President's Message: You Can’t Benefit if You’re Not in the Room

During a recent SBCA Webinar, my friend Larry Dix (Apex Truss) and I were sharing examples of times when component manufacturers (CMs) have shared experiences during SBCA meetings that had an immediate impact on how almost everyone in the room did business. Whether it was about OSHA’s approach to machine guarding or how to respond to a truss collapse, the perspective gained by everyone in the room is immediately valuable and profound. Typically, it also results in swift action once we all return to the office.

You never know when someone is going to share an insight like that, but the format of SBCA events encourages it to happen more often than you’d think if you haven’t been to a meeting. I’ve said it before, we all show up at SBCA meetings and check our competitive hats at the door. When we’re all together, it’s clear it is a safe place to bring up challenges and seek solutions together. If you’re not the type of person who wants to share with the whole group at once, there is always plenty of opportunity to talk one-on-one with CMs across the country over a meal, on a bus, or during a social event. 

The biggest SBCA event, the BCMC show, is just around the corner. Our industry’s suppliers are creating the largest show floor of exhibits since 2006, and Columbus, Ohio’s central location is a perfect place to host it. As you’ll read in this month’s feature (p. 20), BCMC can be the catalyst for all manner of adventures that can provide tangible value to your business.

Beyond the show floor, Larry pointed out there are so many ways you can tailor your personal BCMC experience. There are pre-conference workshops, educational sessions, learning labs, plant tours, focused roundtable discussions, and numerous social events all packed into three short days! Chances are very good you'll see something you haven’t seen and hear something you haven’t thought about, and you’ll also have a chance to connect with several people who spend each day trying to navigate the same challenges you do and probably have a solution that could make your life easier.

But you can’t capture that value if you aren’t participating in an SBCA event, attending an educational session or visiting the exhibit floor. If you’ve never been to BCMC, if it’s been a few years, or you’ve been sitting on the fence about attending this year, I assure you the investment will provide the value you expect. I encourage you to take a few minutes to register and start planning your attendance to our industry’s premier trade show in Columbus. I look forward to seeing you there in October!