Machinery Lubrication magazine published by Noria Corporation
Issue link: https://www.e-digitaleditions.com/i/136253
INDUSTRY FOCUS CONFERENCE REVIEW By : Noria's 14 th Annual Conference & Exhibition 2 0 1 3 Reliable Plant 2013 Draws Increased Attendance in Columbus An expanded exhibit hall, additional learning sessions and increased attendance were among the highlights of Noria Corporation's 14th annual Reliable Plant Conference and Exhibition held April 16-18 at the Greater Onseqt Columbus Convention Center in Columbus, Ohio. Nearly 1,400 industry experts, decision-makers and practitioners from around the world attended the international conference, which is the premier event for lubrication, oil analysis and reliability professionals. Attendees were able to choose from more than 75 learning sessions on a variety of topics, including how to put new life in your oil analysis program, transforming lubrication procedures to best practices, case studies in contamination control at mine sites, using thermal imaging to diagnose machinery lubrication problems and common traits of winning maintenance reliability programs. "The learning sessions have been great," said Dave Davis of Dayton Superior. "I have really enjoyed them. I'm looking forward to getting back to my guys and teaching them what I have learned." The expansive exhibition hall was full to the brim with nearly 100 industry-leading organizations showcasing a broad range of products and services. Among the new products featured were Hy-Pro Filtration's Liquid Conditioning Station (LCS), Lubrication Engineers' Viper wire rope lubricator, Alemite's lithium-ion battery-powered grease gun, FilterMag's magnetic oil filtration systems and SKF's Machine Condition Indicator. 32 | www.machinerylubrication.com May - June 2013 | www.machinerylubrication.com "We took in the entire exhibit hall, and some of the products really peaked our interest," noted Charles Maupin with Ring Container Technologies. "It is important to get that exposure to what else is out there. Companies are continually reinventing their product line, and so for us to stay on top of our industry, we need to pull in that new stuff." In keeping with the event's vintage military theme, the conference opened with a moving keynote address from Guy Gruters, a retired F-100 fighter pilot who flew more than 400 combat missions in South and North Vietnam before being captured. Gruters spoke about the lessons learned during the more than five agonizing years he spent as a prisoner of war in a North Vietnamese Communist prison camp and on business and family experiences since. "You have to develop plans to do something, and then you have to constantly manage those plans in the real world," Gruters told attendees. "Plans change on a daily basis, and it's never like it was planned out to be. It just doesn't happen. So as a team, as leadership, you have to adjust to the realworld conditions because you have a constantly changing environment."