Valve World Americas recently had the pleasure of speaking with Sarah Bradley, Conference Coordinator of Valve World Americas Conference & Expo, to discuss the upcoming Valve World Americas Expo & Conference 2023, taking place at the George R. Brown Convention Centre, in Houston, Texas on June 7th-8th.
As seen in previous years, the event aims to provide high-quality learning opportunities for guests and exhibitors while simultaneously providing a dynamic platform for industry members to connect. Bradley takes time to highlight the benefits for members of the flow control industry to attend the event and provides insight into many of the important topics that will be focused on during the conference.
By Angelica Pajkovic
Q: What is the purpose of Valve World Americas Expo & Conference?
Valve World Americas Expo & Conference is incredibly multi-faceted. The purpose of the event is to facilitate the exchange of knowledge, experience, and information about valve materials, applications, and innovative technologies. Anyone involved in flow control processes knows that the valve industry is a constantly progressing industry and gatherings like this provide a dynamic platform for individuals to come together and learn from each other. Our goal is to optimize the user’s experience with valves, and valve applications, in terms of safety, performance, reliability, and cost in the global marketplace.
Q: What can attendees expect?
Whether you are an end user, OEM, EPC, Supplier, or Manufacturer, this event is something to look forward to. The expo floor will provide an engaging area to build connections with other experts to gain and improve on existing valve knowledge. It will also help to further the end user’s understanding of specialist technologies and innovative products.
The conference will likewise provide the latest developments and best practices for flow control in today’s industry. It will also give insight into the future of the supply chain and the changing needs of the industry. The event overall will therefore provide anyone who attends with the opportunity to expand business networks and conduct business-to-business operations.
Q: Why should I attend the expo?
Besides the obvious draw of having the opportunity to see and learn about leading valve companies’ newest and most innovative portfolios of flow control products, the expo provides industry professionals and end users with the chance to partake in an open platform for casual discussion and networking. With more than 200 global companies presenting their latest and greatest valve products and services, Valve World Americas will bring together thousands of attendees (valve companies, EPCs, and end users) to strengthen relationships, meet new customers, and exchange ideas and opinions face-to-face.
Q: What kind of content will be showcased at the conference?
The 2023 Valve World Americas Conference Steering Committee encourages presentations to be made at the event on a wide variety of topics related to valves, actuators, and the flow control industry. Experts from all aspects of the manufacture, specification, and application of valves will have the opportunity to give presentations on high-end ‘end-user’ driven content, with a focus on the hottest topics impacting the vale world today. The lineup of technical sessions will be guided by Subject Matter Specialists (SMEs), who are keen to bridge knowledge gaps and keep the industry abreast with relevant information. Following the presentations, attendees will be invited to pose questions and audience interaction is always encouraged, to help spark debate, and discussions and the free exchange of ideas and experiences are an integral part of the conference experience. It is wonderful to have the opportunity to not only listen to first-hand insights from industry veterans but also to have the opportunity to speak with them about their experiences and thoughts on the industry.
Q: Who will be the chairman of the 2023 event?
This year’s conference will be chaired by Trace Scrivner, Principal Engineer – Piping and Valves with ExxonMobil Technology and Engineering Company (EMTEC). Trace has participated in several past events and we are very much looking forward to welcoming him as Chairman of the 2023 event.
Q: What are you most looking forward to?
My favorite session from the past event was the panel discussion on IGOP and JIP 33 – The IOGP (International Association of Oil and Gas Producers) has among its members some of the major oil companies in the world. All of these companies had internal requirements to be used in conjunction with design standards when purchasing industrial valves and these different requirements were harmonized in a set of publications to be adopted by all members.
The IOGP initiated Joint Industry Programme 33 (JIP33) in 2016 in response to industry-wide overruns on cost and schedule of more than 40%. Over 40 specifications have been published and are now being adopted and implemented by the operators on major projects.
The panel discussion was particularly interesting because it brought together a group of leading subject matter experts from different positions in the valve industry to discuss their varied perspectives on the impacts of IOGP standardization. It was a great way to spark debate between suppliers, manufacturers and end users and it also helped initiate conversation on the impacts of standardization to the valve market. I am hoping we can revisit the topic again this year and learn how the industry has evolved on this front since the last event. I also look forward to seeing you all there!
A Message From the Chairman
I am honored and excited to be serving as Chairman for the Valve World Americas Conference 2023. I am most looking forward to working with the Steering Committee to develop an in-depth and educational Conference Program, in preparation for the event.
Currently, there are significant ongoing changes and challenges in the global markets, and the valve industry is no exception. There is a great opportunity to see new emerging valve technologies, especially in the areas of design, monitoring, controls, automation, maintenance, and testing. You will also learn about the latest in fugitive emission and leak-sealing technology, among several other topics at the upcoming event. These topics will be discussed in more detail with the Steering Committee, to develop a comprehensive program for attendees.
The event and conference topics have broad applicability across the oil & gas industry, including upstream, midstream, and downstream sectors, as well as the chemical, pharmaceutical, and agriculture industries. In addition to a dynamic vendor expo, and an engaging conference, there is ample opportunity for collaboration, networking, education, and innovation.
We would also like to welcome Dan DeVine as the Vice Chairman! He will bring a wealth of experience to the role and Valve World Americas is excited to have him take part in the development of the conference program!
