MODEX 2024
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It's the third day of ProMat, and there's even more in store for you today! Start your day by attending the keynote presentation of the 2023 MHI Annual Industry Report (presented by MHI’s John Paxton and Deloitte’s Wanda Johnson), which contains information vital to the industry's future. You can also continue exploring the expo floor—with over 1,000 exhibitors, there's a product or service for all your company's needs. At 1 PM, catch director and actor Ron Howard's keynote in which he discusses creativity, innovation and mentorship—it's not to be missed. And, make sure you find education sessions that will help you grow and learn—and provide information to pass along to your company. Moving into the evening, at Industry Night, the winners of this year's MHI Innovation Award will be announced, and comedian Nate Bargatze. will share some laughs. (Note: this event is sold out.) During your day, make introductions and grow your professional network—you never know who you'll meet! 
 
Believe it or not, this year's ProMat experience will end soon. Remember to take advantage of the fabulous opportunities in front of you. Come early, come organized and be prepared to have an incredible third day.

WEDNESDAY – MARCH 22, 8:45 AM
Room S100

This is your opportunity to be the first to have access to this new report on the supply chain trends and digital technologies that are transforming supply chains. Wanda Johnson of Deloitte will join MHI CEO John Paxton in presenting the report findings. They will be joined by a panel of manufacturing and supply chain thought leaders to discuss the real-world significance of the report findings. Panelists:

  • Biswaranjan (Bish) Sen, Chief Product Supply Chain Officer at Unilever
  • Amanda Davies, Chief Procurement and Sustainability Officer, Mars Wrigley
  • Kristi Montgomery, Vice President, Innovation, Research & Development, Kenco Group
  • Donnie F. Williams Jr., Executive Director - Supply Chain Management Research Center; Associate Professor - Supply Chain Management, The Sam M. Walton College of Business, University of Arkansas

Learn more about the report.

Click here to view a detailed, scalable map of the entire show.

  

Wednesday, March 22 – 10 AM - 5 PM
Thursday, March 23 – 10 AM - 3 PM

  
Attendee registration hours are 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM Monday through Wednesday, and 8:00 AM to 2:00 PM on Thursday. If you pre-registered for ProMat 2023, you should have received your registration confirmation email when you registered. Bring it to a registration kiosk when you arrive at McCormick Place South. There are pre-registered badge pick up counters located on the first floor lobby near the bus drops in the South Building and the main registration area is in the North Hall Lobby near the show floor on level 3 of the North Building. If you don’t have your confirmation, no worries. You can go to Promat registration and they can pull up your registration easily. Once you have your badge, you are ready to enjoy the show floor, educational sessions and keynotes.
 
Pro-Tip: If you are planning on attending this morning’s keynote, go to ProMat registration on level one of McCormick Place South. Registration opens at 8:00 AM, and you can pick up your badge and go straight to Room S100 and grab your seat for the keynote starting at 8:45 AM.
 
You can still register for ProMat: If you did not pre-register, no worries! You can still register at no cost to see the ProMat exhibits, show floor sessions and keynotes. Proceed to the main registration area in the North Hall Lobby near the show floor on level 3 of the North Building.
Ancra Cargo
Engineering Innovation
Conference News

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 22 – 8:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Room S406 Vista Ballroom

MHI in partnership with Warehousing Education and Research Council (WERC), College Industry Council on Material Handling Education (CICMHE), Material Handling Equipment Distributors Association (MHEDA) and the Material Handling Education Foundation (MHEFI) presents Student Day at ProMat 2023. This interactive event for college, university, trade, technical, specialty and high school students connects them with the best in the industry through real-world discussions with industry experts.  
 
Highlights of the day include the guided tour of the ProMat 2023 show floor led by industry experts and the opportunity to meet with exhibiting companies who are looking for future employees. Along with gaining a real-world understanding of the products, services and technologies that enable the supply chain, students will walk away feeling inspired and empowered with a broader network of professionals who can support their career goals.

Be the first to have access to the MHI 2023 Annual Industry Report—attend the preview of the MHI 2023 Annual Industry Report at 8:45 AM today. Titled The Responsible Supply Chain: Transparency, Sustainability, and the Case for Business, the report focuses on the trends and digital technologies that are transforming supply chains.
 
During the keynote, Wanda Johnson of Deloitte will join John Paxton, CEO of MHI, to present the report findings. They will be joined by a panel of manufacturing and supply chain professionals to discuss the real-world significance of what was uncovered. 

After March 22, you can download the report here
 
Learn more about today's keynote.

The winners of the 2023 MHI Innovation Award will be announced tonight at MHI Industry Night. This year, MHI received 156 submissions, and four finalists have already been chosen in each of the three categories: Best New Innovation; Best Innovation of an Existing Product; and Best IT Innovation based on concept, value and impact. The award serves to educate and provide valuable insights on the latest manufacturing and supply chain innovative products and services.

Click here for a full list of submissions.

 

  
Each day, a video crew will be interviewing keynotes, talking to exhibitors, getting feedback from attendees and sharing their view of the action at ProMat 2023.
 
The videos will be emailed out daily, or you can access this link to catch up on what you missed or to see the latest clips.
 
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Keynotes, Sessions & Seminars

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 22 – 1:00 PM
Grand Ballroom S100 
 
Maybe you know him as the director of iconic films such as “Apollo 13,” “A Beautiful Mind,” “Rush,” and, most recently, “We Feed People,” and “Thirteen Lives.” Maybe you first saw him as Opie on “The Andy Griffith Show” or Richie Cunningham on “Happy Days,” Or maybe his voice will forever be stuck in your head as the narrator in “Arrested Development.” Whatever springs to mind when you hear his name, you’re surely familiar with the career of Academy Award-winning director Ron Howard.  
 
Ron is one of the film and television world’s most enduring legends, with over 50 years in the entertainment industry as producer, director, writer, and star of some of the seminal works of his generation. 
 
We’re proud to welcome him to the ProMat stage to share his thoughts on the creative process, inspiration and the role of a mentor.

Learn more.

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 22 – 4:30 PM - 7:00 PM
Grand Ballroom S100 
 
Join us for an evening of recognition, networking and fun at MHI Industry Night at ProMat. This event will feature the naming of the 2023 MHI Innovation Award winners as well as laughs from comedian Nate Bargatze. Bargatze was featured as one of Esquire's 'Best New Comedians' by Jim Gaffigan, one of Marc Maron's 'Comedians to Watch' in Rolling Stone, one of Variety's "10 Comics to Watch,” and as #1 on Vulture's '50 Comedians You Should Know.’ He has two Netflix specials, The Greatest Average American or The Tennessee Kid and a weekly podcast called Nateland. 
 
Note: This event is currently sold out. Only those with tickets can attend.

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Attabotics
Best of MODEX Daily
  
 
“We show up at our best, giving people the best we can, because that sends a message.” This statement from José Andrés resonated with the 1,000+ attendees at Tuesday morning's keynote. This world-famous chef is known for more than just his food—he runs the World Central Kitchen (WCK), a nonprofit organization that provides hot meals to people affected by natural disasters and other crises around the world. Hot meals provide more sustenance and support than just donating food, according to Andrés.
 
Born in Spain, Andrés became a household name in the culinary world. He opened a number of successful restaurants, wrote cookbooks and appeared on TV shows. But it wasn't until 2010 that he truly became a global figure with the founding of the WCK. The organization has responded to dozens of disasters and emergencies around the world. In the aftermath of the 2010 earthquake in Haiti, for example, WCK set up a network of food trucks that served hot meals to thousands of people each day. In Puerto Rico, following Hurricane Maria in 2017, they provided more than 3 million meals—and in each location, they tailor what they cook to the regional cuisine for added comfort.
 
Providing food during these emergencies is a massive logistical undertaking—getting food brought in, cooked and distributed in a landscape that’s already a disaster zone has proven to be very challenging. The speed in which he mobilizes is incredible. Andrés said, to make this work, they don't wait for everything to run perfectly. He said they "embrace the complexity of the moment." Rather than planning for every possibility, they start helping and adapt as they go. Andrés said that being pragmatic about what you need to get started allows you to start sooner and adapt and grow along the way.
 
According to Andrés, "The mission has to be clear, and the mission has to be shared by all." The WCK mission is very simple: Provide food and water to people in need. For companies, it’s important for employees to have a common goal and work towards that goal across departments. Fulfilling that mission or goal requires working at two speeds—long-term (e.g., filling the warehouse so many people can be fed) and immediate (feeding some people now). So, a takeaway for ProMat attendees can be: The job is not to fill the warehouse; the job is to serve the customer. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The StartUp Pavilion is a specialized area on the ProMat show floor where companies showcase emerging supply chain tech and innovation. 

Companies in the StartUp Pavilion embrace an innovative, disruptive and/or higher impact technology.

Click here to read more.

 

Daily Schedule

ProMat is your unrivaled opportunity in 2023 to find solutions and leading solution-providers, connect with your peers and learn the latest trends and technologies that can help you touch the future of supply chain success. This year at Promat, you’ll find over 1,000 of the world’s leading manufacturing and supply chain solution providers, as well as hands-on demonstrations and 150 educational seminars. The conference sessions mentioned below are located in the Emerging Technology Theater and Robotics & Automation Theater on the ProMat show floor, and additional education seminars are located in Theaters A-I on the show floor.


EXPO HOURS
: 10:00 AM – 5:00 PM

ON-FLOOR EDUCATION SEMINARS: Starting at 10:15 AM

KEYNOTE: 2023 ANNUAL INDUSTRY REPORT
8:45 AM, Grand Ballroom S100
Presented by John Paxton, CEO, MHI and Wanda Johnson, Specialist Leader, Deloitte

KEYNOTE: A CONVERSATION WITH RON HOWARD
1:00 PM, Grand Ballroom S100

MHI INDUSTRY NIGHT WITH NATE BARGATZE
4:30 PM - 7:00 PM, Grand Ballroom S100
Note: This event is currently sold out. Only those with tickets can attend.

Click here to view the full list of Wednesday's educational sessions.


EMERGING TECHNOLOGIES THEATER

The ProMat Emerging Technology Theater will include sessions on some of the most innovative manufacturing and supply chain trends and technologies.

10:30 AM – 11:15 AM : Picking May Be The Star, But It’s Time To Put Upstream Processes Into The Spotlight
11:30 AM – 12:15 PM : The Future of Packaging - How To Boost Order Fulfillment To Meet E-Commerce Demands With Fit-To-Size Automated Packaging
2:30 PM – 3:15 PM : Warehouse Optimization: Same Space, Better Results
3:30 PM – 4:15 PM : Get Started with Robots-as-a-Service to Immediately Increase Productivity and Supplement Labor


ROBOTICS & AUTOMATION THEATER
The Robotics & Automation Theater will include sessions on some of the most innovative trends and technologies.

10:15 AM – 11:00 AM : TRG (The Robotics Group) of MHI presents: Tracking Project ROI
11:15 AM – 12:00 PM : How Reliable Robotics Ensures Retail Fulfillment Success
12:15 PM – 1:00 PM : Next Gen Order Fulfillment Powered by Flexible Robotics
1:15 PM – 2:00 PM : Bringing Automation to the Masses
2:15 PM – 3:00 PM : Warehouse Automation Trends & Innovations 2023
3:15 PM – 4:00 PM : MIX - Inspire the Next Warehousing

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MODEX Insights
Download the ProMat 2023 mobile app on your Apple iPhone® or Android® smartphone. Quickly view exhibitor information, a schedule of events, conference sessions, speaker information and a map of the show floor.
 
To download, open the Apple App Store or Google Play Store, search for ProMat 2023, and click on the install button.
 
Click here for more information.
  
Free Wi-Fi is available throughout the show. No password is required.
 
The network name is ProMat.
 

Spread the word about ProMat online and access show information, view posts from show management, other attendees and exhibitors, and have a chance to win giveaway prizes!

Twitter: Follow @poweredbymhi, and add the #ProMat2023 to your tweets.
LinkedIn: Join the ProMat 2023 LinkedIn® group for updates and discussions with attendees.
MHI Blog: Visit our blog for insightful articles about ProMat 2023.
YouTube: Join the ProMat 2023 YouTube® channel to view videos.
Instagram: Follow us on Instagram.
MHIview: View videos on the MHIview ProMat 2023 channel.

ProMat events end at 5 PM—looking for things to do this evening? Choose Chicago's website has a wealth of information, including:

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Our weekly artificial intelligence (AI) newsletter, MHI Newswire, uses AI to customize your newsletter. Each week, the articles contained in your MHI Newswire will be selected by the AI program as ones that will interest you most based on your clicking and reading habits from previous weeks. The more articles you click, the more the program will be able to finetune its selections for you, giving you a truly customized reading experience. Subscribe today!

 
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Generix Group
Videos & Sponsors

The video from the second day of ProMat 2023 has been posted!

Don't miss this recap of yesterday's proceedings.

Click here to watch the video. 

This issue of MHI Solutions focuses on current advances in technology, including AI, robotics, AMR and more. This issue also includes details on ProMat 2023 to help you plan your conference experience.  
 
Want to learn more about  MHI Solutions magazine or MHI? Visit MHISolutionsmag.com, access the online media guide, or reach out to:
Carol Miller, MHI Chief Marketing Officer, at cmiller@mhi.org
Robin Lamerson, Naylor Association Solutions Editor, at robin@naylor.com
Jason Zawada, Naylor Association Solutions Integrated Media Director, at jzawada@naylor.com 
 
Click here to learn more.