June 12, 2008—Chicago, IL: The Power Transmission Distributors Association (PTDA) held its seventh annual Canadian Conference on May 29–31, 2008. Devoted to Canadian industry networking and trends, the Canadian Conference has quickly become a must-attend event for distributors and manufacturers in the power transmission/motion control (PT/MC) industry. More than 250 attendees, consisting of Canadian PT/MC distributors and their manufacturer suppliers, participated in the conference at the Fairmont Le Château Whistler, Whistler, British Columbia, Canada to build better relationships, share information and identify best practices.
Business analyst and host of “Money Talks”, Michael Campbell, presented his economic forecast while analyzing domestic and global leading indicators that affect Canadian markets. Campbell focused on strengths and weaknesses of the Canadian economy as well as trends in both mining and manufacturing.
Panelists from key industries paralleled Campbell’s forecasts.
- Randy Breaux, vice president marketing for Baldor Electric Company, delivered a presentation on the importance of motion control in the U.S. and Canadian markets. With improved efficiency and output provided by motion control hardware, factory automation will be at an all-time high.
- Ken Fryer of 4Refuel spoke of the need to convert to biodiesels to reduce carbon emissions in a cost-effective manner. He made a strong case for replacing existing fuel sources with biodiesel in all modern vehicles with no loss of performance.
- Steve Reid of GoldCorp discussed the economics and trends in mining and exploration. He noted that global demand for gold is increasing but gold discoveries are harder to find with an increasing emphasis on the environment.
Brian Gordon of the Climate Project discussed the wide range of ramifications due to global warming on the Canadian landscape and market. Techniques and measures for reducing industry impact include investigating alternative sources of energy (such as solar and wind), conducting energy audits and using high-efficiency motors and fuel-efficient vehicles.
Other conference highlights included formal and informal networking with key decision-makers in the Canadian PT/MC market as well as social events including golf and ski outings for delegates and spouses.