Please describe one valuable idea, technique or strategy that you picked up during STLE’s 2009 Annual Meeting & Exhibition.

TLT Sounding Board July 2009

 

Restrictions in travel and training budgets, combined with ongoing tough economic conditions, kept this year’s STLE annual meeting from matching the record totals from 2007 and 2008. However, based on this month’s Sounding Board results, the attendees who did come were highly pleased with the quality of the meeting’s 300 technical sessions, 10 education courses, Commercial Marketing Forum and the trade show. 86% of respondents rated the information value of the meeting as either excellent or good, and many stated that they returned home with ideas and strategies they were able to immediately apply to their jobs. 85% of attendees rated the meeting’s networking value as excellent or good, and 100% reported making a new friend or professional contact.

STLE is the unbiased and commerce-free source of information regarding communication to the automobile owner regarding choice of lubricants.

The Lubrication Fundamentals course had some great information on filtering.

The presentation by ExxonMobil on energy usage trends was quite interesting!

At one of the education courses I heard detailed information on the use of various synthetic base fluids.

Solving diesel lubricant oxidative stability by better stabilization of biodiesel.

I picked up several job leads while networking at the trade show.

I did not know that bright stock is the highest boiling cut from crude oil. Always wondered what exactly bright stock was. I learned this at a technical session.

I learned of an opportunity to present a paper at this year’s International Joint Tribology Conference (Oct. 19-21 in Memphis, Tenn.)

Effects of biodiesel on lubricants.

Did you make at least one friend or professional contact at STLE’s 2009 Annual Meeting?
Yes 100%
No 0%

Moisture control in gearboxes and hydraulics using dried compressed air.

The ongoing networking at this meeting is invaluable.

I learned about the effect of hydraulic oil on cream layer.

There are too many great ideas to list!

Nanoparticle lubricants—it’s an area I was curious about.

At the Wear I panel discussion I heard about the need for developing a correlation between bench and field testing in engines.

The effect of carbon chain length and degree of substitution on bioresistant properties of amines in MWFs.

How would you rate the meeting’s information value?
Excellent 31%
Good 55%
Fair 12%
Poor 3%
Terrible 0%

I made new contacts and had valuable discussions with raw material suppliers about model formulations and toll blenders for a new product that I am formulating.

The use of ATP as a marker for biological activity in metal-removal fluid systems.

At the trade show I found a much less expensive piece of test equipment that can easily replace our existing tester.

I gained the most knowledge of any session from Carl Stevens in his presentation titled, “Establishment of a Lubrication Program for the Virginia Department of Transportation.” But there were several other sessions that were educational and many conversations that were very beneficial.

The training class on lubrication basics was well worth the trip.

At the exhibition I learned of commercial raw materials that could be used to produce lubricant properties with improved performance.

I enjoyed the Disney Keynote on innovation and made particular note of rules for brainstorming.

I discovered a new source for distribution.

Looked at several test machines in the trade show.

Bioenergy information.

In the NLGI grease education course, I learned about factors that affect grease tackiness.

I learned new developments in industrial gear oil technology and performance from the technical sessions and the trade show.

At the technical sessions I learned about bearing simulation tools.

An attempt is being made to quantify how long a coolant will last in a sump. This information is critical to end-users to assess whether a coolant product change is worthwhile.

Fluid scan by Spectro Inc.

The technical sessions in lubrication fundamentals and nanotechnology were great. I know now a lot about how nanoparticles are used in lubrication.

Not all greases mix!

The NLGI grease course was excellent.

Machining the new Ti alloy.

Strategy: Expand our product offerings and consider how we can be more green.

I enjoyed an unsurpassed networking experience with technical minds in the field of tribology and lubrication engineering.

There is a strong need for adequate wear measurement techniques and corresponding theory to correlate model testing with real engines. I learned this at the Wear I panel discussion.

I really enjoyed the presentation by the Disney keynote speaker on “Imagineering.”



How would you rate the meeting’s networking value?
Excellent 51%
Good 34%
Fair 15%
Poor 0%
Terrible 3%
 
Editor’s Note: Sounding Board is based on an e-mail survey of 7,200 TLT readers. Views expressed are those of the respondents and do not reflect the opinions of the Society of Tribologists and Lubrication Engineers. STLE does not vouch for the technical accuracy of opinions expressed in Sounding Board, nor does inclusion of a comment represent an endorsement of the technology by STLE.