Abstract
ALA is fortunate to have the support and participation of industry all-stars…
We say that our annual LabAutomation conference event is the place where “laboratory technologies emerge and merge.” Nowhere is this more clearly illustrated than in the vendor exhibit booths. The exhibit hall is one of the most popular and important components of our annual conference—at 32,800 square feet, it also is one of the largest.
At LabAutomation2005, attendees had the opportunity to get face-to-face with what was new from 202 different companies. We expect to have just as many, if not more, companies available to attendees at LabAutomation2006 in Palm Springs, January 21-25.
These companies, our exhibitors, play a mission-critical role in the education of ALA members. Of course, they are there to sell their products and services, but in the process, they open eyes and they open doors. They share their knowledge and enthusiasm. They give ALA members opportunities to touch, test, and find out first-hand from experts how a particular device or software program can increase a lab's efficiency and effectiveness. At the same time, ALA exhibitors learn a great deal from the scientists who visit their exhibit booths, and they use the information they gather to continue to improve the products and services that we all depend on.
Many exhibiting companies do not limit their contributions to the exhibit hall. Many of their staff scientists participate in conference programs and sessions, some as registered attendees, others as presenters. Some write informative papers for JALA as Tom Astle of Tomtec did for this issue. Others assist ALA by providing perspective and guidance to help the association move forward successfully. For example, three of the nine ALA members who serve on the ALA Board of Directors can be considered industry vendors: Andrea Chow of Caliper Life Sciences, Anne Kopf-Sill of NuGen Technologies, and Andrew Zaayenga of SmarterLab. When it comes to professional education and member services, these volunteers are just as interested and committed to the ALA mission as members from academia, government, and private industry.
The ALA Ad-Hoc Exhibitor Advisory Task Force is another important example of how vendor perspective can influence the success of ALA programs and events. Input from this team has resulted in important changes and improvements, especially in our exhibition at LabAutomation. Yes, many of these changes benefit exhibiting companies, but at the same time, they benefit the members who attend. As proof, I offer the fact that the LabAutomation 2005 exhibit was one of the most highly rated exhibitions in ALA history. For this, I offer sincere thanks to Chair Jay Smith and task force members Tom Astle of TomTec, Marc Boillat of Seyonic, Dennis Claspell of Gilson, Michael Nemasek of Velocity 11, George Stez of Beckman-Coulter, Peter Siesel of Tecan, and Lynda Thomas of Thermo Electron.
ALA is fortunate to have the support and participation of industry all-stars like these. We are proud of the companies that exhibit at LabAutomation, and we appreciate the depth and dimension they contribute to our initiatives. We share many common goals, the achievement of which collectively results in broadband success for lab automation professionals everywhere.
Sincerely,
