IndustryWeek Best Plants Conference Provides Critical Knowledge for Manufacturing Leaders

CLEVELAND, Jan. 28, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- The 2011 IndustryWeek Best Plants Conference offers an expanded lineup of activities to help manufacturing managers implement continuous improvement and achieve operational excellence. The 2011 event will bring together manufacturing leaders for three days of plant tours, keynote speakers, educational sessions, Best Plants winners' panel discussions, vendor exhibits and multiple networking opportunities. The conference will be held April 4-6, 2011, at the Omni CNN Center in Atlanta, GA.

"The 2011 IndustryWeek Best Plants Conference will offer attendees valuable ways to make their operations more competitive and profitable," said IndustryWeek Chief Editor Steve Minter. "In addition to the field-tested ideas for applying lean and other continuous-improvement concepts, IndustryWeek has introduced two new tracks to the program: Green Operations and Innovation & Leadership, as well as two new half-day intensive workshops on lean manufacturing and safety excellence."

Solid continuous-improvement programs are at the core of those organizations that have and will continue to remain competitive in their markets. The conference expands on these concepts by recognizing the key roles that innovation and creativity play in creating competitive manufacturing organizations. The IW Best Plants provides cutting-edge examples of ways to make manufacturing more agile, customer-focused and capable of profitable product development.

The conference will cover 35 topics across 6 industry-specific tracks. Sessions include electronic Kanban, 5S, lean manufacturing, Kaizen events, value-stream mapping, safety, supply chain management, 3P, visual management, standardized work, energy efficiency and innovation, and feature a number of Best Plants panel discussions. The 2011 speakers come from notable organizations such as Toyota, Bayer, Harley-Davidson, Emerson, Raytheon, Timken, Schneider Electric, General Cable and Landis & Gyr.

Featured keynote speaker Gregory S. Babe, President and Chief Executive Officer of Bayer Corp. and Bayer Material Science LLC, will kick off the conference with his compelling message on "The Importance of Strengthening U.S. Manufacturing." Additional keynote speakers include James P. Womack, Founder and Senior Advisor of the Lean Enterprise Institute; Wilbert W. (Wil) James Jr., President, Toyota Motor Manufacturing, Kentucky, Inc.; and Major General John Batiste, U.S. Army (Retired), President, Klein Steel Service Inc.

Tours of world-class manufacturing plants round out the highlights of this year's conference. Participants will have the opportunity to choose between several options, including The HON Company, Milliken & Company, WIKA Corporation and Carrier.

Annual IndustryWeek Best Plants Awards Program

The goal of Industry Week's Best Plants award program is to recognize plants, located in North America, that are on the leading edge of efforts to increase competitiveness, enhance customer satisfaction and create stimulating and rewarding work environments. Applications for the Industry Week Best Plants award will be available online in February. The application deadline is June 2011.

Additional Information Available on the Web

For more information on the conference, see the conference Web page at: www.iwbestplants.com

For more information about the IndustryWeek Best Plants Awards Program, visit: www.industryweek.com/research/bestplants/guidelines.aspx

SOURCE IndustryWeek