While my calendar says that spring doesn’t begin until March 21, I tend to abide by meteorological spring — March 1 — as to the unofficial start of the season, even though I still see snow mounds outside my window as I write this. 

Those of us who reside in U.S. northern states have developed a major craving for warmer weather at this point every year, and it has me looking forward to attending at least a couple of in-person industry events in the next few months.

Like I did before the busy fall 2022 events schedule, I’m providing a basic rundown of the in-person industry events that are on MDM’s radar, regardless of whether or not we plan to attend them. I’ve stated several times in MDM blogs that attending these events is one of the things I enjoy most about our editorial coverage, as there’s no better way to learn about the industry and keep an ear to the ground on its trends and challenges than actually getting out there and seeing it in person.

With that preamble out of the way, here are the upcoming spring (March-May) in-person industry events in the industrial, commercial and building material sectors that MDM provides regular coverage of. This includes dates, the name of the host association, location and hyperlinks to event webpages, if available:

• March 13-15: AD Industrial & Safety – US Spring Network Meeting – Tampa, FL
• March 13-16: University of Innovative Distribution – Indianapolis, IN
• March 20-23: PROMAT 2023 – Chicago, IL
• March 21-24: AD Bearings & Power Transmission North American Meeting – San Diego, CA
• April 14-20: AD Gypsum Supply Spring Meeting – San Antonio, TX
• April 17-19: Industrial Supply Association’s ISA23 Annual Convention – Phoenix, AZ
• April 17-19: Adhesive and Sealant Council 2023 Annual Convention & Expo – New Orleans, LA
• April 18-20: Precision Manufacturing Technology Show 2023 – Cleveland, OH
• April 18-20: AD Decorative Brands Annual Meeting – Boston, MA
• April 24-26: DPA Buying Group 2023 Conference – Jacksonville, FL
• April 29-May 2: Bearings Specialists Association 2023 Convention – Sarasota, FL
• April 29-May 3: NAHAD 2023 Convention – Bahamas
• May 1-3: B2BOnline – Chicago, IL
• May 3-5: AD PHCP Spring Network Meeting – Nashville, TN
• May 6-8: GAWDA Spring Management Conference – Philadelphia, PA
• May 9-11: HARDI Focus Conference – St. Louis, MO
• May 10-12: BearingNet U.S. User Conference – Orlando, FL
• May 10-12: AD Electrical Spring Network Meeting – Nashville, TN
• May 17-18: Reuters Supply Chain USA 2023 – Chicago, IL
• May 22-25: Automate – Detroit, MI

This is by no means a complete list, as I’m sure there’s at least a few I’m overlooking — or that just weren’t on my radar. So, if I’m missing something here that you think should be included, let me know at mike@mdm.com.

Of these, I plan to attend ISA23 in Phoenix and NAHAD’s Convention in the Bahamas (and soak up some great sun in the process.) As always, you can expect to see plenty of key takeaways from content sessions I attend at those events, and I’ll be looking to continue MDM’s ‘Industry Voices’ podcasts, comprised of a collection of brief interviews with distributor attendees. Check out a couple recent examples of those below:

• MDM Podcast: NAW Voices — What Are Distributors Seeing Out There? (February 2023)
• MDM Podcast: Voices from ISA’s Women in Industry Summit (December 2022)

Other recent MDM Podcasts featured leaders of the associations hosting these events:

• MDM Podcast: Brendan Breen on Year-Round Association Engagement (February 2023)
• MDM Podcast: PTDA Leader on Adapting to Modern Recruiting Demands (November 2022)
• MDM Podcast: NAHAD Ensures Its Hard-Working Members Get to Play Hard (May 2022)

And while it’s a little further out, I certainly want to put in a plug for MDM’s own 2023 SHIFT | The Future of Distribution conference that we’re hosting Sept. 18-20 in downtown Denver. We’re currently assembling an all-star roster of expert speakers for a content program that will inform attendees on numerous topics within tracks of digital transformation, hybrid sales and analytics, along with talent and culture best practices.

We’re still 6+ months out from SHIFT, but we already have a great collection of distributors and manufacturers set to be represented in attendance, including:

• ACIControls
• Adams
• Alaska Rubber Group
• Automation24
• Canadian Bearings
• Curbell Plastics
• IBT Industrial Solutions
• INPACS
• Motion & Control Enterprises
• Northstock
• Pipeline Packaging
• Rocket Industrial
• Saint-Gobain
• U.S. Electrical Services
• Valin
  

Bring your leadership team and sharpen your competitive edge. We’d love to see you there! Prices increase after March 31.