Last night’s Agilent Technologies-sponsored EuMW Welcome Reception brought industry and academia together and saw the announcement of Agilent’s future commitment to the reception and EuMW as a whole. Now an established and popular event the reception brought together delegates for the Week’s four conferences and the exhibitors from the European Microwave Exhibition, giving them the rare opportunity to meet, interact and network.
The reception began with three speeches from: the 2007 EuMW Conference Chairman, Wolfgang Heinrich, his successor for Amsterdam in 2008, Frank van den Bogaart and Agilent Technologies’ Vice President and General Manager EMEA Electronic Measurements Group, Benoit Neel.
Heinrich began by welcoming everyone and thanking them for their attendance and support. In thanking Agilent for their sponsorship he commented, “This welcome reception has proved an ideal forum for bringing together conference delegates and exhibitors in a formal but friendly setting.” He stated that the latest attendance figures after two days of the conferences and one day of the exhibition were very encouraging with the total number of registered delegates, together with exhibitors and visitors reaching 3,520 so far.
Heinrich said, “These numbers demonstrate that this event has increasing potential and an international reputation in the microwave world.” He continued, “The organising team has worked hard to produce a good scientific conference programme and a successful exhibition. We hope that by creating the right balance between the two, delegates will leave stimulated and enthused by the papers presented and the exhibitors will finish the week with good leads and new contracts.”
He concluded by saying, “The microwave community has always been a network, which on the one hand has been based on common technical interests, and on the other is based on people who have known one another for many years. This is one of the strengths of our community and I hope that this reception is instrumental in strengthening that community further as a forum for exchanging ideas and opinions and forging relationship.”
In his address van den Bogaart stated that the 2008 event would attempt to emulate EuMW 2007 by endeavouring to provide quality conferences together with a growing exhibition. He explained the importance that was being put on industrial participation with an emphasis on practical applications and also hinted at new innovations and ‘side events’ that are planned for the RAI conference centre in Amsterdam at the end of October 2008.
A link between both the 2007 and 2008 events is Agilent’s Platinum sponsorship and Neel emphasised that the company values its association with EuMW saying, “Having been in the RF and microwave business for 60 years we are proud to have been the Platinum Sponsors in the past, this year and we will do so next year in Amsterdam.” He also outlined the company’s involvement in other ways including encouraging its engineers to present technical papers and the inauguration of the Tutorial Seminars for Young Engineers, which are structured to provide vital educational input to the next generation. Finally Neel electronically drew five winners in the Agilent Prize Draw before the wine flowed, good food was consumed and the socialising began.