NATM heads back to Orlando

Dec. 1, 2004
THE National Association of Trailer Manufacturers is heading back to Orlando for its 17th Annual Convention and Trade Show. Scheduled for February 1-5

THE National Association of Trailer Manufacturers is heading back to Orlando for its 17th Annual Convention and Trade Show.

Scheduled for February 1-5 at Disney's Coronado Springs Resort, it will mark the third time that the NATM has taken its convention to Orlando. It is set to alternate between Orlando and Las Vegas through 2008.

This year's convention features two additional workshops for a total of six, with two of them repeating to benefit those who couldn't make it the first time.

“The members got so much out of the workshops last year,” executive director Pam O'Toole said. “We found that the workshop format — where there are 40 or 50 participants — is more effective because it gives people an opportunity to interact with the speaker and ask questions. We thought that's better than just bringing everybody together in a big group and listening to five or six speakers.”

The workshops will be offered Friday afternoon, February 4, and Saturday morning, February 5. Saturday afternoon will feature the traditional “Nuts & Bolts” session, with workshop presenters on hand to answer questions.

O'Toole said the trade show is sold out — 139 exhibitors occupying 152 spaces — with eight on the waiting list.

She said membership has reached a record of 711, with the number growing by four or five a week during the final two months of 2004. She said NATM sold over 313,000 compliance decals in 2004, and more members are requesting an inspection from compliance director Greg Soden.

“This should be our first million-dollar year in revenue,” she said. “All the extra revenue is being put back into more programs for the members. We're continuing to grow and prosper and trying to reach all trailer manufacturers.

“The wheel-separation issue is important and we're going to try to reach out to nonmembers and emphasize that if they're going to be aware of things that are happening in the industry, they need to join NATM to get the information.”

Workshops

Product Liability: presenters, Mike Meehan and Tom Kuzmick, Rawle & Henderson LLP, Philadelphia.

Worker Comp: “Management's Role in Worker Compensation Loss Control,” presenter Brad Toomey, Franchise & Association Resource Group, Overland Park, Kansas.

The workshop will focus on the importance of senior managers' involvement in the loss-prevention process. Without their commitment, most efforts are futile. Achieving a safer work place will result in cost savings and a better work force.

Quality Management: “The Essence of Quality Management,” presenter Ted Miller, president, Miller Company.

This workshop will examine why a quality management system should be implemented, regardless of the size of the business. Topics that will be covered include: components of a good quality management system; and practical application and benefits.

Miller specializes in the development and implementation of management systems; ISO 9000, ISO 14000, AS9100, ISO 17025, and Quantum Management. He has over 15 years' experience as a quality professional working both domestically and internationally. He has successfully implemented quality systems in commercial and DOD environments, satisfying customers such as IBM, Martin Marietta, and Hughes Aircraft, as well as many small and medium sized businesses. He has assisted over 50 organizations gain ISO 9000 certification, has participated in and/or conducted over 100 quality audits, and has successfully completed Lead Assessor Training for ISO 9000, certified by the Assessor Registration Board of the United Kingdom.

He is a member of the US TAG to the International Organization for Standardization (ISO), Geneva, Switzerland, TC 207 Environmental Management.

Boat Trailer Compliance Issues: presenters Tom Harhevko, director of engineering standards, NMMA, Chicago; Rick Russell, Peterson Mfg, Grandview, Missouri; and Soden.

Proper Wheel Attachment: presenters Ted Schorn, Enkei America, Columbus, Indiana; Bill Dunlap, Dexter Axle, Elkhart, Indiana; and Ron Williams, Al-Ko Kober, Elkhart, Indiana.

Benchmarking: “Performance Benchmarks for the Trailer Manufacturing Industry,” presenter Jim Morton, RSM McGladrey, Elkhart, Indiana.

The workshop is designed to be an introduction to the RSM McGladrey performance benchmarks for the trailer manufacturing industry. The benchmarks include over 50 industry financial performance measurements and industry productivity measures such as material costs, direct labor and various manufacturing overhead as a percentage of sales and sales per manufacturing square foot, sales per employee, inventory turns, and many others. Participants will also be given instructions on how they can participate in the 2005 benchmarks.

Keynote speakers

Mark Sanborn, “The Fred Factor: How passion in your work and life can turn the ordinary into the extraordinary,” Thursday, 10:20-11:35 am.

The session is based on his book, The Fred Factor: Every Person's Guide for Making the Ordinary Extraordinary, an international best seller with 200,000 copies sold in China.

Sanborn will share the lessons he has learned from Fred, an extraordinary postal carrier (and others like him), to show how to harness the power of passion and commitment to personal excellence to transform the mundane into the magnificent in one's personal and professional life.

“Anyone can be a Fred,” Sanborn said. “That includes you! The result will not just be extraordinary effort and success in your work. You'll find yourself living an extraordinary life as well.”

Sanborn is president of Sanborn & Associates Inc, an idea studio dedicated to developing leaders in business and in life. He is an international bestselling author and noted authority on leadership, team building, customer service, and change.

He graduated cum laude from Ohio State University. In 1978-79, he served as the national president of the FFA, a youth organization of 500,000 members. In addition to his work as a business educator and author, he is president of the National Speakers Association, the association of experts who speak professionally.

Sanborn has shared his expertise with audiences in every state and 10 countries. He recently was the moderator of Living Leadership, a 62-city simulcast featuring some of the top leadership experts of the day, including Ken Blanchard, Stephen Covey, and John Maxwell.

He holds the Certified Speaking Professional designation from the National Speakers Association and is a member of the Speaker Hall of Fame. He also is a member of the exclusive Speakers Roundtable, made up of 20 of the top speakers in America.

Sanborn is the author of seven books, including Teamwork: Making Teamwork Work, Sanborn on Success and Upgrade: Proven Strategies for Dramatically Increasing Personal and Professional Success.

He has created and appeared in 20 videos and numerous audio training programs. His video series, Teambuilding: How to Motivate and Manage People, made it to the No 2 spot for bestselling educational video series in America.

Steven Little, “Real-World Growth Strategies: The Future of Opportunity for the Trailer Manufacturing Industry,” Thursday, 8:30-10 am.

Little said that businesses have one prime objective: they want to grow. Yet, surprisingly, most businesses don't have the formalized systems in place to help them achieve this goal. He said few even take the time to regularly consider the important macro-changes happening in our world today — changes that will most affect the future of success for their companies and industries.

Little, currently a senior consultant with Inc. magazine and formerly president of three fast-growth companies, will explain what it takes to grow a business effectively and profitably with his list of proven growth strategies.

The presentation includes: the “Seven Irrefutable Rules of Business Growth”; how to assess an organization's readiness for growth; finding and keeping the best and the brightest; the all-important role of technology in growth companies; the 21st century's social, economic, environmental, and political macro-changes most likely to affect the trailer industry.

Little is one of the country's leading speakers, writers, and consultants for privately held businesses interested in growth. Throughout the 1980s and 1990s, Little was president of three fast-growth companies. Both FAME Inc and Erb Industries Inc achieved profitable growth rates of over 500% during Little's tenure. As president of Queensboro Shirt Company, he helped to build one of the country's earliest and most successful e-commerce sites.

His speaking style has been described as “real-world,” “highly credible”, and “uniquely engaging.”

He is a graduate of Miami University and has studied at the Institute for Management Development in Lausanne, Switzerland, and the University of Houston's Future Studies Program.

Golf

The tournament is set for Wednesday at 8 am with a shotgun start on DisneyWorld's Palm course. Combining strategically placed palms, 94 bunkers, and plenty of water, the natural Florida woodlands setting provides a dramatic backdrop. Designed by Joe Lee, the Palm features sparkling lakes and tropical sand, all in a gorgeous golf landscape.

The Palm course is played each year as part of the PGA Tour's National Car Rental Golf Classic and is considered by many pros on the PGA Tour to be the most difficult of the tournament's courses — particularly because of the demanding 18th hole.

Awards will be presented for first, second, and third place, longest drive, longest putt, and closest to the pin.

Titleist/Cobra Clubs are available to rent for $45 per set or $17 for a partial set. Golf club rentals require a photo ID and a major credit card refundable deposit of $500 per set. The dress code for all golfers is collared shirts, Bermuda length shorts or slacks and soft spikes. Transportation will be provided and will leave the Coronado at 6:30 am.

NATM exhibit space features 35 new exhibitors

These 139 companies will occupy 152 spaces:Company Booth # 3M 21, 36 A.L. Hansen Mfg Co 24 Active Technology 82 ADCO Products Inc 104 AKZO Nobel 68 AL-KO Kober Corp 28 Allied Wheel Components 88 Aluminum Line Products Co 34 American Metal Stamping 73 Amerimax Building Products Inc 26 Applied Products Inc 114 Atwood/ Creation Windows 27 Austin Hardware & Supply Inc 109 BASF Corp 6 Bauer Products 101 Best Fender Products 159, 160, 161, 162 Blaylock Trailer Products Inc 110 Bombardier Capital 17 Butler Products Corp 47 Buyers Products Co 78 C E Smith Company Inc 90 C R Brophy Machine Works Inc 133 CargoBuckle Brand Tie-Down Systems 105 Carlisle Industrial Brake & Friction 86 Carlisle Tire & Wheel 91 Cast Products Inc 10 Cequent Electrical Products 1, 2, 3 Chateau Products Inc 164 Clancey Hardware & Hinge 136 Colonial Banknote Company 143 Command Electronics Inc 49 Copperweld 157 Crysteel Manufacturing Inc 142 Curt Manufacturing Inc 37 Custer Products Ltd 12 Dec-O-Art 108 Dexter Axle 55 Du Pont Co 50, 63 Dutton-Lainson Co 87 Easy Rider Inc 111 Elixir Industries 29 Exltube 18 Fastec 72 Fiber-Tech Industries Inc 48 Freedom Axle Company Inc 85 Gaska Tape Inc 140 GE Commercial Distribution Finance 89 Geocel Corp 128 Global Advantage Inc 40 Global Direct Components LLC 64 Globe Specialty Co 102, 103 Greenball Corp 70 Grote Industries 25 H E Parmer Company Inc 165 Hayes Lemmerz International Inc 13 HE & M Saw 15 Hehr International Inc 94 Hercules Bulldog Sealing Products 107 Hid-N-Screen Inc 125 Hitch Things Inc 79 Holland USA 115 Hopkins Mfg Corp 158 Humphrey Products Inc 137 Imperial Stamping Corp 31 Innovative Lighting Corp 19 Integrity Products.us 153 International Extrusions 148 IPro Inc 124 KampCo Steel Products Inc 76, 77, 92, 93 Kenny & Gyl Co 14 Kodiak Trailer Components 83 Laclede Chain Co 99 Lord Corp 67 Lucky B Mfg Inc 120, 121 M & B Supply Inc 5 M-3 & Associates Inc 23 Mako Building Products Corp 163 Maxi-Seal Harness Systems 52 Metalwest 62 Mishawaka Sheet Metal Inc 95 Mize & Company Inc 80 Mobile Paint Mfg Co 96 Movaload Corp 22, 35 Newcourt Inc 138 Nordec Inc 135 North West Rubber 150 Nudo Products Inc 58 Optronics Inc 119 Orrco International Inc 65 Owens Corning Fabwel 66 Pacific Cargo Control 126 PDG Associates Inc 16 Peerless Chain Co 117 Peterson Mfg Co 51 Philips Products 53, 54 Phillips Industries 8 Phoenix USA Inc 106 Plastics By Design Inc 71 Pneutek 39 Portcity Metal Services 69 Powerbrace Corp 30 PPG Industries Inc 41, 42 Premier Lights LLC 139 Putnam Hitch Products 59 QDS/Henschen Inc 60 Quality Trailer Products 84 RB Rubber Products Inc 33 Redneck Trailer Supplies 146, 147 Reliable Tool & Machine Co Inc 113 Reliance Bearing Co Inc 11 Rigidized Metals Corp 129 Robin Industries Inc 44 Rumber Materials Inc 75 Ryadon Inc 43 Ryerson Tull 149 Safeview Systems 4 Scorpion Protective Coatings Inc 151, 152 Service Plus Distributors Inc 141 SFS Intec Inc 123 Sheffield Financial LLC 130 Shelby Industries LLC 127 Sierra Pacific Engineering & Products 116 Sierra Products, Dry Launch Division 81 Statewide Aluminum Inc 7 T George Podell Co Inc 46 Taskmaster 122 Textron Financial 32 The Phoenix Stamping Group LLC 97 Tie Down Engineering Inc 61 Tiger Accessory Group 131 Timbren Industries Inc 134 TODCO 20 Trailer Equipment Mfg Co Inc 155 Trailer Guard 74 Trim-Lok 100 Triple B Diversified/Saddle Boss 154 Ultra-Fab Products 145 US Wheel Corp 156 USA Harness Inc 132 Vacation Vehicle Mfg Inc 118 Valley Trailer Products Inc 98 Valspar Corp 56, 57 Venco/Venturo Division 9 Whitesell Fastners Inc 38 Wonder Hitch 45

NATM 2005 agendan

Tuesday — February 1, 20053 - 8 pm Registration 6:30 - 8 pm Early Bird Reception Wednesday — February 2, 20057 - 8 am Golf Tournament Registration 8 am Shotgun Start 3 - 6 pm Exhibitor Set-up 1 - 7 pm Registration 3 - 5 pm Board Meeting 5 - 6 pm New Member Reception 6 - 8 pm President's Reception Thursday — February 3, 20057 am - 4 pm Registration 7 - 8 am Breakfast Buffet/Membership Meeting 8 - 11 am General Session 8 - 8:20 am Welcome 8:20 - 8:30 am Benchmarking 8:30 - 10 am Steven Little 10 - 10:20 am Coffee Break 10:20 - 11:35 am Mark Sanborn 8 am - Noon Exhibitor Set-up 11:45 am - 1 pm Golf Awards Luncheon 1 - 5 pm Trade Show 4 - 5 pm Reception Friday — February 4, 20058 - 9:30 am Breakfast 8 am - 5 pm Registration 9 am - Noon Trade Show (continued) 10 - 10:30 am Coffee Break 12:15 - 1:15 pm Awards Luncheon 1:30 - 5 pm Workshops (All workshops will be for both Session 1 & 2) Product Liability Workers' Comp Boat Trailer Issues Quality Management 1:30 - -3 pm Session 1 3 - 3:30 pm Coffee Break 3:30 - 5 pm Session 2 Saturday — February 5, 20057:30 - 8:30 am Breakfast Buffet 8:30 am - Noon Workshops (All workshops will be offered for Session 3 & 4) Product Liability Workers' Comp TREAD Act Benchmarking 8:30 - 10 am Session 3 10 - 10:30 am Coffee Break 10:30 am - Noon Session 4 Noon - 1 pm Networking Luncheon 1 - 3:30 pm Nuts & Bolts Session (Panelists will be all of the workshop presenters to discuss questions/issues that came up during the workshops)
About the Author

Rick Weber | Associate Editor

Rick Weber has been an associate editor for Trailer/Body Builders since February 2000. A national award-winning sportswriter, he covered the Miami Dolphins for the Fort Myers News-Press following service with publications in California and Australia. He is a graduate of Penn State University.