© 2007 Door & Access Systems
Publish Date: Spring 2007
Author: Tom Wadsworth
Page 56

Expo 2007 Tries Major Schedule Change
New Schedule Seeks to Benefit Technicians and Exhibitors

A major scheduling change is coming to Expo 2007, April 11-14, in Orlando, Fla. The change seeks to increase the value of Expo for technicians and exhibitors.

Exhibits Move to Center Stage
For years, Expo’s exhibit floor has been open on Friday and Saturday, although attendance tends to drop off after noon on Saturday, the last day of the event. This year, however, exhibitors will show their products and services on Thursday and Friday, April 12-13.

This change moves the exhibit period into the heart of the four-day event, and it extends exhibiting hours. In recent years, the exhibit floor closed on its second day (Saturday) at 3:00 p.m. But this year, exhibits will remain open until 5:30 p.m. on the second day (Friday). Exhibitor hospitality activities will then commence at 7:00 p.m. Friday evening.

Saturday Targets Technicians
Workshops, usually held primarily on the Wednesday and Thursday of the event, are scheduled for Wednesday and Saturday at Expo 2007. Saturday’s workshops (April 14) feature a full day of educational opportunities for door technicians.

“We hope this change will make it more convenient and more affordable for technicians to attend on Friday and Saturday,” says Jim Lett, IDA president.

IDA is offering several incentives to encourage dealers to send technicians. If a dealer sends one to five technicians, the cost is $40 each. For six to 10 technicians, the cost is $30 each. If a dealer sends more than 10 technicians, the cost is only $25 each, up to a maximum of $400.

For that fee, the technicians receive admission to the Expo show floor all day Friday (lunch included) and all workshops on Saturday (breakfast and lunch included), and are eligible for $15,000 in door prizes on Saturday. Prizes include 50 impact wrench kits worth $300 each.

Striving for Success
Lett says the changed schedule is part of an ongoing effort to improve Expo. A similar schedule in Atlantic City in November 2006, offering Friday exhibits with technician training on Saturday, was “very successful.”

“If it works, it will help both dealers and exhibitors,” he adds. “It’s a great way to expose technicians to the industry and get some good training.”

Registration forms for Expo are available online at www.doors.org. For IDEA testing information and forms, go to www.dooreducation.com.

All workshops at Expo are produced by IDEA. Since its creation, the group has produced approximately 380 educational seminars since 1998. Total attendance at these IDEA educational seminars exceeds 21,200 door dealers and their personnel. This represents more than 37,000 hours of industry education.

Expo 2007
THE NEW LINEUP

Wednesday, April 11
· 15 Educational Workshops (8:00 a.m. – 5:30 p.m.)
· IDEA Accreditation and Certification Testing (9:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.)
· IDEA Train-the-Trainer Course (9:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.)
· Jim Giles Memorial Motorcycle Poker Run (9:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.)
· IDA Scholarship Foundation Golf Tournament (1:00 – 6:30 p.m.)

Thursday, April 12
· Opening Session with Keynoter Gene Kranz (9:00 – 10:30 a.m.)
· Grand Opening of the Exhibit Hall (10:30 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.)
· President’s Awards Banquet, featuring The Beary Hobbs’ Drifters (7:00 – 11:00 p.m.)

Friday, April 13
· Educational Session: The Door Dealers’ Future (8:30 – 10:30 a.m.)
· Exhibit Hall (10:30 a.m. – 5:30 p.m.)
· Exhibitor Hospitality Functions (7:00 – 11:00 p.m.)

Saturday, April 14
· Super Tech Workshops (8:00 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.)
· IDEA Testing (10:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m.)