On Sept. 18, 2024, Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell cut the federal funds rate by 50 basis points to a target range of 4.75%-5% as part of the Fed’s strategy to combat inflation. But now what? To gain insight on how this rate cut and other current issues impact business spending and investment, the manufacturing community will gather at the MTForecast 2024 conference.
Presented by AMT – The Association For Manufacturing Technology, MTForecast takes place at the Renaissance Schaumburg Convention Center Hotel in Schaumburg, Illinois, on Oct. 9-11. Economists and industry experts will speak on a variety of manufacturing technology topics. The event will also feature interactive workshops, presentations on best practices in business strategy, data, and marketing, as well as networking events.
“The value of attending MTForecast is threefold, and the number one reason is that it offers strong networking possibilities with all the industry leaders,” said Rita Conroy-Martin, director of marketing and customer experience at ZOLLER. She has attended the event in previous years and just confirmed plans to participate in 2024 (view list of attendees).
Two of Conroy-Martin’s other reasons for attending are to help the company identify market opportunities and strategize how to capitalize from them, as well as to identify trends and mitigate risk.
“The third reason to attend MTForecast is to reconnect with the manufacturing community right after IMTS 2024,” she says. “There is no better time to solidify your thoughts of how to drive your company forward than after participating in one of the best shows in the world.”
Unmatched Value
Expert presentations at MTForecast will include those for aerospace, job shops, medical, automotive, energy, and other sectors. Other presentations will focus on AI and manufacturing intelligence tools, automation, new product development, the Gardner Intelligence capital spending survey, business growth models, marketing strategies, the election outlook and government policy priorities, and industrial purchasing processes (view full agenda).
Economic outlooks will be delivered by Thomas Walstrum, senior business economist, Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago; Mark Killion, CFA, director of U.S. Industries at Oxford Economics; and Alan Beaulieu, president of ITR Economics (who is making his final MTForecast appearance before retirement). Dan Janka, president of Mazak and chairman of AMT’s board of directors, will deliver closing remarks (view all speakers).
“You could easily spend $30,000 to $40,000 for third-party experts and forecasts, or you can attend the MTForecast conference and obtain much more input for a fraction of the cost,” says Pat McGibbon, who recently retired as chief knowledge officer after 40 years at AMT. “MTForecast also provides the unmatched benefit of comparing your notes with other attendees and discussing possible outcomes based on the data presented.”
John McGrane, marketing manager, Acme Manufacturing, attended MTForecast for the first time in 2023 (and he also participated in IMTS 2024 at the Acme Manufacturing booth). “As part of a younger generation, I found MTForecast really welcoming and valuable in exploring what’s beyond the four walls of our company,” he says.
Industry veterans also appreciate MTForecast, including Dr. Jeffrey Ahrstrom, president of Usach Technologies Inc., who has more than three decades of manufacturing leadership experience.
“MTForecast offers a great tool: a forecast of where the industry is going,” says Ahrstrom. “Whether it’s hiring, going after a higher margin, or proposing a business strategy to my boss, it instills a great degree of support and confidence. If you’re new, come with an open mind, engage and connect, and ask lots of questions.”
Learn more and register for the MTForecast 2024 conference.
