PUBLISHER'S VIEWPOINT
July 2005
Mark Your Calendars

It’s mid-June as I write this and already we’re making preparations for the two big events in our future: The NAFEM Show in Anaheim, Calif., Sept. 23-25, 2005, and the third Multiunit Foodservice Equipment Symposium, MUFES ’06, set for the Barton Creek Resort in Austin, Texas, Feb. 10-14, ’06. Everyone needs something to look forward to.

Brian and Jen and the editors have started work on our August NAFEM pre-show issue. Jessica brought in the NAFEM Show Exhibitors binder today. And the salespeople are already flogging the customers for ads for our NAFEM issues.

So, have you signed up for the Show yet? If you haven’t, get on the stick. Just go to www.nafem.org and click on “The NAFEM Show” button at the top of the page and get set up.

And while you’re at it, also check out the activities of your relevant association or executive study group. FCSI has its annual meeting and CFESA its Fall Conference, both preceding the Show. MAECO and HSM also have pre-show meetings on the schedule. FEDA has an education program on tap as well as special times on the show floor. And NAFEM itself has various educational programs during the event.

Everyone needs something to look forward to.

As I’ve said many times, foodservice equipment and supplies, worldwide, is a small town. And NAFEM is kind of like the biennial town meeting. Be there.

Meanwhile, Chris and Brian and I are already well into planning our third MUFES, this time in Texas. The hotel contract has been signed for a year. We’ve notified past attendees and sponsors of the dates and are at work on brochures and ads and the like. And most importantly, Brian has been on the phone and on the road sorting themes and issues for the two-day program.

One of the reasons we do MUFES only every other year is the intensity of planning the program. We have some very strict rules. Presentations have to be absolutely focused on topics of interest to multiunit E&S specifiers and purchasers. They have to be leading edge. We were doing water conservation and RFID and variable-speed ventilation long before anyone in our world, and we do everything we can to keep suppliers off the dias, in line with the magazine’s neutrality.

We have some other rules, too, such as maintaining a one-to-one operator-to-supplier ratio. This helps us maintain an environment where people can get to know each other and get things done.

You’ll see some info on MUFES in the magazine, at our Web site www.fermag.com and in our e-newsletter, FER Fortnightly, during the next few months. We hope you’ll consider joining us. In the meantime, if you want more details, e-mail or call Brian or myself.

Cheers,

Robin Ashton
Publisher