ASC to change format, enabling 'more diverse programming'

PITTSBURGH—The Adhesive & Sealant Council's annual convention format is about to change.

The association will follow its traditional two-convention format for 2016—one in April and one in October—to be held in New Orleans and Indianapolis. Then it will switch to offering only one convention in the spring of 2017.

ASC President Matt Croson said at the recent ASC Fall Convention and Expo in Pittsburgh that this will allow the ASC to offer more diverse programming throughout the year. Through a survey of members, 90 percent of respondents generally were supportive of the switch, including 67 percent in favor of it.

Replacing the second convention in the fall will be a leadership conference targeted toward top executives of adhesives and sealants firms. The association held a leadership conference in June.

“This isn't about just the two conferences,” said ASC Chair Traci Jensen, who is the senior vice president, Americas adhesives, at H.B. Fuller. “We really want to turn ASC into a full-year value generation for members.

“We want to make sure this is not looked at as taking away a convention, but giving the opportunity to add more value and more programming and things that are of current interest to attack the issues and objectives of member companies.”

Jensen said the association still is formulating the layout of the executive leadership program, but the driving force behind the change is to bring two different kinds of conferences to the membership.

“I think it's going to be a good meeting calendar schedule that will deliver value for years to come,” Croson said.

Closer on the horizon is the association's certificate program, which Croson said is set to come online in the first or second quarter of 2016.

The program will require trainees to complete 12 courses from the ASC's on-demand webinar library. The association currently has 45 on-demand webinars under its Training Academy umbrella and produces 15 new webinars per year.

“Every time we do a live webinar, we put it on demand,” Croson said. “Every year, it will grow by 15. Periodically we'll review ones that were done earlier and update or replace them. Maybe the market has changed or it needs to be edited.”

The certificate program will have six core classes; trainees can then select six additional electives. Among the core offerings will be courses such as intro to polymer science, intro to adhesives, intro to adhesion and other webinars designed to touch on key fundamentals a new chemist needs to succeed in the industry.

After each course, the participant must pass a test to complete the certificate program.

“This isn't creating an MBA; it's not creating initials after your name,” Croson said. “But it's also not "I showed up, and I did it.' You're going to have to demonstrate some awareness and knowledge of what you learned. At the end of the day, you'll get recognized with a certificate.”

He said the ultimate value from the program comes from possible future partnerships with colleges and technical schools. The certificate program is designed to give hiring managers a tool to identify which chemists have demonstrated knowledge of the basics needed to succeed in the adhesives industry.

“It's going to be flexible,” Croson said of the program's pricing. “It's going to be approachable for both the big businesses and the smaller businesses. We think this is going to be an important part of their on-boarding process for new employees.”

He said the program is going to start with an adhesives certificate, but the program could expand into specialized certificates for certain industries within adhesives—such as automotive or packaging.

The training program is part of the association's larger goal to provide members a variety of programming throughout the year that touches industry professionals at various stages of their careers. In addition to webinars, the ASC holds five short courses a year designed to educate and train members.

Jensen said 75 people attended the polyurethanes short course at the 2015 Fall Expo.

“We wanted to look at our value proposition to our members,” she said. “We wanted to make sure we weren't a twice-a-year opportunity to meet people and then not think about ASC for the rest of the year. We wanted to make programming that is sustainable throughout the whole calendar year that provides different things for members with different needs.”

Jensen honored two members during the luncheon at the fall expo.

Covestro's Christine Bryant was honored for her longstanding service to the ASC board. Jensen said Bryant has spent a number of years on the board of directors and was a member of the ASC executive board for two years.

Deb Bhattacharjee, recently retired after 31 years with Dow Chemical, also was honored for his long service to ASC.

Financially, ASC had a successful 2015, posting a net surplus and adding 18 members to bring its total to 135. Membership has grown by 30 during Croson's five-year tenure.

“ASC is doing great,” said ASC Treasurer Chuck Williams, who is the senior research and development manager at Avery Dennison. “Revenues are up, expenses are down. We projected to have a loss at the beginning of the year, but right now we're sitting pretty good with a net surplus. We experienced lower than expected operational costs.”