Declaring that
“extraordinary times call for extraordinary measures,” SPI president
and CEO William R. Carteaux announced earlier this week a “Stimulus
Package” of discounts and incentives that reduces the cost of
participating in the NPE2009 international plastics event for every
single exhibiting company and attendee. NPE2009 takes place June
22-26 at Chicago’s McCormick Place and is produced by SPI: The
Plastics Industry Trade Association.
In presenting
the Stimulus Package, Carteaux said of today’s global economic
crisis: “Right now we are in uncharted waters. No one knows what
the future holds. As much as we would like, none of us can change
the current economic situation. But what we can do is stop
the negative rhetoric. No other manufacturing industry affects as
many sectors of the global economy as plastics—so we need to step up
and lead the way. And the best place to do just that is NPE2009.
That is why SPI’s executive leadership is taking extraordinary
measures to encourage exhibitors and attendees to participate in NPE.”
The Stimulus
Package provides incentives to all NPE2009 participants:
-
Exhibitors with 4,000 sq.ft.(371
sq.m) or more of contracted space will incur the highest
cost and so will receive the greatest benefits from the Stimulus
Package. They will be provided with a one-time move-in
allowance to help offset the cost of installing and running the
amount of equipment necessary for a booth of this size.
-
Exhibitors with less than
4,000 sq.ft. (371 sq.m) will receive an across-the-board
credit of $1.50 per sq.ft. of space toward the cost of general
contracting services, paid by SPI directly to Freeman, the
general contractor for NPE2009.
-
Attendees Individual attendees will pay the 2006 rate of
$60 (a $20 discount). Buying teams with six or more registrants
will pay $50 per person. Companies registering more than 20
employees at a time will pay $40. In addition, SPI has doubled
the number of VIP passes available from exhibitors for
complimentary registration from 170,000 to 340,000. SPI is also
offering deep discounts to those who register for the co-located
“Business of Plastics Conference” by May 1.
“To make the
Stimulus Package possible, SPI has lowered its margins and worked
with our Chicago-based vendors to cut its own operational expenses
so that savings can be passed through to exhibitors and attendees
without compromising services,” said Gene Sanders, SPI vice
president of trade shows.
Sanders also
noted that, in part because of SPI lobbying efforts, the recently
enacted U.S. federal stimulus package contains a tax law provision
that dramatically shortens the period in which companies can recover
the cost of capital equipment purchases, allowing them to write off
50% of their investments before the end of 2009. “This gives
attendees at NPE2009 extra incentive to shop for plastics machinery
right on the show floor,” Sanders said.
For more
information, visit
www.npe.org or
www.plasticsindustry.org.