NWTFA's Spring Expo: Embracing Opportunities for Innovation
Anthology Event Venue
706 Williams Blvd, Richland, WA, 99354
Join us at the Northwest Truss Fabricators Association's Spring Expo as we embrace opportunities for innovation! This dynamic event brings together industry leaders, experts, and innovators to explore the latest trends and advancements in component manufacturing. From cutting-edge technologies to insightful discussions, our expo is a prime opportunity to stay ahead in the rapidly evolving component industry. Don't miss this chance to connect, learn, and discover new avenues for innovation that will shape the future of component manufacturing.
Featured Speakers
Mike Kozlowski P.E., Engineer
Mike, a University of Florida engineering graduate, swiftly rose from a small Jacksonville Beach firm to managing partner at Apex. Under his leadership, the company expanded to 100 employees, achieving a 13x revenue increase. With a 23-year background in structural engineering and building components, Mike received the Dick Bowman Industry Enthusiast Award in 2020. Active in SBCA and NAHB, he won a 40 Under 40 Award for his contributions to national homebuilding. Mike's recent focus centers on collaborative design and model-based workflows, aiming to reduce industry waste by fostering efficient collaboration for optimized designs and streamlined processes.
Jason Hikel, Innovator
Jason Hikel has been applying technological solutions to truss industry problems for the last 20 years. As a third generation truss manufacturer he has spent his entire life around a truss manufacturing operation and seen first hand how the industry has evolved over the years. As the Director of Information Technology at Shelter Systems he continues to find room for innovation daily within his operations.
Steve Brown, AI expert, Entrepreneur, Innovator & Futurist
Steve draws on his decades of experience working in high tech to advise companies on how to build winning AI transformation strategies. Having spent 25 years at Intel, including as Chief Evangelist and a futurist in Intel Labs, he went on to work at DeepMind, Google's AI research lab in London. There, as senior director, Steve led DeepMind’s marketing, communications and public affairs teams and served as their in-house futurist. He is co-founder of The Provenance Chain Network, a Web3 company that provides supply chain transparency, security, and resilience services to organizations including the U.S. Space Force, and an advisor to Analog Computation Enterprises, a stealth startup building analog chips and AI software to significantly reduce energy consumption while delivering breakthrough performance.
Steve works with global brands, Fortune 500 companies, startups, and government agencies. Clients have included Nike, JP Morgan, Samsung, Comcast, Audi, PepsiCo, and Disney. He runs a successful consulting practice and leads AI innovation workshops. Steve has been featured on major media including BBC, CNN, Bloomberg TV, ABC, CBS, NBC, and in Forbes, The Wall Street Journal, and Wired Magazine. He inspires companies to create new products and services, streamline operations, elevate work, and transform customer experiences using AI and other technologies. Steve’s latest book, The Innovation Ultimatum: How Six Strategic Technologies will Reshape Every Business in the 2020s, published by Wiley, is a how-to guide on innovation and digital transformation. He holds Bachelor of Science and Master of Engineering degrees in Micro-Electronic Systems Engineering from Manchester University and has delivered inspiring keynotes in over 60 cities, spanning 15 countries and 6 continents. Steve was born in the U.K. and lives with his wife in Portland, OR.
Dr. Bill Conerly, Economist
Dr. Bill Conerly connects the dots between the economy and business decisions. He has the unique combination of a Ph.D. in economics from Duke University and over 30 years’ experience helping companies adapt to changing economic conditions. He was formerly Senior Vice President at a major bank and held positions in economics and corporate planning at two Fortune 500 corporations. Dr. Conerly has earned the Chartered Financial Analyst designation.
Companies have used Dr. Conerly’s expertise to help with decisions regarding capital expenditures, inventory levels, expansion into new markets, pricing, business models and financial structure. As a diagnostician, he sometimes identifies opportunities and challenges that require additional expertise, at which times he recommends a colleague to help his client.
Dr. Conerly is an on-line contributor to Forbes and the author of The Flexible Stance: Thriving in a Boom/Bust Economy (2016). He also wrote Businomics (2007), a book about economics for business leaders. He is co-author of Thinking Economics, a multi-media high school economics curriculum used in 34 states.
He has been interviewed on the News Hour with Jim Lehrer, CNN and local television and radio stations across the country. He has been quoted in The Wall Street Journal, Fortune Magazine, and USA Today. He has spoken to business audiences in five countries and 31 states.
Dr. Conerly is chairman of the board of Cascade Policy Institute.
Hotel Information
Homewood Suites by Hilton Richland: Click here to book a hotel using our room block, or call 509.371.1550 ext. 0 and tell the front desk that you're with the NWTFA Spring Expo.
Agenda
- 9:00am-9:30am - Welcome and Anti-Trust
- 9:30am-10:15am - Steve Brown (Futurist)
- 15 Minute Break and Q&A
- 10:30am-11:15am - Jason Hikel (Innovator)
- 15 Minute Break and Q&A
- 11:30am-12:00pm - Lunch
- 12:00pm-12:45pm - Mike Kozlowski (Engineer)
- 15 Minute Break and Q&A
- 1:00pm-1:45pm - Bill Connerly (Economist)
- 15 Minute Break and Q&A
- 2:00pm-2:30pm - Panel of all Speakers
- 2:30pm - Adjourn
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