2020: A Year in Review

I just scrolled through old blog posts and realized I have been writing a Year in Review post since at least 2014. If I did not know better, I might think I was being typecast for this role. Either way, if 2020 is the last time I do a Year in Review, then it certainly is one that provided a lot of differences to highlight.

DISTek Participates in 2020 Virtual SAE COMVEC

Each year in September, the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) holds a Commercial Vehicle Congress (COMVEC). At this event, engineers and technologists come together to collaborate on technologies for commercial trucks, defense vehicles, and off-highway equipment. DISTek has been a participant and exhibitor at COMVEC for many years. It is a perfect fit for our industry focus, and many of the technologies discussed are wholly, or partially, driven by electronics and software.

MathWorks Automotive Conference 2020

I had the opportunity to attend the Mathworks Automotive Conference this year. The conference was held remotely and the presentations were streamed live using the Webex platform. I watched three of the presentations on the first day, which included the Farm of the Future, Ford Automated System Simulation Toolkit, and a presentation from Cooper Tire and Rubber Company.

Attending the SAE WCX Conference – COVID-19 Edition

I have been a member of the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) for a number of years and have attended several different SAE events over the last decade. In 2018, I started attending the SAE WCX, a show focused on passenger car technologies, formerly known as the World Congress. Insights into the technologies of today and tomorrow in passenger cars are definitely informative as DISTek seeks to be ready for new technology applications in the Off-Highway industry where we focus. Of course, not everything is directly applicable, but much of it is to varying degrees.

DISTek Hosts Booth at ConExpo – CON/AGG 2020

Right now, I find myself sitting squarely in the calm before the storm. The final edits for the new pull up banners have been approved. The tradeshow materials have been shipped. Travel plans and final reservations have been made. Now, all that’s left is to pack our bags and catch a flight to Vegas. Over the next several days, five DISTekians will be making the trip to Sin City for ConExpo-CON/AGG 2020.

2018: Year in Review

For the second year in a row, my year-in-review blog is being delivered well into the new year. That is getting dangerously close to a bad habit, so I will have to work on that for next year. On the plus side, this should get posted in February and thus I am technically only a month late of my goal of January for the target date. Normally I would not start at the end of the year, but this year is an exception because the single biggest piece of news is what happened at the very end of the year …

DISTek Participates in SAE COMVEC 2018

Somehow we find ourselves at the beginning of September already and for those of us here at DISTek, it means that the annual SAE COMVEC show is just around the corner. This year’s show will once again be held in Rosemont, Illinois at the Hyatt Regency O’Hare September 11th – 13th. DISTek will be involved in several capacities from sales hosting a booth on the exhibit floor to engineering attending the technical sessions and panels to stay up to date on the latest technology. We are also pleased to have one of our own, Daniel Aceituna, featured in an expert panel discussion.

A Culture of Innovation: Lessons from 3M

On June 6, 2018 3M Corporation opened up their Innovation Center in St. Paul, MN to members of the Association of Equipment Manufacturers (AEM). DISTek Integration sent representatives from our engineering group to attend 3M’s presentation entitled, “Building a Culture of Innovation.” 3M leaders presented how the company went from a small and unprofitable Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing (where the three “M”s come from) company in the early 1900s, to one of the most successful product companies in the world today.

NI Week 2018: SEPAD Sessions

 

Another May and another NIWeek has come and gone. What did you miss this year if you weren’t able to attend? Maybe not as much as you think, at least if you’re interested in advanced technical sessions.

Again this year, there was an advanced session track titled “Software Engineering Processes Architecture and Design (SEPAD).” These sessions were led by LabVIEW Champions and LabVIEW Architects. The majority of these SEPAD sessions were recorded and the videos are available online for viewing.