The Society of Plastics Engineers' Thermoforming Division is changing its annual conference from every year to every other year, officials announced Nov. 4.
The division has canceled plans for the 2020 SPE Thermoforming Conference and will hold the next conference on Sept. 20-22, 2021 in Grand Rapids, Mich.
"For the past several years, the division's board of directors has received feedback from attendees, sponsors and exhibitors that an annual conference is no longer what the industry needs," said Eric Short, chairman of the SPE Thermoforming Division. "The board felt that it was time to act by moving the conference to every other year. It wasn't an easy decision, but we are convinced that it was the right one."
Short added that the division plans to enrich the content of the conference and minimize conflicts with other events.
"Our challenge as a board is to develop creative strategies to continue to fulfill our mission during the non-conference years," Short said.
The 2019 conference, held Sept. 9-11 in Milwaukee, drew 534 people.