[00:00:00] Speaker A: We get a lot of executives in C suite to the floor. Also, of course, like engineers of every scope that you could imagine.
[00:00:14] Speaker B: Hello everyone and welcome to the Robot Industry Podcast. I'm Jim Beretta and I'm your host and I'd like to welcome. Actually, we've got three guests on our podcast today. I've got Kaylee Kavinge, I've got Annie Helfco, and I've got Gail Hutches, all from the ADM Toronto 2025 team. And first off, I'd like to welcome Kayleigh. Kayleigh, thanks for joining me today to talk about the ADM Toronto show. Can you tell our studio audience a little bit about who you are and who Informa is?
[00:00:45] Speaker A: Yeah. Hi Jim. Yeah, great to talk today. So, yeah, Informa is the world's leading exhibition organizer and I everyone on this call actually works for specifically the Engineering and Manufacturing Group, which within our organization we produce more than 50 events and conferences in over a dozen countries connecting manufacturing professionals from around the globe. But what I do is I am the event director for two manufacturing events, one in Toronto and one in Montreal. It's the ADM events. And this year is a Toronto year, next year will be Montreal.
[00:01:22] Speaker B: And what does ADM stand for?
[00:01:24] Speaker A: ADM stands for Advanced Design and Manufacturing. It's a broad manufacturing event, but we definitely use the ADM moniker and we.
[00:01:32] Speaker B: Of course work together. You're my client and I've worked together for you guys for a long, long time and really love working with you. And I love the series of shows because it's very synergistic. What days are the show?
[00:01:44] Speaker A: Yeah, so October 21st through 23rd, Saturday. So coming up next month. And it's at the Toronto Congress Center.
[00:01:51] Speaker B: And where's the Toronto Congress center located? For those people who I think everybody knows who's coming, but just in case.
[00:01:57] Speaker A: It'S actually in Etobicoke, not in Toronto.
[00:02:02] Speaker B: And ADM is one big show.
So one ticket gets you into the entire show. But how's it divided up?
[00:02:09] Speaker A: Yeah, so we divide the show mostly for the purpose of just helping attendees really find the technology that they're looking for. So we split the expo floor up into what is now six sections. So we have packaging and automation, which is our largest two.
And then we've got design, plastics, processing, and then new this year is EV technology.
[00:02:35] Speaker B: There's a certain randomness I like about the ADM series of shows because you get so many different people coming from the show. How many people are you expecting?
[00:02:43] Speaker A: Yeah, we're expecting over 6,000 people in the building, and that's alongside of 350 exhibiting companies. And like you said, it is a little random. ADM really is a manufacturing show that represents the entire supply chain. So that's everything from like, conception and design to 3D printing, automation, robotics and packaging, and even, like, shipping and logistics. So all the manufacturing community really has the opportunity to meet under one roof.
[00:03:15] Speaker B: And who are some of the partners in the event? I know you have a lot of partners. Probably too many to mention, but who are some of them?
[00:03:20] Speaker A: Yeah, we have a ton of partners, you know, and this year especially, I feel like the number of partners we have has grown so much. First and foremost is packed global. They are our, you know, longtime supporter of the show and specifically of the packaging sector. And this year, they are actually going to be hosting a theater that's completely dedicated to reusable and sustainable packaging. And then on that third day of the show, it'll convert from a theater to a bunch of showcases.
This actual, like, reusable products and technology, and they're hosting this with Environment and Climate Change Canada. We also have participation from plenty of the local engineering societies. So we have peo, swe, ospe, they are all partnering up on a career and workforce development feature, which we're calling ADM Pathways.
That's going to be happening on Thursday. And my colleague Annie will share some more information about that later on in this podcast. But. But outside of that, we have Accelerate, which is Canada's ZEV supply chain alliance. We have Chamber of, Canadian Chamber of Commerce, and our media partner is Annex Business Media, who collaborates with us on a lot of the content on the show as well.
[00:04:31] Speaker B: And so who are some of the exhibitors that you have? And I know we've got 330 or 350 or something like that. So just who are some of the highlight visitors? I mean, companies and brands I might see.
[00:04:42] Speaker A: Yeah, so it's a huge range, like we mentioned before. But in the show, we have Beckoff, Capmatic, Vuban, Multivac, Riser, Absolute, Haitian, Jennicky, and Johansson and Shunk, just to name a few.
[00:04:55] Speaker B: It's always good to get some of these names out there because I. And I know there's a lot of robot companies out there and also a lot of robot accessory companies. So it's kind of. Because wherever the robot guys go, the accessory guys go and the vision guys go. So I think there's gonna be a lot of cool technologies that are people people will see. So who do you expect to attend the show, like what titles do you think are going to be there as attendees?
[00:05:18] Speaker A: Yeah, I think if it's okay, I'd like to start with some of the industries because I think is super important.
So we have interest in already registrations from leaders in fnb, cosmetics and personal care, pharmaceuticals, defense, automotive. So like I said, it is so broad. Right. And those companies include Pratt and Whitney, Nestle, Honda, General Dynamics, Stellantis, SD Lauder, Unilever, Sun Pharma, MDA Space. So pretty much the whole, like I said, the whole breadth of manufacturing. And we have so many verticals that, you know, robotics is a perfect example. Right. Like every single one of these industries needs to source. Robotics uses robotics, leverages it. So it's very, you know, all encompassing. But in terms of job titles, we get a lot of executives in C suite to the floor also, of course, like engineers of every scope that you could imagine. Production and operations titles, we get a lot of R and D experts and a lot of government actually. So really just anyone who is looking to either source technology themselves or who are just trying to stay up to date with what's happening in the manufacturing industry, especially at a time like now where there's so many changes and so can sometimes be so volatile. So there's something there for everybody.
[00:06:38] Speaker B: So we've, you and I have worked together through the pandemic and through lots of changes, but this show floor, so the, the ADM 2025 show floor is really successful. It's full of exhibitors. And what do you think some of that reasons are for it so to be so busy this year?
[00:06:54] Speaker A: Yeah, I think it's a lot of things.
You know, I think part of it is the political climate.
And I think it's really made manufacturers in Canada, you know, kind of think about how can we change our supply chains. And a lot of that is locally and interprovincially within Canada. And then the other part of that would be internationally. So yeah, I think manufacturers have just realized like, and not just manufacturers, but companies in general in Canada have realized that there's so many amazing innovators and suppliers that are here in their backyard.
So why not invest in that and look to that and then on the international side, really looking for international partners to expand globally.
The Toronto show has kind of turned into more of a international showcase than just necessarily Ontario.
And I think that says a lot about what's going on in the world right now. And there's lots of interest in Canada like you and I have talked about, Jim. Canada is open for Business. Right.
There's so much innovation there, there's so much investment there. So I think our floor just represents that.
[00:08:05] Speaker B: One of the things that you mentioned in the opening was about a theater. And so can you talk a little bit about a bunch of the education going on? Because of course I've been working on it with you. But can you tell them, tell us a little bit about all the things that are going on?
[00:08:19] Speaker A: Yeah. So, you know, yeah, like you had mentioned, you've really helped us with the content over the last few years, especially to bring in leaders in like the robotics and automation space.
We have a paid conference for the first time because there's really been this need we've seen over the last few years for much deeper, more technical content giving, you know, people an opportunity to really dive in. So on Tuesday, we have a conference track on international and interprovincial trade, where we're even going to have government officials, people speak about, use case or. Yeah, like case studies of them having already diversified their supply chain and what happened? How did that impact their business?
We have a representation from different provinces to talk about ways to do trade with those provinces. So that's our Tuesday track on Wednesday.
Because we have had this kind of newfound interest from the EV community to take place or to take part in ADM Toronto, we are doing two workshops on batteries, specifically batteries for automotive. So the first is battery safety, and then the second is battery and EV technology coming out of China, which should be a very great presentation. So outside of those paid aspects, our expo floor has three theaters on it which are open to everyone. You do not need to have a conference pass to attend these.
So the first is our center stage, which Jim, of course, you've been working the most on. It is a lot of automation, it's a lot of robotics sessions, and then a lot of, like, industry updates. So, like, what's happening in F and B and what do manufacturers need to know? What's going on in the cosmetics industry? Has there been any policy changes that manufacturers need to know? So that's kind of like our broad stage, our most general contact content that really appeals to everyone who's attending. Then we have our tech theater, which is part of it is exhibitor demos, which is great if you're trying to come and source technology and really kind of hear pitches from exhibitors of what their technology can do and the benefits of it.
And then on Thursday, we have this ADM Pathways program that I mentioned, and that is a, you know, a workforce and labor force and career really development feature. And we have sessions there like the one you're leading, Jim, talking about, you know, LinkedIn optimization and resume SEO. We're going to have sessions about how to leverage universities for upcoming talent.
We're going to have sessions on, you know, what are the benefits of joining engineering societies and why you should and how you can. And then our final stage is the one I had mentioned before with PAC Global and the eccc which should be, you know, really good to have a dedicated stage for the packaging industry. Like I mentioned, packaging is our biggest section of the floor. So to have a dedicated stage to them this year is great.
[00:11:22] Speaker B: Thank you for that, Kayleigh. And I'd like to bring in Annie Helfcott to our conversation. Annie, you're part of the show and you're taking care of a lot of the mentor mentee part of ADM 2025, correct?
[00:11:34] Speaker C: Yep, that's. That's right. It's my second time running a program like this for an informa show, so I'm really excited to be on board and kind of get that going.
[00:11:43] Speaker B: Excellent. So what's going to happen for these students that are coming in and they have to register for this? Right.
[00:11:49] Speaker C: So in registration, up until a couple of days ago, there was a question in the registration flow that asked whether or not folks were interested in this program and whether they'd like to be a mentee or a mentor.
The question's no longer there for anybody who are to register upcoming because Kayleigh and I are only human and can only. We need some time to match these folks so they can meet on site.
So yeah, they'll register for it ahead of time. And then they've been recently sent a matching survey to collect some data on their interests, experience level on both sides, things like that, that'll be used for the matching process.
[00:12:28] Speaker B: And so they're actually. This is like a one to one match. Right. So that's going to be kind of exciting.
[00:12:33] Speaker C: Yeah, absolutely. We're going to hope for a one to one match almost everywhere we can. We've had some very gracious mentors that have agreed to take up to two folks, but it won't be any more than two to one. So really a very curated personalized mentor mentee relationship on site.
[00:12:49] Speaker B: And is there kind of like an ROI to the mentee mentor thing because you've done this before?
[00:12:55] Speaker C: Yes, I think that a lot of folks see the ROI for the mentee first and foremost. That kind of almost seems obvious. You know, they get all this, this wealth of knowledge, the wisdom the great sessions that have been put together.
But for the mentors as well, one, we can always learn from somebody regardless of which way the experience goes. But two, there's such a long term advantage to creating a relationship with folks who are coming up in the industry, whether students are in their first year or two, what better way for an exhibitor or a director or an attendee who's higher level to really get some skin in the game than to have an attendee or a young person come back three years later and go, I learned all the skills I needed because I went to ADM Toronto a couple of years ago and now I really value this brand, this organization or company or position and I'm going to remember that and I'm going to come back in and be a mentor for their future people down the line as well. So it really, it fosters long term growth for everybody involved. So yes, there's an roi. Some of it's immediate and obvious and some of it, if you get into it, what you put into it. So some people are really going to see, you know, the seeds from this event blossom down the line too.
[00:14:15] Speaker B: Oh, that's great. And I'm very excited to see this and excited to be part of it. So I got two things going. So did we forget to talk about anything today?
[00:14:26] Speaker C: Not that I can think of.
[00:14:29] Speaker A: I can think of one thing. How to register for the events.
[00:14:33] Speaker B: I was going to say what is the, what's the website while we're at it? Kayleigh.
[00:14:36] Speaker A: Yeah, so registration of course is still open right now it's $35 for an expo pass.
For a one day conference pass it's 299. And for a all access pass which gets you access to all the conference pass, all the conference sessions, all of the closed networking sessions, all of the breakfast and happy hours and expo floor, that is $449. But if you register with the code shift, so that is S H I F T, you'll get a free Expo pass and 20% off conference just for listening to the robot industry podcast.
But you can do
[email protected] well, thank.
[00:15:24] Speaker B: You very much Annie, Kaylee and Gail for joining me today on the podcast. I think it's kind of fun to do with and we've got a lot of people in the GTA and across Ontario who are going to be visiting. But I also wanted to welcome our American guests over to ADM Toronto. It's a short drive for some of you, some of you, it's a little bit longer, but please come. We're open for business. We'd love to see you in Etobicoke. Right. Thanks very much, Kaylee. Thanks very much, Gail, and thanks very much, Annie.
