See You in Orlando

I recently returned from Anaheim, CA, where I attended the International Microwave Symposium, IMS2010. Many of you may know this show as the IEEE-MTT-S for Microwave Theory and Techniques Society or quite simply the microwave show. It is the premier event for companies to showcase their new RF and microwave products and equipment. And this year was no exception.  On display were all shapes and sizes of power amplifiers, RF and microwave connectors and cables, switching systems, active and passive components, instruments, and test equipment.

As I walked the aisles of the exhibition on the first couple of days, I was surprised by the number of attendees visiting the many exhibitor booths. In fact, according to preliminary figures released by show management, attendance was projected to be up 7% over last year. More than 9,500 people including attendees and exhibitors were expected to be at the show. Other preliminary data indicated technical session registration at 2,793 participants and exhibits-only attendance at 2,687. More than 550 companies showcased their products on the exhibition floor.

The success experienced by this show could well be the start of a positive trend for increased show attendance and participation in 2010. Companies who have cut back on show participation in the past couple of years may now be more willing to dust off their booth displays and reenter the exhibition arena. Exhibitors are most happy when the aisles are jam-packed with well-qualified attendees with product purchasing authority.

Exhibitors want booth traffic, and attendees like chances to win prizes, which are the reasons EE will be featuring tech trek game cards at the upcoming IEEE AUTOTESTCON Show Sept. 14 to 16 in Orlando. Attendees will receive the cards as they enter the exhibition area and then take them to the booths of each of the sponsoring exhibitors. The exhibitors will stamp the cards and, most likely, engage the attendee in conversation concerning the exhibitor’s products on display in the booth.

After visiting at least 10 of the sponsoring exhibitors’ booths, attendees are to turn in the cards at the EE booth for chances to win some neat prizes. As shown in the advertisement to the left of this editorial, the daily prizes include a GPS, a Netbook, and an Apple iPad.

The theme of AUTOTESTCON this year is “moving forward at the speed of light” and is focused on support systems for military and aerospace applications.  Hopefully, your plans include a trip to AUTOTESTCON. If not, you still have time to register and make the necessary travel arrangements. Besides seeing and learning about the latest aerospace/defense test equipment, you have a good chance to win one of the awesome tech trek daily prizes.

Paul Milo
Editorial Director
[email protected]