Paris-based JEC Group, an organization dedicated to promoting the use of composites solutions, has formed a strategic alliance with Atlanta-based Messe Frankfurt Inc. North America — a subsidiary of Frankfurt-based trade show organizer Messe Frankfurt GmbH — in order to expand its resources in North America. As part of the partnership, JEC will colocate the spring 2014 edition of the JEC Americas Composites Show & Conferences with Messe Frankfurt's biennial Techtextil North America 2014 and Texprocess Americas trade shows and symposiums, to be held May 13-15, 2014, at the Georgia World Congress Center in Atlanta.
The first two JEC Americas shows and conferences were fall events held in Boston — first in a colocation with IFAI Expo Americas 2012 in November 2012, and this year as a stand-alone event that took place last week. The 2013 event featured 341 exhibitors and was expected to attract between 3,000 and 4,000 attendees. Final numbers were not available as of this writing.
Going forward, JEC plans to hold two Americas events annually, with a full show and conference schedule in the spring to focus on composites manufacturing, and a shorter conference-only schedule in the fall to focus on composite design. The spring 2014 event will include the Innovative Composites Summit Conferences, JEC Americas Innovation Awards and JEC Americas Innovation Showcase. JEC points out that locating the show in Atlanta offers a number of advantages, as the city is at the center of a scientific network comprising more than 30 universities and is also located in one of the Americas' key manufacturing areas.
