NFPC Open Day enjoys biggest event yet

17 March, 2017

This year’s event included a 12m x 81m Marquee, housing a total of 90 exhibitors – compared with 50 at last year’s Open Day.

Technical seminars

Four technical seminars were presented throughout the day: ABB – ‘Energy saving’; Sun Hydraulics – Innovation for 2017; Parker – Electro-Pneumatic Solutions – Good reasons for increasing complexity; and Bosch Rexroth – The Impact of Industry 4.0 on Hydraulic Systems.

New for this year was the NFPC’s CPD Institute of Quarrying accreditation, which enabled all delegates who attended the technical lectures to secure their own record of CPD (one hour for each lecture attended).

Charity raffle

Companies kindly donated a wide selection of raffle prizes, and tickets were sold in order to raise money for the Hallam FM Cash For Kids charity. Charity manager Allan Ogle and his team joined the event on the day, selling tickets and collecting an impressive total of £1206.50.

High demand

NFPC UK director, John Savage, commented: “Some 40 companies have already requested space for 2018 – this is becoming an annual event in demand. I was extremely pleased to see the range of members from such organisations including BFPA, BVAA, Gambica, Institute of Quarrying and BCAS. Clearly, the future is integrated systems engineering supporting the skills development of our workforce to take up Industry 4.0. and collaboration throughout.”

Recognition

During the Open Day, a presentation was made by Ian Morris on behalf of the Institute of Mechanical Engineers to John Savage with the Joseph Bramah Medal. This medal is awarded for outstanding achievements in mechanical engineering and, in particular in Savage’s case, in the field of hydraulic engineering.

Raising the bar

For next year’s event, Savage explained that the NFPC has plans to feature a larger and wider marquee, with additional car-parking utilising land at the rear of the Centre.