SAE World Congress 2008: A Climate for Change

In this most challenging of times for car companies, the 2008 SAE World Congress, to be held April 14 through 17 in Detroit, hopes to offer inspiration with the forward-looking theme, “A Climate for Change.” Dave Amati, Director of Global Automotive Business and Automotive Headquarters for SAE, puts it this way: “One thing we strive to do all the time is to bring the very latest technology, which includes the research and development that the suppliers and the OEMs are doing, to the forefront and make that available on a personal basis, that is, to hear it from those who are doing the research and have interaction with them after their presentations.”

At this year’s congress, authors will deliver nearly 1,400 papers in such key technology areas as electronics, powertrain, emissions and environment, materials technology, and safety. Amati sees this as a great opportunity for discussion and collaboration among researchers and companies, collaboration “that always leads to better technology and better products for the consumers.” The authors of the papers will come from all over the world, representing more than 50 countries. It is expected that there will be greater participation than ever before by Asian OEMs and suppliers, second only to North American participants.

For senior executives, the 2008 World Congress will have added value this year in that it will offer “theaters,” which are three forums built as physical structures on the exhibit floor that seat between 200 and 400 people, where attendees can participate in executive-level conferences. These conferences are panels of senior-level executives examining the issues that they believe are most important to the industry as a whole.

“We can bring executives to a stage,” says Amati, “to talk about issues that are important to other executives, the leaders and decision-makers from the OEMs and suppliers around the world. We have more than 100 senior executives, including CEOs from OEM and supplier companies from all over the globe, who will be sitting on those panels over the course of the four days.” The third of the three theaters is new this year. It will address the high-level topics of Innovation, Financial Strategies, and Globalization Issues from an executive perspective. This panel is designed to attract such executives as the chief technical officer, the chief financial officer, the strategy people within a company, those executives with a high-level of influence and decision-making in these companies.

“One of the things we’ve learned in the last couple of years,” Amati says, “is that, in this worldwide industry, we can’t survive alone, as individual companies. We have to collaborate; we have to work together. The SAE Congress is a perfect place to do that and to create new opportunities for collaboration.” There are opportunities on a technical level, on an executive level, and, because the World Congress will have more than 600 exhibitors showing their products this year, it also offers a supplier to OEM interface. “It’s a neutral forum,” Amati says, “a global marketplace.”

Amati adds that the manufacturers’ support for the World Congress is very strong. He cites what’s called the Industry Leadership Coalition. This coalition is a group of about 200 senior executives who provide advice, guidance, support, as well as their participation in the World Congress. “These are the CEOs of the top 150 supplier companies and the most senior engineering executives in the car companies,” Amati says. “That list of approximately 200 leaders comes together three times a year to talk about how to support and become engaged in the World Congress and that group has led by the OEMs. They are the true driver in creating the success of the World Congress.” This year, the host company for the congress is Chrysler, and its executive vice president of product development, Frank Klegon, is the chair. Amati recognized that the support and participation of the Industry Leadership Coalition is vital. The industry follows their lead. “We’re very pleased with the level of support from OEM leadership and the CEOs of the world’s top suppliers.”

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