CPA, Surface & Panel Team Up for Dynamic Symposium

A high-powered, must-attend event will bring together leaders of the composite panel and decorative surfaces industries, along with the users and specifiers of those products in Savannah, Georgia, in early October. 

The forum, titled the Material, Technology & Design Symposium @ CPA Fall Meeting, will be Oct. 1-3 at the Hyatt Regency in Savannah.

“I am proud to announce that Surface & Panel magazine has joined forces with the Composite Panel Association in co-producing the Material, Technology and Design Symposium,” said John Aufderhaar, founder and publisher of Surface & Panel.

       “We at Surface & Panel are passionate about panel processing and providing a platform for this remarkably dynamic industry to highlight the latest innovations in all facets of the business – from technology to design to application,” Aufderhaar said.  “We see the Symposium as a natural extension of this mission as we work with CPA to create a forum for companies that use composite panels to come together with the North American panel processing industry to share ideas, learn about trends, and see the latest offerings in composite panels and surface décor.  The networking opportunities are endless.”    

 Adding star power is keynote speaker Karim Rashid. Visionary and prolific, Rashid is a unique voice in design today, with more than 4,000 designs in production, nearly 300 awards and client work in more than 40 countries.

Aufderhaar has been an associate member of CPA since 1986 and has seen the organization evolve and grow, bringing in Canadian and Mexican panel producers to form a North American association and acquiring the Laminating Materials Association to represent the interests of surface material producers.

“The CPA has been one of the most proactive associations in North America. It has been a model on Capitol Hill for industry-government cooperation,” Aufderhaar said. “Today, particleboard and MDF are truly at the heart of the furniture and cabinet industries. Highly engineered composite panels and decorative surfaces are now the designer’s and consumer’s choice for residential and commercial environments. The future is bright.”

In that bright environment, CPA and Surface & Panel are aligning to bring together some of the greatest minds and innovators in the industry to assess its growth, status and future.

CPA and Surface & Panel are the perfect team to present this important event.

CPA represents the North American composite panel industry on critical issues, and members include 30 leading manufacturers of particleboard, medium density fiberboard and hardboard, representing 95 percent of total manufacturing capacity in US, Canada and Mexico. CPA also brings together the complete value chain affiliated with the composite panel industry.  Associate members include manufacturers of decorative surfaces, furniture, cabinets, and doors and mouldings, as well as laminators, distributors and equipment suppliers.

Surface & Panel is the only magazine focused exclusively on the design, manufacture and marketing of panel-based furniture and casegoods. By uniting decorative surfaces, panel products and the latest in processing technology, Surface & Panel is on the leading edge of product design and innovation. Since 2003, it has provided original editorial content and effective advertising to more than 35,000 readers with strong interests or involvement in panel processing.

Among those who will benefit from the symposium are CEOS, architects, cabinet makers, component suppliers, distributors, furniture manufacturers, industry suppliers, interior designers, store fixture manufacturers and students.