some carry forward funds for 2010 and beyond.
The business committee is starting to shape an effort to target large corporate sponsors for ATE-CON. The approach is "join the NSF as a premier sponsor of this event." The goal is to secure two or three large sponsorships. If a center attracts a large sponsor, they could receive a complimentary sustaining center sponsorship in return. This will be discussed further at the next business committee meeting on October 15 at 8:30 AM PDT.
The business/venue committee also discussed the venue. The venue thread of this blog has been updated to reflect the most recent site visit to the Fairmont in Scottsdale. Please scroll down for the venue options and take a moment to vote in the venue poll on the right hand side of this page. Currently, the Sheraton Downtown seems like the best option. The next step is to tentatively hold space at the Sheraton.
The RFP for the third party management organization has been submitted to the purchasing department and is expected to go out for bids next week.
The business committee will create an order form for the ATE PI conference so that ATE centers and projects can sign up as sustaining centers, contributing centers, or partners. Here are the centers that are currently committed:
Sustaining centers (225 registrations total): Bio-Link, CTC, GeoTech, MATEC, ICT Center (formerly NCTT), NCME, OP-TEC, SCME, SpaceTEC
Contributing centers (80 registrations total): BATEC, CARCAM, CREATE, FLATE, MatEd, NACK, RapidTech, RCNGM
The save the date for the face-to-face planning meeting was sent out to all those involved in the ATE-CON planning process, as well as other centers who may want to become involved. This meeting will be held on November 12-14 in Phoenix, AZ. If you didn't receive a save the date and would like to receive more information, please email atecon@matec.org.
The budget has been updated with decorator fees, a column for 800 attendees, and 1 more night for the hotel rebate. There is also a section for exhibit revenue, but it is not populated yet. This will be populated once the third party management company is selected and the revenue sharing strategy is determined.
The conference will break even at 350 attendees, but the goal is 600 attendees so that there are some carry forward funds for 2010 and beyond.
The business committee is starting to shape an effort to target large corporate sponsors for ATE-CON. The approach is "join the NSF as a premier sponsor of this event." The goal is to secure two or three large sponsorships. If a center attracts a large sponsor, they could receive a complimentary sustaining center sponsorship in return. This will be discussed further at the next business committee meeting on October 15 at 8:30 AM PDT.
The business/venue committee also discussed the venue. The venue thread of this blog has been updated to reflect the most recent site visit to the Fairmont in Scottsdale. Please scroll down for the venue options and take a moment to vote in the venue poll on the right hand side of this page. Currently, the Sheraton Downtown seems like the best option. The next step is to tentatively hold space at the Sheraton.
The RFP for the third party management organization has been submitted to the purchasing department and is expected to go out for bids next week.
The business committee will create an order form for the ATE PI conference so that ATE centers and projects can sign up as sustaining centers, contributing centers, or partners. Here are the centers that are currently committed:
Sustaining centers (225 registrations total): Bio-Link, CTC, GeoTech, MATEC, ICT Center (formerly NCTT), NCME, OP-TEC, SCME, SpaceTEC
Contributing centers (80 registrations total): BATEC, CARCAM, CREATE, FLATE, MatEd, NACK, RapidTech, RCNGM
The save the date for the face-to-face planning meeting was sent out to all those involved in the ATE-CON planning process, as well as other centers who may want to become involved. This meeting will be held on November 12-14 in Phoenix, AZ. If you didn't receive a save the date and would like to receive more information, please email atecon@matec.org.
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