Published 8/29/2022

Full conference programming announced for CAMX 2022

The conference program’s list of eight featured sessions have been released for this year’s event in Anaheim, California, focusing on the composites industry’s hottest topics.

CAMX

Edited by: Grace Nehls

Senior Managing Editor, CompositesWorld

The conference program’s list of featured sessions have been released for this year’s CAMX – The Composites and Advanced Materials Expo. Other details, including featured content, technical and education sessions, upcoming panels and interviews and comprehensive tutorials are also available for those attending (learn more at “What to expect at CAMX 2022”). CAMX is taking place at the Anaheim Convention Center in Anaheim, Calif., U.S. from Oct. 17-20, 2022.

CAMX offers a robust conference program with sessions that focus on the industry’s hottest topics and continued growth. Inspiring featured sessions are hosted live and provide the latest knowledge and information on the issues that are impacting the industry today.

Attendees can plan to attend the following:

“Outlook for Sustainability in Composites Manufacturing” |Tuesday, Oct. 18, 1:00 – 2:15 p.m.

Presented by Jeff Sloan, editor-in-chief, CompositesWorld

Consumers and OEMs are increasingly demanding that the products and services they use conform to a host of new standards in terms of decarbonization, social equity, gender equity, waste reduction, energy efficiency and much more. The demands are flowing down the entire composites value stream, compelling material suppliers and fabricators to rethink, redesign and re-engineer how they apply and process composite materials. A sustainability strategy or roadmap is quickly becoming a must-have for anyone involved in composites manufacturing. This panel will help you understand what’s driving the sustainability movement, how it will impact your business, steps you can take to develop a sustainability strategy and what the outlook is for sustainability’s ongoing impact.

“Net Zero: What Does it Mean to the End User?” | Tuesday, Oct. 18, 3:30 – 4:45 p.m.,

Presented by John Busel, F.ACI, ACMA VP, Composites Growth Initiative and Dan Coughlin, leader of industrial collaborations, Oak Ridge National Laboratory

Composites customers across a wide range of industries have developed and announced environmental, social and governance (ESG) and sustainability goals that extend for the next two decades or more, and material preferences are already emerging in this rapidly changing environment. As an industry, composite manufacturers and suppliers will face internal challenges to meet these requirements and new competitors will emerge that are eager to help customers reach these ambitious sustainable material goals.

In this session, attendees will have the opportunity to learn how best to position their business for success with a panel that includes representatives from leading OEMs in the transportation, aerospace, marine, and renewable energy industries. Bring your questions for this interactive panel while you learn and network with experienced speakers and inquisitive attendees.

“Resin Chemistry Advancements Meeing Future Market Opportunities” Wednesday, Oct. 19, 9:00 – 10:15 a.m.

Presented by Brent Strong, chief technology officer (CTO), UAMMI

Since the early days of the composites industry, resin chemistry has played an important role with meeting the needs of new markets and overcoming barriers to entry. Today, the same holds true with resins being developed for high performance, high temperature, sustainability and other market applications and opportunities which has fostered innovation. This panel of experts will share with attendees the lessons learned from past innovations as we look forward to the future with new requirements and trends in a broad range of market opportunities. The panelists will focus on today’s innovations and how this will ignite new markets and solving the barriers to acceptance in new markets.

“The Bi-partisan Infrastructure Law and the Opportunities for Composites” | Wednesday, Oct. 19, 11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.

Presented by Gregory G. Nadeau, CEO, Infrastructure Ventures LLC; former administrator for USDOT/FHWA

Historic levels of federal transportation infrastructure investment will catalyze opportunities for the composites industry to compete in this sector that exceeds $200 billion in federal, state and local funding each year. The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) is a five-year bill that includes $47 billion in formula and grant funds for bridges alone, as well as the market for other structures and concrete reinforcement that will expand opportunities for composites significantly. In addition to IIJA funding, the combination of steel prices and availability make this the ideal time to mobilize a national industry effort to engage with state departments of transportation, where these decisions are made.

Gregory Nadeau will lead a discussion about the opportunities for agencies like CalTrans and DOT’s across America to build structures with composites technology that are more sustainable due to longer life cycles and less energy consumed in the manufacturing process versus conventional materials.

“How Materials and Design Enable Future Transportation” | Wednesday, Oct. 19, 1:00 – 2:00 p.m.

As transportation and vehicles are evolving, greater attention is being given to options that are safer, more affordable and have a reduced impact on the environment. These priorities drive both the design and the materials being use for automated vehicles. In this discussion, developers will share how composite materials enable more advanced designs and how this will change the transport of goods and people for the future.

This session is developed with the support of the Association for Uncrewed Vehicle Systems International (AUVSI).

“The Journey of NASA Technology to Commercial Viability” Wednesday, Oct. 19, 2:15 – 3:00 p.m.

Presented by Trent Smith, NASA manager, KSC Technology Transfer Program

This presentation will bring together attendees and a NASA engineer to discuss ways that the industry can engage with NASA by licensing NASA technologies and providing technology solutions to fill their gaps.

“Ceramic Composites Manufacturing Routes” | Wednesday, Oct. 19, 3:15 – 4:30 p.m.

Presented by Steve Nutt, researcher, University of Southern California

The drive for lighter materials to withstand higher temperatures continues unabated, and has led to CMC (ceramic matrix composites) insertion into turbine engines, primarily in the aft sections. This trend has relied primarily on three distinct manufacturing approaches — reactive melt infiltration, sintering of slurry-infiltrated prepreg and PIP (polymer infiltration and pyrolysis) followed by sintering. The panel will discuss the processing/performance challenges, economic merits and limitations of the three approaches, as well as the applications and material systems to which each is best suited. Potential for new/alternative processing approaches and material systems will be discussed, along with challenges that must be overcome.

“Adhesive Selection and Sustainable Bonding” | Thursday, Oct. 20, 9:30 – 10:30 a.m.

Presented by Maggic McKenney, technical service coordinator, Bostick

This interactive panel will discuss a range of subjects, including adhesive selection, substrate considerations, wetting and surface energy, sustainability and other topics. It will be a moderated discussion between the panelists and the CAMX audience, providing an opportunity for attendees to ask questions and get answers. This event will be held on the exhibition show floor.

For more information about CAMX, visit thecamx.org