SPE Auto Innovation Awards. are open for nominations.
Press Release Summary:
Automotive Division of SPE® International has issued a Call for Part and Executive Nominations for its 40th Annual Automotive Innovation Awards Competition. During competition phase of event, dozens of teams, made up of OEMs, tier suppliers, consultants, and polymer producers, work for months to hone submission forms and presentations describing their part, system, or complete vehicle module and why it merits the claim as year's "Most Innovative Use of Plastics."
Original Press Release:
SPE Announces Call for Part, Exec Nominations for 40th Auto Innovation Awards Competition
TROY, (DETROIT) MICH. - The Automotive Division of the Society of Plastics Engineers (SPE®) International today issued a Call for Part & Executive Nominations for its 40th-annual Automotive Innovation Awards Competition. For four decades, the parts competition has honored the "Most Innovative Use of Plastics" in automotive and ground-transportation applications, becoming the largest competition of its kind in the world and the oldest and largest recognition event in the automotive and plastics industries. Since 2000, the group has also honored outstanding leadership among automotive and plastics industry executives that helps drive innovation. Part and executive award winners will be honored at the group's annual Automotive Innovation
Awards Gala, which this year will be held November 9, 2010 at Burton Manor
2010 SPE Automotive Innovation Awards Parts Competition
Since 1970, the SPE Automotive Innovation Awards Competition has highlighted the positive changes that polymeric materials have brought to the automotive and ground-transportation industries, such as weight reduction, parts consolidation, and enhanced aesthetics and design freedom. At the time the competition started, many OEM designers and engineers thought of plastics as inexpensive replacements for more "traditional" materials. To help communicate that plastics were capable of far more functionality than their typical use as decorative knobs and ashtrays indicated, members of SPE's Automotive Division Board of Directors created the Automotive Innovation Awards Competition to recognize successful and innovative plastics applications and to communicate their benefits to OEMs, media, and the public. Over the years,
the competition drew attention to plastics as an underutilized design tool and made industry aware of more progressive ways of designing, engineering, and manufacturing automotive components.
From its humble beginnings, the competition has grown to be one of the most fiercely contested recognition events in the plastics and automotive industries. Today, polymeric materials are no longer substitutes for more expensive materials, but rather are the materials of choice in hundreds of different applications throughout the vehicle. Without plastics, many of the auto industry's most common comfort, control, and safety applications would not be possible. Current competition categories include:
During the competition phase of the event, dozens of teams made up of OEMs, tier suppliers, consultants, and polymer producers work for months to hone submission forms and presentations describing their part, system, or complete vehicle module and why it merits the claim as the year's "Most Innovative Use of Plastics." To win, teams must survive a precompetition review and two rounds of presentations before industry and media judges.
Part nominations are due September 1, 2010 for applications that will appear on vehicles in commercial production no later than by November 1, 2010.
2010 SPE Automotive Innovation Awards Executive Competition
Starting in 2000, SPE's Automotive Division began recognizing outstanding leadership among automotive and plastics industry executives. Executives may self-nominate or be nominated by peers or members of their organizations. They must agree to accept the award in person at SPE's 2010 Automotive Innovation Awards Gala, on November 9. Nominations are currently being sought for the following award categories.
The Lifetime Achievement Award recognizes the technical achievements of automotive
industry executives whose work (in research, design, and engineering, etc.) has led to
significant integration of polymeric materials in vehicles. Bestowed since 2000, past winners include:
Thermal Systems;
The Executive Leadership Award was first given in 2004 and honors automotive executives who have demonstrated leadership in integrating polymeric materials on global vehicle platforms and who have been recognized both within the industry as well as in their community as leaders. While this award's recipient may not have been directly involved in fostering technical advances with polymers - as a recipient of SPE's Lifetime Achievement Award will have been - the honoree will have led his/her company to profitability, increased marketshare, and been at the helm of new vehicle launches that were considered a commercial success. The award's past recipients include:
The Special Recognition Award acknowledges a person or team that has made important
contributions in the automotive plastics arena. The winner may be an individual contributor or may have led a team, and may be employed in industry or academia. The area of contribution may include: Engineering (previously given to Dave Hill, retired Vehicle Chief Engineer for the Chevrolet Corvette and Vehicle Line Executive for Performance Cars at General Motors, Chris Theodore, vice-chairman, American Specialty Cars; and Lawrence Burns, vice-president, Research & Development and Strategic Planning, General Motors Corp.); Science (given in 2007 to Mr. Hiroaki Yamamoto, chief technology officer of Green Tokai Company, Ltd. for pioneering work in paint films); and/or Education (for those who have devoted themselves to advancing awareness and understanding about the benefits of plastic and rubber products).
The executive nomination form and flier are available at www.speautomotive.com/inno.htm. Executive nominations are due July 7, 2010.
SPE's Automotive Innovation Awards Gala typically draws 600-800 OEM engineers, automotive and plastics industry executives, and media. This glittering evening of celebration honors innovation and the hardworking teams that bring it to market. As is customary, funds raised from this event are used to support SPE educational efforts and technical seminars, which will help to secure the role of plastics in the advancement of the automobile.
The mission of SPE International is to promote scientific and engineering knowledge relating to plastics worldwide and to educate industry, academia, and the public about these advances. SPE's Automotive Division is active in educating, promoting, recognizing, and communicating technical accomplishments for all phases of plastics and plastic based-composite developments in the global transportation industry. Topic areas include applications, materials, processing, equipment, tooling, design, and development.
For more information about the Automotive Innovation Awards Competition and Gala or to
download nomination forms and rules, visit the SPE Automotive Division's website at
www.speautomotive.com/inno.htm, or contact the group at +1.248.244.8993, or write SPE
Automotive Division, 1800 Crooks Road, Suite A, Troy, MI 48084, USA. For more information on the Society of Plastics Engineers International or other SPE events, visit the SPE website at www.4spe.org, or call +1.203.775.0471.
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