One problem: the team was consistently being over worked and stretched too thin. Way over worked. Take a look at Gary Mintchell’s travel itinerary if you need convincing!
The original idea was to keep the team lean, but you reach a certain point where you are stifling creativity and limiting growth.
Particularly when it comes to developing live events, expanding our offering of custom publishing products, or trying to keep up with covering the many user groups our advertisers host, we needed to expand.
I first met Dave Greenfield at the ARC conference in Orlando earlier this year and discovered we are both musicians. We got together again at Hannover Fair where I learned he home brews beer. (Our whole team loves to consume beer—coincidence? I think not.) From a few conversations, it was clear we also share the same vision for where business-to-business publishing is headed, and I became convinced he could be a valuable addition to the Automation World team.
Fortunately for us and you, he agreed! Dave comes from Design News where he worked the automation and controls beat, and has worked at Control Engineering as well. A bonus: He worked at CE with Renee Bassett, our new Managing Editor. Kismet! Dave’s new title, director of media and events, should give you a clue that his position is far outside the box as we stake out new territory here at AW.
Dave will work with AW co-founder and Editor-In-Chief Gary Mintchell assisting in print, online, with custom projects, and in building a new event based on the success of our Packaging Automation Forum. His first editorial contribution can be found this issue on page 18 and he heads up a great online discussion group via LinkedIn with 700+ participants and counting. (Find it at http://bit.ly/automationworld)
We welcome Dave to the AW family. My new role? Harnessing all his energy and ideas. Wish me luck!
Jim Chrzan is the publisher of Automation World. He can be reached by e-mail at [email protected]
David Greenfield is Automation World's Director, Media and Events and can be reached by e-mail at [email protected] or by phone at 678.662.3322
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Look for These Upcoming Automation World Features
September 2011 – Manufacturing and Business Process
Is EMI Coming to a Plant Near You? Gary Mintchell, Automation World Editor in Chief, explores the meaning and utility behind the latest manufacturing buzzword, Enterprise Manufacturing Intelligence.
Planning Your Work; Working Your Plan. Technology for capturing and automating workflow instructions is helping companies harness employee expertise, encourage collaboration and complete projects. James Koelsch, Automation World Contributing Editor, describes how engineers and managers are implementing this to improve operations and profitability.
October 2011 - Networks and Communications
WirelessHart or ISA100? Nothing has been more controversial in automation for the past few years than deciding what technology will rule wireless sensor networks. Renee Robbins Bassett, Automation World Managing Editor, checks into the technologies, applications and potential for convergence.
Internet of Things Meets Manufacturing. In his inaugural article with Automation World, Media and Events Director David Greenfield describes how engineers and managers are implementing machine-to-machine communications (M2M), now often referred to as “The Internet of Things,” to improve operations and profitability.
