The Agricultural Equipment Technology Conference (AETC) revamps and moves to the newly renovated, historic Hilton Seelbach Hotel in Louisville, Ky., Feb. 13-16, 2005, to precede the Farm Show.

New surroundings and a new conference structure will include two keynote luncheon speakers from

Welcome Luncheon Speaker

Roger E. McEowen, associate professor at Kansas State University (KSU), will be the speaker. He will address the "Structural Conditions in Ag Economy and Their Implications."

McEowen provides law and policy expertise to the citizens of Kansas and the nation. A few of the topics he addresses in his extensive programs include: charitable tax planning, farm lease law, contract hog production and anti-corporate farming law, estate planning, civil liabilities, water and environmental law, private property rights, and farm estate and business planning. He also develops curriculum and teaches for the Kansas Income Tax Institute and the KSU-Southern Plains Agricultural Law Symposium.

Keynote Address Speaker

Robert Noth, manager of engineering standards for Deere & Company and vice chairman of the American National Standards Institute (ANSI), will discuss how the development of international standards as practiced in the construction and other industry sectors can be applied to the agricultural machinery industry.

Noth is responsible for overseeing the development, deployment, utilization, and administration of standards affecting the Deere product line worldwide. His duties require national and international interaction with standards developing organizations, trade associations, and other organizations whose activities affect Deere products. He is active in several standards developing organizations, including ASAE, SAE International, and the Institute of Industrial Engineers. He currently represents Deere & Company on the International Cooperation on Standards and Conformity Assessment.

CPD Courses

Two continuing professional development courses will be offered at the conference:

Engineered Plastics--Application, Specification, and Design Solutions. Led by John Thiel, vice president of development at Alert Manufacturing, this course will introduce engineered plastics that can be used as alternatives to traditional metals in bearing and wear applications, high temperature areas, high purity requirements, abrasive conditions, and severe chemical environments to improve part life, reduce cost, and increase design efficiency. It will provide an introduction to plastics and cover basic engineering material, high performance materials, material selection, and bearing design.

Product Liability. Taught by John Archer, this course will provide a demonstration of a product liability trial with the audience as the jury. The demonstration will be followed by information on what to expect as an engineer during trials along with a question and answer period.

Technical Sessions

Speciality Harvesting/Planting. Some agricultural machinery challenges are solved with little publicity. Many engineers are not even aware of technologies implemented or obstacles overcome. Perhaps there are lessons to be learned from solutions to non-conventional crop planting and harvesting. Presenters in this session will illustrate unique equipment that you will want to see.

Supplier Innovations/Technology. There are more new and exciting innovations available to design engineers than ever before. These innovations provide opportunity for design engineers to continue to meet and exceed customer expectations while maintaining competitive costs. This technical session will showcase the latest innovative products from Glacier Garlock Bearings, GKN Walterscheid, and Sauer Danfoss. Don't miss this opportunity to learn about the latest technology available from these companies and how it can benefit your company.

New Products. This presentation will include new production agriculture equipment from the major manufacturers.

Biomass Supply Analysis and Logistics. This session covers research on the availability and supply logistics for biomass. All types of biomass including agricultural residues, forest residues, energy crops, urban wood wastes, industrial wastes, and animal waste are considered. The session also will discuss research on the development of computational tools to predict the performance of a biomass collection, storage, processing, and distribution network.

Biomass Based Fuels. Power balances of ethanol and biodiesel as world market demand increases will be discussed at this session. It will conclude with two opportunities for a round-table discussion on international standardization.

Other sessions include Biosecurity, Precision Agriculture, Farmer/Corporate Forum, and a Dealer/Corporate Forum.

For more information on the conference visit the ASAE Web site at www.asae.org/meetings/AETC05/index.html.

As chairman of the AETC 2005 planning committee, I would like to personally invite you to AETC 2005! We have an outstanding lineup of CPD courses and technical sessions and anticipate a great meeting. Engaging speakers and an informative technical lineup will make this conference a worthwhile and memorable event! I hope to see you in Louisville!