Striving for More

"Be More." This directive is the theme the Institute of Scrap Recycling Industries Inc. (ISRI), Washington, D.C., has selected for its convention as well as for its member campaigns and overall operations this year. “It became the convention theme because it describes so well what an ISRI convention is all about,” Chuck Carr, ISRI vice president of member services, says. “ISRI’s workshops and general sessions are designed to help you “Be More” informed. The equipment and services provided by ISRI’s exhibitors help you “Be More” efficient and, therefore, “Be More” profitable. This year’s programs from opening night to final night are designed to help you “Be More” entertained.” He adds, “In the end, membership in ISRI helps companies to “Be More” in a lot of ways. We want to highlight that through our convention.”

Viva Las Vegas
ISRI’s 2012 Convention and Exposition is scheduled for April 15 to 19 at the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino, Las Vegas. The city itself promises to be a draw, according to Carr. “Traditionally, Las Vegas is one of ISRI attendees’ favorite venues.”

Registration numbers back this up. “Registration is already pacing not only at a record-high level but well outside the normal pattern of registration,” Carr says. As of early February, it is too soon to make an accurate attendance estimate for the 2012 convention, he adds. However, according to the convention website, www.isriconvention.org, some 5,000 scrap recycling industry professionals are expected to attend the 2012 convention.

Carr points to a number of reasons why the 2012 ISRI Convention and Exposition should be a strong show, including the convention’s return to Las Vegas, the sold-out exhibit hall and the strengthening of the overall economy.

One of the advantages to the show’s Las Vegas location is the Mandalay Bay venue. “The Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino is currently the only hotel complex in the country that can house attendees and this large show under one (albeit very large) roof,” Carr says.

The exposition hall, in Bayside B and C at Mandalay Bay, features more than 300 exhibiting companies and spans 8.5 acres. “The show is the largest in ISRI history both in size and in number of exhibitors,” Carr says.

In addition to companies promoting their equipment and services, the exhibit hall also features “Toolbox Talks.” These workshops are available to fully registered and trade-show attendees, Carr says.

The exhibit hall opens 6:30 p.m. Monday, April 16, with a gala reception. Carr suggests attendees be sure to attend “the year’s biggest party in the scrap recycling industry.”

After a night of celebration, attendees should get ready to get down to business come Tuesday morning, when the conference’s educational programming really heats up. Carr says, “ISRI is offering more Toolbox Talks, workshops, spotlights and general sessions than ever before. Over 70 programs are planned, including two days of ‘Just for Fun’ programs for attendees, spouses and adult family members.”

Be More Informed
While the schedule for Monday includes a number of workshops on electronics recycling from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m, educational programming at the 2012 ISRI Convention and Exposition becomes more diverse Tuesday, April 17, with “The Chair’s General Session” at 8 a.m. Michael Maslansky, CEO of Maslansky Luntz & Partners and author of The Language of Trust: Selling Ideas in a World of Skeptics is the featured speaker. According to the ISRI convention website, “Maslansky advises Fortune 500 companies, industry associations and professional communicators on language strategies that shift perceptions and move markets.” This general session features a live focus group, “providing ISRI attendees with a unique view into the minds of the target audience.”

Tuesday’s programming also features commodity spotlights on electronics, plastics, ferrous, paper, aluminum and tires/rubber as well as ISRI’s Paper Stock Industries Chapter meeting and an exhibit hall luncheon. According to ISRI, its commodity spotlight programs “have become world famous for providing convention attendees with insights into the factors and conditions that will impact commodity markets in the short and long term.”

Educational programming Wednesday, April 18, begins at 8 a.m. with the “Spotlight on the Economy,” which is always a popular draw with conference attendees, according to ISRI. A number of workshops are offered from 9:45 a.m. through 5 p.m., as are spotlights on copper and lead/zinc/tin at 2 p.m. and at 3:45 p.m., respectively.

In addition to these sessions, lunch is served in the exhibit hall from 12:30 p.m. to 2 p.m., and the evening concludes with the Consumers Night Reception from 6 p.m. to 7 p.m. “If you buy or sell scrap commodities, don’t miss the consumer networking events planned for Wednesday afternoon,” Carr advises.

At 8 a.m. Thursday, April 9, former President George W. Bush addresses attendees during “The Chair-Elect’s General Session,” which is sponsored by Caterpillar Inc. According to ISRI, the former president has been focusing his attention on developing the George W. Bush Presidential Center at Southern Methodist University in Dallas, which will include the presidential library and museum, archives and the George W. Bush Institute. “The institute, which President Bush announced in the fall of 2009, will advance the principles that guided him during his time in public service and has four areas of engagement: education, global health, human freedom and economic growth,” according to ISRI.

Thursday’s programming also includes workshops from 9:45 a.m. through 2:45 p.m., ISRI officer and board elections from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. and the grand closing event, which begins at 6:30 p.m. While Carr says it is still under wraps, he suggests attendees won’t want to miss the event, which will be held at the House of Blues.

More information on the 2012 ISRI Convention and Exposition is available at www.isriconvention.org.
 

The author is managing editor of Recycling Today and can be contacted at dtoto@gie.net.