Speakers

Timothy Akes is the representative in the Americas for MPanel Software Solutions, LLC which specializes in fabric design and engineering software primarily for industrial fabrics industry clients.

More than 25 years of experience with Computer-Aided Design (CAD) software and hardware has given him a vast amount of knowledge on the subject. He currently provides sales, technical support and training services to more than 300 fabric-related companies in various market segments such as tensile structures, tent & awning, marine and textile exhibits. As a certified trainer he has taught more than 500 students during instructor-led events on the correct use of CAD software systems and production techniques for fabric structures.

Tim resides in St. Louis, Missouri. He enjoys camping, canoeing & fishing in the Ozark Mountains and is an active coach for his sons’ baseball and soccer teams as well as being a life-long St. Louis Cardinals baseball fan.

Kiarash Arangdad is a Senior Principal Scientist-Innovation at Elevate Textiles/Burlington in Burlington, NC. He received B.Sc. and M.Sc. degrees in Chemical Textile Engineering and he graduated with a Ph.D. in Fiber and Polymer Science from North Carolina State University. Kiarash currently lead R&D projects for sustainable protective and functional fabrics with focus on advance fibers (recycled/biodegradables), dyes and finishes in compliance with regulations. Kiarash acquired knowledge, analytical skills and extensive experience during almost 15 years of education and research. Kiarash has been active member of technical committees at ASTM, ISO, ACS and STA. He is a member of AATCC Executive Committee on Research (ECR) and leads a standard committee. Kiarash is a recipient of AATCC Future Leader Award, given in recognition of promising young professionals in the fields of textiles.

Dr. Shaghayegh R. Arangdad is a Research Assistant Professor at Wilson College of Textiles. She received her Ph.D. in Textile Technology Management from the Wilson College of Textiles at North Carolina State University. As a post-doc she focused much of her research in dynamic interactive data visualization and utilization in support of research grants with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services with the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill Gillings School of Global Public Health and a private foundation grant with the UNC-CH WHO Coordinating Center focused on maternal and child health. This work is in direct support of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 3 and UNICEF. Dr. Arangdad has acquired knowledge and extensive experience during years of education and research in the field of textiles, sustainability, data science, and quality improvement in healthcare. She leads the joint development of the Dynamic Interactive Data Visualization & Utilization Lab for UNC-CH and North Carolina State University. She has published papers in medical textiles, statistics and data science, and apparel and textile sustainability and consumer behavior. Dr. Arangdad has also supported over 300 graduate students in Lean Six Sigma courses and projects and over 300 undergraduate students in textile and apparel entrepreneurship and new product development.

Andrew is the senior software developer at MPanel Software Solutions LLC and heads up new product development as well as ongoing maintenance.

He has over 40 years’ experience in light weight structure design, including work on paragliders, hang gliders, inflated structures, and tensile structures. In all these fields software was used in the design and production processes.

Andrew spends part of the year at the head office in Carlsbad NM, and part in his home in the UK. In both places he enjoys hiking, climbing, and gliding as hobbies.

James Auerbach has spent the past 25 years in customer facing leadership rolls in the special event, equipment rental, and hospitality industries. Known for his hands-on approach he has built regional and national teams with a focus on strategically growing organizations and employee development.

Currently James works at the American Rental Association as the Vice President for the Event Rental Segment. Prior to that he served as the Senior Vice President of Sales at CE Rental, Inc., James was part of a management team that successfully acquired and integrated seven event rental businesses over a 24-month period with 8X revenue growth. Throughout his career he has held executive level positions within private equity owned businesses ($40M - $250M), as well as mid-sized and startup companies. James has also owned and operated his own businesses.

In his private life James spends most of his time with his family and two energetic dogs. He is an avid sports fan and University of Connecticut alumni (Go Huskies!). He enjoys binging Netflix series, going to his daughter's dance recitals, and watching every superhero movie with his son.

Brett Baird is in his 33rd year working with Trivantage in various capacities including sales, branch manager, and currently Regional Sales Manager for the Southern Region. Contributions to the industry include 20 years serving as board member for the Zone 4 Virginia-Carolina Canvas Products Association and currently Vice Chair of the Professional Awning Manufacturers Association where he also serves as chair of the architectural committee.

Sara provides government consulting services and trade analysis to U.S. manufacturers and associations and works in government relations advocating on behalf of the domestic textile industry. Her work focuses on tracking pending trade initiatives and pressing for strong textile rules in U.S. free trade and preference agreements. Sara represents the United States Industrial Fabrics Institute (USIFI) and Narrow Fabrics Institute (NFI), two divisions of the Industrial Fabrics Association International (IFAI), and the National Council of Textile Organizations (NCTO) as well as serving on the Industry Trade Advisory Committee on Textiles and Clothing (ITAC 13).

Nate advises on US trade remedies, export controls, economic sanctions, the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) and related areas of national security and international trade laws. Nate has successfully litigated more than 100 cases and appellate proceedings involving US antidumping and countervailing duty laws before the US Department of Commerce, US International Trade Commission, Court of International Trade, and Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit. He also regularly helps clients successfully navigate the complex CFIUS process and national security issues involving investments and cross-border transactions. Nate has extensive experience with emerging technologies in the aerospace, defense, oil and gas, medical, transportation, semiconductor, consumer electronics and telecommunications industries.

He has helped hundreds of companies across various industries successfully resolve internal and government investigations and compliance issues involving these laws. Due to his extensive experience with the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR), Nate has been appointed by the Assistant Secretary of State for Political-Military Affairs to serve on the US State Department’s Defense Trade Advisory Group for three consecutive terms, most recently for the 2020-2022 session. He also advises companies on compliance with the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) sanctions and US export control laws.

Before entering private practice, Nate was an international trade specialist at the International Trade Administration of the Department of Commerce, where he worked on trade negotiations and trade agreement enforcement and compliance.

Having graduated with a B.Sc. in Electronics Engineering from the University of Tizi Ouzou (Algeria), Nora joined the CTT Group in 2012. After a few years of experience in the physical and dynamometric testing of materials, Nora joined the Design Office team. She focuses in the development of special tests for the evaluation of geo-synthetics, polymers, technical textiles and personal protection equipment (PPE).

Meredith Boyd is nearly fifteen-year veteran at Unifi, a global supplier of resin, fiber and filament offerings, with a key emphasis on value-added and sustainable solutions. She drives international growth as Senior Vice President, Innovation and Technology where she plays a pivotal role in the conception and execution of key product and capability differentiation while emphasizing sustainable practices and development. Meredith is a key member of the organization and has dynamically driven commercial, product and process capability across Unifi’s infrastructure in the Americas, Europe and Asia. Before joining the Innovation and Technical organization, she most recently held the role of Vice President of Brand Sales where she focused on developing and driving strategic commercial solutions for brand and retail customers on a global basis. Prior to this, she led the Global Business Development group where she focused on capability expansion, technology transfer and strategic cooperative ventures. Meredith has spoken at many conferences and consortiums worldwide including the American Institute of Chemical Engineers (AiChE), Textile Exchange, Techtextil, the Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT) and the Industrial Fabrics Association International (IFAI). Her writing has been featured in publications including Technical Textiles International. Meredith sits on the Board of Directors for the Synthetic Yarn and Fabric Association (SYFA). Prior to her current role, Meredith held key positions within Unifi including Quality, Technical, Product Development, Global Business Development and Brand Sales divisions.

Seaman Corporation’s leadership in the Architectural Fabrics Market is backed by Business Director, Frank Bradenburg. He brings almost 40 years of experience to the industrial coated fabrics industry. His expertise in chemistry, engineering, R&D, product management and product development serves the Architectural Fabrics market with a unique perspective on why fabric structures should be considered. He has served on various ASCE and IFAI technical committees to develop guidelines for the design and construction of fabric structures; ensuring that they are as safe and durable as conventional building methods.

Gregg Burrows has over 20 years of successful selling experience. In 2014 he began selling shade sails wholesale in San Marcos, California. Gregg's focus is on experienced contractors and shade sail installers in the industry. He works to support his customers with top-notch customer service, technical aspects of shade sail design, installation and maintenance, ordering, and more.

Whitney Carman is the Owner of Even Keep Canvas, LLC. Whitney’s training started when she was about 3 years old. She was old enough to walk so her father, Dennis Carman of Vermont Custom Canvas decided to bring her to work. She didn’t realize at the time how much she was leaning or what unique upbringing she had been gifted.

During winter breaks in high school, she would go to restaurants and gyms to pick up work for extra money. Whitney graduated in 2005 and began working full time for her dad. She was his apprentice for 4 years and completed her Associate’s Degree while expressing her creativity through fabrication. In 2011, Whitney ventured off and started her own business in California working everywhere in Marina Del Rey. In 2018 she got a request to do a project on Aquila, the largest yacht in America. She has been in the industry full time for 14 years.

In the summer of 2019, Lauren built a single screw extruder in her garage. She built a machine that recycled red Solo cups into fabric. After graduating from Johns Hopkins University with a degree in Materials Science and Engineering, she decided to pursue her start-up The New Norm full time, taking her garage project into lab testing and production. Lauren has spent the last year creating numerous unique fiber blends, focusing on plastics that are not accepted for recycling in the US (like the red Solo cup). The New Norm aims to develop transparent, reliable supply chains for recycled materials, create truly sustainable products, and pioneer sustainable manufacturing in the US.

Anthony Chu is a computational designer who is passionate about using the latest technology to push forward the paradigm of product design. He received training in Architecture at the Harvard Graduate School of Design but has since use his insight in aesthetic and performative design in creating new meta-material. He works closely with the company's partners and clients to tailor innovative material solution and has extensive experience in designing high-performance material for fashion, medical, consumer product, and various other industries.

Marco Cimillo is an Associate Professor of Architecture at Xi’an Jiaotong-Liverpool University, where he is currently also serving as Associate Dean of Learning and Teaching of the School of Design and Director of the Building Physics Lab. He was awarded his Master’s Degree in Architecture and PhD in Environmental Design by Sapienza University of Rome, and is also a fully registered architect, a LEED Green Associate and a member of IBPSA (International Performance Simulation Association) and SITdA (Italian Society of Technology of Architecture).

Charlene worked in sales and marketing in the hospitality industry for over 23 years with companies both domestically and internationally establishing and executing marketing plans, building brand awareness, increasing revenues, and identifying strategic marketing opportunities. In April 2010, Charlene left the hospitality industry to become the CEO of Signature CanvasMakers, alongside her husband Chandler. Charlene holds an Associate’s Degree in Travel & Tourism Management, a Bachelor’s Degree in Marketing and recently completed an intensive 6-month “Streetwise” MBA degree.

Talia Connelly is a textile artist and designer hailing from Seattle, Washington. She received her Bachelor of Fine Arts from Rhode Island School of Design, where she found the key to life's happiness in the form of a loom, knitting machine, and closets stacked eight feet high with cones of yarn in every color and texture imaginable. Since graduating, she has worked in fashion, footwear, and 3D printing industries, fusing her knowledge of traditional craft processes with automated technology. Her current role at OPT Industries focuses on concept research and design for in-house projects and industry collaborations.

Christian Cowan is a senior executive with more than 20 years of experience in technical manufacturing operations and marketing in the IT networking, energy and textile industries. He brings both domestic and overseas hands-on manufacturing experience to the University of Rhode Island Research Foundation (URIRF), Polaris MEP’s parent organization. He most recently served as the Center Director of Polaris MEP. Christian earned his BSEE degree from Villanova University and his MBA from the University of Rhode Island.

With a passion for textiles, Courtney holds a B.S. in Clothing, Textiles and Design and an International MBA.

With 15+ years of experience in the textile and apparel industry, she has spent 7 years of her professional career working in China & Taiwan. Her French and Chinese language skills have opened many doors to grow her wide industry network. When she is not out hiking with her dogs, Courtney develops and sources quality, sustainable textiles by leveraging her global manufacturing connections to benefit all consumers.

As brrr° VP Sourcing and Product Development, her goal is to keep the world cool by bravely innovating without boundaries and fostering creativity for exponential growth!

Ms. Justine Decaens is R&D Manager at CTT Group. She graduated from an engineer textile school, ENSAIT, in France with an equivalent to a Bachelor degree and completed a Master in Mechanical engineering at Ecole de Technologie Superieure (ETS), in Quebec. Her work focuses on technical textiles, mostly for personal protective equipment as well as smart textiles and thermal comfort evaluation methods. She has led project aiming to develop new performance index for winter clothing in arctic climate and incorporated the development of a new test method to evaluate the impact of active heating technologies. She has managed a large number of projects, most beneficiating from public funding. She is also part of the ASTM committee for smart textiles standardisation (D13.50) and the head of a task group for market research. She is also very active in the textile community and has a seat on the board of the Institute of Textile Sciences (ITS).

Mr. Vincent Deregnaucourt is a Project leader R&D at CTT Group, graduated from ENSAIT, an engineer textile school, with an apprenticeship masters degree in textiles. His work involved the financing facilitation and management of research & development projects in various fields such as medical protective masks, eco-friendly materials and high-performance textile solutions.

Bruce Dickinson is a 40-year veteran of Rainier Industries leadership team where he currently serves as Vice President of Business Development. Bruce is an accomplished designer and innovative thinker to projects that combine fabric with interior and exterior applications, completing installations worldwide. He has successfully overseen projects at over 300 public and private venues including 3 Olympic Games.

A Seattle native, Bruce has served as President of the Seattle Executives Association and as Chairman of the Professional Awning Manufacturers Association.

Robin DuBroy brings over 10 years of educational and training experience to Shazeebo Shade Sails. While she wears many hats at Shazeebo - selling, marketing, training, project management, etc. - her main focus is developing the Shazeebo brand and ensuring that all of our customers and contractors get the support they need to enter the industry.

Charles Duvall is owner of Duvall Design since 1994 specializing in outdoor sculptural shade fabric installations. Duvall offers custom, site specific designs as well as freeform landscape shade structures including innovative engineered support structures. Working from scale models to develop the artistic designs is a departure from designing on the computer, which is used to document the designs in 3D.

Ron worked for Gerber for over 30 years. Has served GERBER's customers in many capacities over those years with a focus on optimizing the production process and material savings. Hobbies: fly-fishing, hiking, primitive camping, organic gardening.

Ladan Eskandarian is a Research and Development Lead at Myant Inc., Canada, where she designs and develops multi-functional fibers for various smart textile applications. She is also pursuing her doctoral studies in Material Science and Engineering at University of Toronto, Canada. She obtained her B.S. in Textile Chemistry and Fiber Science in 2013, and she received her M.Sc. in Analytical and Physical Chemistry in 2016. Her research interests include sustainable fiber electronics, fiber-shaped energy storage devices, active soft materials, and electroactive fibers for electrophysiology and neuromodulation applications.

Matt started his career burning the midnight oil as a banker on Wall Street but after a few years realized his lamp was out of gas. Trying a different tact, he went from advisor to acquirer which landed his most recent gig managing M&A and international territories for Implus, a global consolidator of fitness and sporting goods accessories. At Nextiles, Matt ensures John and George don’t overcommit themselves by saying yes to every opportunity (even though he secretly wants to) and performs a Swiss Army knife of roles from Finance to HR. Although hard work is still core, he occasionally takes calls from the beach, a golf course or whatever boat is willing to take him fishing.

Michelle Farrington is Vice President of Strategic Growth at AFFOA. Prior to joining AFFOA, Michelle was employed by Analog Devices for 24 years, where she worked on commercializing new technologies including MEMS inertial sensors, energy harvesting and e-textiles. She has held roles in manufacturing, product and technology development and business strategy. Michelle also began the e-textile technology development program at ADI.

Andrea Ferris is Co-Founder & CEO of Intrinsic Advanced Materials, as well as a co-inventor of CiCLO bio-accelerant technology. She has spent the past 25 years building her diverse career in project, product and supply chain management, including everything from design, sourcing, manufacturing, marketing, client services, and business development. CiCLO technology was her brainchild and stemmed from a belief that "built to last" shouldn't mean "here forever."

Phil Finzer was born and in the Pacific northwest and raised around the commercial fishing industry. Learning a “hands on” work ethic from his father, and a sense of detail and art from his mother.

Phil started his career in construction performing jobsite cleanup for a custom home builder in his free time while going to the University of Oregon.

While at the University of Oregon He was a 2 year starter, and part of the Hall of fame 2001 Football team that Finished #2 in the nation

Phil has worked on and managed various types of projects in his nearly 2 decades in construction. Experience managing heavy industrial, institutional, medical, and high end custom homes gives him a diverse background and the ability to apply unconventional solutions to conventional problems.

He enjoys spending time with his family, cooking, and just about anything in the outdoors.

Steve Fredrickson has been in this industry since 1996; having worked in distribution, product manufacturer and two fabric manufacturers. During that time he has spoken multiple times at various AIA based events as well as universities. He was a founding member of the Fabric Structures Association as well as it's Chairman; currently he is the Director of Sales for Shade & Marine products at Sattler.

Coming soon!

Skip Gehring is the president and CEO of Gehring Tricot Corporation. GTC is a 75 year old family-owned and operated vertical group of companies that manufactures warp knits, circular knits, and stretch woven fabrics in NY and MA. Since 1946, GTC has been providing custom engineered solutions to meet a variety of industry needs, including those in the medical, sports, safety, aerospace, apparel, and defense industries. GTC prides itself on being a forerunner in textiles manufacturing, able to supply traditional fabrics for mainstream industries while also engineering custom fabric solutions.

After graduating Villanova University and spending time in the military as an engineer, Skip also spent six months in Germany with the Mayer Praktikant Course. With more than 30 years experience in the textiles industry, Skip has been able to take Gehring into the new century of fabric technology. He is an integral part of the textiles industry through membership in the IFAI, AATCC, National Safety Council, NCTO; amongst others. Through his memberships, he is able to keep Gehring on the cutting edge of technology while always being open to new innovation.

As a veteran of the U.S. Navy, Skip believes in doing more in each day than most people do in a week. As such, Skip believes strongly in community engagement. He has been a coach for all levels of girls and boys basketball, along with baseball and softball, from CYO (Catholic Youth Organization) to high school and AAU (Amateur Athletic Union) on to college.

Dr. Jessica M. Gluck works in the area of tissue engineering, specifically studying how the microenvironment influences cellular differentiation and function. She received her BS in Textile Technology (2005) and MS in Biomedical Textiles (2007) from NC State University. She received her MS in Biomedical Engineering (2008) and PhD in Molecular, Cellular and Integrative Physiology (2013) from UCLA, which was supported by a predoctoral fellowship in vascular biology. She was a postdoctoral fellow for three years at the University of California, Davis in the Cardiovascular Medicine division of the Internal Medicine Department working on developing a biopacemaker using biomaterials and stem cells. Her postdoctoral work was supported by fellowships in Stem Cell Biology and Cardiovascular Medicine. Following her postdoctoral work, she worked on a short-term grant-funded contract position with Discovery Place Science, a science center in Charlotte, NC, to develop the content and curriculum of their new human health-focused exhibit and teaching classroom. Prior to joining the NC State faculty in August 2019, she was a research scientist at Precise Bio, a biotech startup focusing on 3D bioprinting corneal tissue located in Winston Salem, NC.

Currently, her research focuses on how the microenvironment influences cellular differentiation and function. She is continuing her research into cardiac tissue engineering using electrospun nanofibrous scaffolds and human induced pluripotent stem cells. She is also investigating tissue engineering strategies to combat limbal stem cell deficiency to treat vision loss. Both areas of research involve scaffold/substrate fabrication and characterization, as well as evaluating the cell-material interaction and cellular function. Science communication and community outreach are very important to her and she hopes to continue volunteer work with local museums and area schools to encourage K-12 students to enter STEM fields.

Nic Goldsmith is a Principal of FTL Design Engineering Studio, the leading design firm specializing in membrane construction systems. Using innovative structural elements, Mr. Goldsmith has helped pioneer lightweight technologies over the past forty years into an art form. A graduate of Cornell University, Mr. Goldsmith’s work has been greatly influenced by Bucky Fuller, Felix Candela and Pritzker Prize winning Frei Otto with whom he apprenticed in Germany for three years.

Mr. Goldsmith designed FTL’s legacy projects including the Carlos Mosley Pavilion for the Metropolitan Opera, the Rosa Parks Transit Center, ASU Skysong, the DKNY Headquarters, and the Sun Valley Pavilion. He spearheads the firm’s innovation including the Cooper Hewitt’s “Under the Sun” exhibition with the first integrated PV tensile structure; an air lock for NASA’s Space Shuttle and the first wood clad cable net in the US.

Mr. Goldsmith has been a Visiting Professor at the Graduate Design Studio of University of Pennsylvania for fourteen years, an adjunct Professor at Pratt Institute, Cornell, Columbia University and Visiting Professor at Innsbruck, Austria. He has given a wide range of lectures on lightweight structures worldwide and was the Chair of the Fabric Structures Association. He has been featured in innumerable publications including an Architectural Monograph titled: FTL: Softness, Movement & Light, published by Academy Editions and his new book Mass to Membrane published by ORO Editions explaining the evolution of architecture from heavy buildings to membrane structures.

Awards include the 2021 AIA Twenty-five Year award, the Dupont Benedictus Award, the IDEA Bronze Award, over ten Regional and National AIA Design Awards, over 25 IFAI awards, the 28th Bard Award in NY, the Waterfront Center's Award in Cincinnati and the State of Florida's Governor’s Design Award.

Barbara Griffith established SCL Equipment Finance, a division of Southern California Leasing Inc. in 1992. Throughout her career, she has originated millions of dollars of funding for businesses in the U.S. This steady growth is attributed to her company’s reputation, strong beliefs in professional work ethics and proven successful customer relationships. As a well-respected industry leader, she has been featured in many online and print trade publications, served as a committee member for several leasing associations and been a highlighted speaker at conferences and tradeshows. She has distinguished herself as a speaker, educator and provider of equipment financing services to companies nationwide and in Canada. She is a firm believer of paying it forward and educating the next generation.

Coming soon!

Ryan Gundling is an engineer with 19 years of experience developing a variety of inflatable structures. He studied Mechanical Engineering at Villanova University before beginning his career with Vertigo Inc. and quickly became a key member of the team that developed the high pressure AirBeams that were adopted by the US Military, with over 5000 shelters deployed. Ryan has been involved with inflatable shelter designs from 100 square feet to 100,000 square feet that employ inflatable technologies such as high pressure braided beams, low pressure woven beams, drop stitch, and air supported skins. In 2015, he founded Ryzing Technologies with the vision of advancing textiles and inflatables through sound engineering practices. Since then the company has been successful in working with DoD, NASA, and private industry to develop inflatable structures for variety of static and dynamic applications.

Jodi has specialized in the printing industry for over 30-years, with a focus on wide-format printing media. Over the years, she has held various positions including, Sales, Marketing, Product Management, Production Manager and Designer.

Her first exposure to dye-sublimation was in 1997 when working with a ski and snowboard company to increase efficiencies for prototyping and promotional products.

Jodi has conducted seminars, workshops, webinars and written articles relating to digital imaging trends and solutions. Her current role at Canon Solutions America is DG Media Specialist.

Denis Hector, R.A., LEED AP, is an Associate Professor in the University of Miami School of Architecture. He received his Bachelor of Architecture. from Cornell and his Masters from Penn. As a DAAD Fellow at the Institut fur Leichte Flaechentragwerke he conducted research in the laboratory of 2015 Pritzker Prize winner, Frei Otto and established the Lightweight Structures Research Lab with Ted Happold at the University of Bath. He has taught architectural design and structures at the University of Bath, Parsons, Columbia, and U Penn. At UM, he has served as Director of Graduate Programs, Associate Dean in the School of Architecture, and co-chair of the Abess Center Ecosystem Science and Policy Faculty Advisory Board. He initiated the first National Science Foundation Hurricane Hazard Research Conference post-Andrew, edited Hurricane Hazard Mitigation, and participated in the Mississippi Renewal Forum Charrette after Hurricane Katrina, the Mississippi AIA Mississippi Building Code Workshop, the 2010 Haiti Charrette, and subsequent work in Haiti with colleagues in Partner in Health. He currently advises on lightweight structures, hazard mitigation building codes, and community resilience.

Torey wants to streamline your business and simplify your life. Combining his experience with manufacturing, marine fabrication, software development, and workflow consulting, he helps eliminate the daily frustrations that come with the multitude of software systems needed to manage your business.

Frank Henderson began his career at Amoco Fabric and Textile Division of Amoco Chemical in Nashville, GA; after finishing Auburn University in Textile Engineering. Frank’s work at Amoco began with engineering with polypropylene fabric in fabric development.

In 1976 Frank returned to Henderson Sewing Machine Company, a family owned distributor of industrial sewing machines, parts, supplies and automatic systems for sewn product manufacturers.

Having just completed his 44th year at Henderson Sewing Machine Company, Frank has had the opportunity of travelling domestically to 42 states and internationally to more than 60 countries, visiting manufacturers and suppliers of more than 80 different product types of textile sewn products.

Frank speaks at industry events and conferences numerous times a year across the global textile industry.

Ron Houle is Founder and President of Pivot Step Consultants, LLC.

Prior to founding his consulting practice, Ron served for twelve years as vice president of Washington Operations for HDT Global, which had acquired DHS Systems/DRASH in February, 2015. Ron’s focus was on opportunities and programs of record in the defense, homeland security, first responder and community hospitals sectors. He has led company partnerships with federal, state and local emergency response agencies, including strategies supporting military support to civilian agencies.

Since joining HDT Global in 2003, Ron was actively involved with the company’s growth in both the defense and non-defense applications of core products. He was involved in building relationships and programs with the Army National Guard, Philips Healthcare, Northrop Grumman, and General Dynamics, to name a few. In his last three years, Ron was leading the company’s initiative to develop and deploy technologies that will result in a highly mobile tactical power grid.

Prior to joining HDT Global, Ron served as the director for legislative affairs and later as the chief of staff at the national headquarters of the American Red Cross. Prior to the American Red Cross, Ron served on the staff of the Secretary of the Army as the Director of the Programs Division, Office of Legislative Liaison, the Pentagon. Other experience includes an assignment as assistant professor, Department of Mathematics, United States Military Academy; congressional fellow in the office Senator Richard Lugar (R-IN); various command positions in the U.S. Army and service in Desert Storm. In addition to two assignments in Washington, DC, he served nearly six years in Germany, and assignments in Kentucky, Georgia, and Kansas.

Ron is a retired Army Colonel with over 24 years of Active Duty service, and a graduate of the United States Military Academy, West Point, NY. He holds a master of science degree in applied mathematics, and a master of science degree in industrial engineering, both from Stanford University. Additionally, he holds a master of science degree in national security studies from the National Defense University and completed a curriculum in Foreign Policy Studies at the School of Advanced International Studies, the Johns Hopkins University. He also studied national security policy in one-year executive seminar with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He is a past chair of the Corporate Advisory Panel of the National Guard Association, and past chair of the board for the US Industrial Fabrics Institute, and the founder and a past chair of the Berry Amendment Textile Coalition.

Patrick Howe is the owner of Shazeebo Shade Sails located in San Marcos, California. He started in the shade sail business over 20 years ago as a contractor in Phoenix, making shade sail models out of cardboard and welding posts on the dock of a friend's warehouse. Patrick continues to innovate the shade sail trade with the announcement of the Shazeebo Dealer Support Program, a comprehensive resource for contractors that are looking to enter into the shade sail industry.

Artist Gordon Huether founded his studio in Napa, California with a mission to create large-scale site-specific permanent art installations. Huether’s careful consideration of the artwork in context with the place and its users has led to over 75 public art projects and over 170 private commissions. Projects have included installations for civic buildings, corporations, hospitals, hotels, libraries, museums, recreation centers, transportation centers, and universities throughout the world. Huether is currently working with the Salt Lake City International Airport Department of Airports in designing, fabricating and installing significant structurally integrated installations for its Airport Redevelopment Program, expected to complete in 2024.

John Ingraham is a Senior Marketing Specialist for Canon Solutions America focusing on digital textiles and dye sublimation printing solutions. He brings over 30 years of experience in digital printing technology with in-depth knowledge of large-format inkjet printing, color management, print workflow software, and printing consumables. John was awarded three patents in printing technology, participated on the IT-8 Committee for color communication specifications, and served as technical liaison on two EU commissions to promote digital textile printing standard. His formal education includes a B.S. in Imaging Science from Rochester Institute of Technology and an M.B.A. from Bentley University.

Bill Jackson was named the Assistant U.S. Trade Representative for Textiles in April 2016. He is responsible for conducting and overseeing negotiations affecting textile and apparel products, advising the U.S. Trade Representative on textile and apparel trade policy matters, and working to expand the industry’s access to foreign markets. He was the lead negotiator on textiles and apparel for the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement.

Mr. Jackson served as Deputy Assistant U.S. Trade Representative for the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) trade preference program from 2010 to 2016 and Director for African Affairs at USTR from 2002 to 2010, during which he worked on a wide variety of U.S.-African trade and investment issues, including administration of the African Growth and Opportunity Act trade preference program.

Before coming to USTR, Mr. Jackson was Director of Government Relations and Policy at the Africa-America Institute, a leading American nongovernmental organization involved in education and exchange programs for and with Africans. He also served for thirteen years as a Foreign Service Officer for the U.S. Department of State, where his assignments included postings in Sri Lanka and Liberia and policy jobs in African and Central Asian Affairs.

Mr. Jackson is a graduate of the University of Pittsburgh and has a master’s degree in Foreign Service from Georgetown University..

Mary Johnson is the Manager of 401 Tech Bridge and concurrently leads the Rhode Island Textile Innovation Network. She facilitates collaboration across industry, government, defense agencies, and academia and leverages the resources and expertise of the region’s vibrant textiles, composites and technology ecosystem to accelerate innovation and growth. She previously served as the Manager of Growth and Strategy at Polaris MEP, as the Executive Director of Rhode Island Students of the Future, a youth robotics organization. 

Chris Jorgensen is Director Technology Transfer with IPC—Association Connecting Electronics Industries, a worldwide trade association for the electronics interconnect industry. As a member of IPC’s technical department, Chris’s primary responsibility is staff liaison to standards development committees. These committees include the IPC D-70 E-Textiles Committee, IPC D-70-INT-EU E-Textiles Committee in Europe and IPC D-60 Printed Electronics Committee.

Chris also represents IPC as a member of AFFOA – Advanced Functional Fabrics of America and NextFlex–America’s Flexible Hybrid Electronics Manufacturing Institute, for which he is a co-lead of its Standards, Reliability and Test Technical Working Group.

Chris has nearly 20 years of experience in standards development, nonprofit management and marketing. He received his degree in communications from Columbia College in Chicago.

Dr. Jesse Jur is a Professor of Textile Engineering, Chemistry & Science at NC State University's Wilson College of Textiles, the global leader in textile education and research. He is also currently serving as the Director of Ecosystem Technology while on sabbatical at AFFOA (Advance Functional Fabrics of America), a defense manufacturing institute. Dr. Jur has spent his career researching opprotunities to interface advanced device processing and textile design. His research focuses on integration of electronics systems into wearable platforms to improve materials processing scaleup, including the use of automation techniques to help lower the cost of smart garment technologies.

Tim has 35 years of experience at Capital City Awning, where he serves as president, general manager, and chief financial officer. Capital City Awning employs 35 people that provide awnings and fabric shade and other weather protection items for residential, regional commercial, and national retail clients.

Tim has a background in chemical engineering from The Ohio State University, and a masters degree in business from The Wharton School.

As the Senior Technology Manager at Bolger & O’Hearn, Inc. Frank Keohan has led the development of high performance fabric effects including repellents, odor control agents, and adhesives for the past six years. Mr. Keohan holds a BA-Chemistry from Holy Cross College, an MS-Chemistry from Virginia Tech, and an MBA from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. Before his position at Bolger & O’Hearn, he served as a Materials Program Manager at 3D Systems developing novel polymers for 3D printing, an Applied Technology Manager at H.C. Starck performing business development for conductive polymer products, and Vice President at Cape Cod Research, managing government-sponsored R&D programs. Mr. Keohan has over 30 years of experience in polymer synthesis, applied chemistry, materials science, and textile finishing.

Clare King, President of Propel LLC, has been at the cutting edge of textile technology innovations for her entire career. For over a decade, Clare has led a team at Propel focused on developing new textile-based solutions from fiber to complete systems for the US military. She is particularly excited and engaged in the intersection of textile technology with other scientific and technical fields and by the opportunities this creates for applying textile innovations in completely new ways. Clare holds degrees from Oxford and Princeton Universities.

Joe Koury serves as a staff manager at ASTM International in its Technical Committee Operations Division. Joe has worked at ASTM for 20 years and manages technical committees that develop standards mainly for the sports and recreation industry. Joe manages subcommittee F08.22 Camping Softgoods which develops safety standards for products such as sleeping bags, tents, sleeping pads, and backpacks for recreational use. ASTM International, one of the largest standards development organizations in the world, is a trusted source for technical standards for materials, products, systems, and services. Known for their high technical quality and market relevancy, ASTM International standards have an important role in the information infrastructure that guides design, manufacturing and trade in the global economy.

Dr. Kihong Ku works in the area of emerging design technology and studies how design technology changes, facilitates, and improves concept design and design development processes. Currently he focuses on integrating building performance with innovative material strategies and performance based design practices. Ongoing work includes research on adaptive facades and textile material based building envelopes. His research has been funded by various public and private funding entities including NCARB, NIOSH, Skanska USA Building, Virginia Tech, Philadelphia University, and Xi'an Jiaotong-Liverpool University.

Brian La Plante has an extensive background in design and materials innovation. As Director of Outerwear at the outdoor brand Marmot, he and his team fused sustainable design with technical performance leading to many industry awards. Now as Manager of Sustainability for YKK’s Global Marketing Group he is responsible for identifying new materials and technologies, and developing the products necessary for a more sustainable future.

Daniela Leal joined the textile world as the Sustainability Specialist at Piana Group, an organization comprised of Tintoria Piana, Piana Eco Planet, and Piana Nonwovens. Daniela’s educational background consists of a B.S. in Environmental Science and a P.S.M. in Environmental Policy and Management, eventually leading into her first job in the textile industry. Her career-focused ambitions are founded on the belief that all economic sectors are responsible for their environmental and social impacts, supporting her goal to help businesses outpace the sustainability challenges facing the industry.

Carsten Linti is senior scientist at the German Institute for Textile and Fiber Research (DITF) Denkendorf. Since 2016 he is Deputy Head of the Technology Center Biomedical Engineering.

Carsten Linti is mechanical engineer specialized on biomedical and precision engineering and received his Diploma (MSc) at the University of Stuttgart in 1994. His scientific work focuses on the research and development of textile, injection molded and fiber reinforced resorbable implants as well as Smart Textiles in Health Care Applications.

Mr. Alejandro Maupomé is a Project leader at CTT Group. He holds a Ph.D. degree in Chemical Engineering from ENSIC (Nancy, France). He has a 30+ years professional experience in polymer technology, mainly in thermoplastics, composites, coatings and foams.

Nora McCafferty has over two decades of experience in the U.S. Military’s personal protective equipment selection and procurement process. Her focus is on identifying, educating and influencing technical, user and economic buyers at various government defense organizations. She is the owner of Maples & Associates, LLC, a consulting firm that helps clients navigate the complex network of organizations, agencies and program offices that make up the department of defense. They work to match their clients’ existing and emerging capabilities with near and long term opportunities within all branches of the U.S. Military. Before forming Maples & Associates, she worked in the technical fabrics division at W.L.Gore&Associates as a Government Specialist for their U.S. Military Team. Before her time at Gore she held several Production Manager positions. She is a graduate of Clemson University and holds a Masters in Textile Engineering.

As a manager for the marine market at Sunbrella, Bill McDaniel works closely with dedicated marine fabricators and boat enthusiasts to help make their visions come to life. From advising on marine applications to helping guide new product development and innovation, Bill plays an integral role in growing the Sunbrella marine offering. With nearly 40 years of experience in the textile industry, Bill remains inspired and motivated by the many close connections he’s formed over the years and the opportunity to support the bright future ahead for the marine market.

Over his tenured career, Bill has been an active member in supporting the marine trade and industry at large. He is currently on the board of Marine Accessories and Component Division of the National Marine Manufacturers Association (NMMA) and was previously the president of the Marine Fabricator Association (MFA). He holds the Industrial Fabric Manager (IFM) certification from IFAI.

Bill is a veteran of the United States Navy and holds a B.A. from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte.

Ben Mead serves as the Managing Director of Hohenstein Institute America. In this role, he serves as the company’s liaison with government agencies, industry collaborations and trade associations. He also oversees OEKO-TEX® responsibilities for the U.S.

Prior to joining Hohenstein in 2014, Ben consulted with various brands and industry associations, including Textile Exchange and AFIRM. In those roles, Ben established partnerships with industry leaders and experts to increase industry engagement in green chemistry and sustainable textile processing.

While working for Nike, Ben helped develop a restricted substances program and was involved in the implementation of sustainable materials and water programs.

Ben holds degrees in Chemistry and Textile Chemistry from North Carolina State University and a certificate in Green Chemistry from the University of Washington.

Jeff Mills has worked in the textiles industry for over 43 years, with the last 10 concentrated in dye sublimation. For over five years, he has utilized his extensive experience managing Beaver Paper’s textiles division. As TexStyles® Product Manager, Jeff is responsible for sales, inventory, and the development of new innovative textile products including the new four-way stretch Backlit and eco-friendly NatureSeries product lines.

Global Impex USA’s founder, Kingshuk Mukherjee (King), has been an active participant in the global textile industry for over 20 years and he has conducted business in over 40 countries. It was King’s drive and knack for global business that allowed him to create Prestige Impex, a multi-million-dollar international textile company, early on in his business career. Currently, King teaches as a professor of global business at St. John’s University and at St. Benedict’s College and heads Global Impex USA and its subsidiaries.

Zoe Newman is a graduate student in the Wilson College of Textiles at North Carolina State University. She is studying sustainable textile innovation through the integration of specialized knitting techniques. Zoe has helped develop the North Carolina Textile Hemp Consortium consisting of industry members across the United States focusing on sustainable economic development and processing innovations of hemp fiber in the Southeast. Her career goal is to enter academia where she may continue contributions to ground-breaking research and textile developments in the 21st century.

Brent Nussbaum has been with Miller Weldmaster over twenty years and has been the president for three. He began his career at Miller Weldmaster as a student in a co-op program working hand in hand with our founder, Al Miller. During his career he has held many positions within the business including manufacturing, field service, engineering and sales. Brent has also had the unique experience to work with three generations of the Miller Family. With an in-depth knowledge of the craftsmanship required to build long lasting equipment, Brent leads the organization with a customer first attitude, while continuing to instill the Miller work ethic, vision, and culture.

With global product development and supply chain experience that spans over 20 world-class brands, Courtney brings a deeply technical and strategic point of view to her role at Hologenix, inventors of Celliant. Having served as a senior executive at PVH and VF Corporation and also a member of the Cotton Board for over a decade, Courtney is an expert in textile science, global sourcing, product design and development.

Jifei Ou is an inventor, researcher and entrepreneur. He is the founder and CEO of OPT Industries. The mission of the company is to redefine how textiles can be designed and made to achieve tailored material properties. Prior to OPT Industries, Jifei worked at the MIT Media lab as a researcher. His work focuses on developing mechanical metamaterials through additive manufacturing. He has been leading projects that study bio-mimicry and bio-derived materials to design shape-changing packaging, garments and furniture.

Bianca Pate is an Account Representative at PartnerShip LLC and currently resides in Atlanta, GA. They began their career in sales and gained an interest in logistics while scheduling shipments for a company they were previously employed with. When the chance arose for them to begin a career in logistics with PartnerShip, they jumped at the opportunity. Bianca now works with trade association members across the US providing helpful solutions to logistics needs, specializing in Less than Truckload and Truckload shipments.

John has been helping entrepreneurs, startups and brands innovate in the active lifestyle industry since 2013. John received his Bachelor’s from the University of MS and Master’s from Georgetown University. John started his career at the Sports & Fitness Industry Association and became passionate about merging the sports industry with technology. John manages business development and all commercial opportunities for Nextiles. He has worked alongside C-Suite leadership teams across the sports, apparel and broader active lifestyle industries. John has been involved with a variety of companies at all stages as an industry advisor. John is a connector, believes some dogs are better than people and has never shied away from a mic with a stage. When he’s not selling, John can be found spending time with friends, family and his Golden Corgi rescue, Ally.

Eric Petersen is the Director of Sales & Marketing for Enduratex. In addition to his role as manager of national sales for Enduratex, he oversees the marketing for the company. Petersen joined Enduratex in 2011 as Sales Manager. Previous to his current position with Enduratex, he was associated with Omnova Solutions and Avery Dennison respectively. His focus is on driving profitable growth and positioning the Enduratex brand as the premiere coated fabrics product line. Petersen is active in several industry associations including: CFFA, NADFD and NEWH. Petersen resides with his wife and children in Medina, Ohio.

Amy Poole is the Director of the Dealer network for Awnex, Inc. AWNEX designs, engineers, manufactures and installs aluminum canopies, awnings, trellises, wall louvers, roof screens and patio covers for the commercial chain store & quick service markets.

She works with fabric awning companies across the US to recruit them as dealers to to become a vendor for our products. Amy enjoys building relationships with clients and providing training and support for them to become a successful dealer.

Jim Reyen is the Business Director of Johnson Outdoors Inc/Eureka! Big Tent Division and is also a Past Chair of the IFAI's Tent Rental Division. Over the years Jim has contributed to the industry through his work at Eureka and also the numerous educational events and projects that he has been involved including the popular "Training for the Tent Professional", the development of the Tent Rental Division Guide for safe tent installations and overseeing the creation and launch of the IFAI Ballast Study. Jim has over 30 years of experience in the industry and has presented on countless topics ranging from how to properly sell tents, to safe practices, industry standards, and how to properly prepare and train your crews.

Mar Ricketts is the Principal and founder of GuildWorks He studied architecture and engineering at Pratt Institute in New York. He began his career pioneering high performance tensioned fabric kites but has always been working towards innovative architectural solutions.

Stephanie Rodgers is a product development leader and entrepreneur focusing on applied textiles in multi-market sectors.

She has been at the forefront of textile and component product development for luxury and flagship automotive interiors for General Motors, Magna International, Fisker Automotive, and other newly emerging electric vehicle companies for 25 years. In a bizarre career turn, Stephanie became the first textile engineer at Microsoft Corporation, where she collaborated with XBOX and SURFACE researchers and engineers to design and develop with textiles. While with Microsoft, she received a Microsoft applied US Patent for an integrated electronic-textile and for developing a user attachment for handicapped XBOX players.

She currently works as the Director of Advanced Product Development for Apex Mills using yarn as a vehicle for innovation for warp knitted textiles and holds another patent in capacitive touch sensor warp knitted textiles. Problem Shared. Problem Solved is the idea.

Stephanie holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Textile Engineering from Philadelphia University. In addition to traveling the global textile community, has lectured about advanced textiles to design and engineering students of all disciplines and is a frequent speaker at textile events. Additionally, she is an active member of the Advanced Functional Fabrics of America (AFFOA) Institute and is Co-Chair of IPC D-70 E-Textiles Committee and IPC D-72 E-Textiles Materials and Program subcommittees. In 2020, she was the recipient of the IPD Rising Star Award for leadership and dedication to the goals of IPC in electronic and functional textiles.

Shade Sails Canada is a family owned, proudly Canadian company designing, engineering and building Shade Structures for over 15 years. Brydon graduated with a Bachelor of Commerce Degree. He travelled extensively in Europe, Asia & Down Under. In 2000, he joined with other members of the Roe family to form Shade Sails Canada. In 2007, Brydon migrated from Toronto to Revelstoke BC to expand Shade Sails in the West by opening the Western office. During the last decade, Brydon has gained extensive experience with tensioned fabric shade structures as well as Cyclone Umbrellas and out Tulip Umbrellas.

Daniela Rondinone is a Textile & Apparel Technologist who focuses on improving people’s quality of life through the innovative use of functional apparel and materials.

Daniela holds a bachelor’s degree in Textile and Apparel Design, followed by a Master of Science in Textiles from North Carolina State University. She has more than 3 years of experience conducting research on biomedical textiles, smart textiles, clothing comfort, and personal protective equipment. For her master’s thesis, she performed a laboratory study to evaluate the efficacy and durability of silver-based textiles used as infection control tools for Healthcare-Associated Infections. During her graduate studies she also engaged as a project coordinator in a research project that analyzed the factors that led to the shortages of PPE in the United States during COVID-19 and elaborated strategies that could be implemented in the future.

She currently works at Test Labs - Inivos as a Research Assistant in the material science laboratory, bringing her expertise on design of experiments and knowledge on the role of environmental surfaces in the transmission of infections.

Kevin Rosenberg is responsible for partnerships and business development for OPT Industries. Kevin brings experience in identifying new product opportunities based on applying new technologies. Prior to OPT, Kevin has 10yrs experience between consulting and various startups across industries. He completed his undergraduate studies in Public Health and Business Administration at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Dennis Rushing II, MFC is the General manager at Industrial Shadeports. Dennis overseas all aspects of Sales, Production, and Installation of Shade Products he has been in the awning and shade industry for nearly 30 years. He has grown from an Installer, to Shop Foreman, Installation Manager, sales and sales manager. With years of knowledge and a thoroughness of the industry, he now is leading Industrial Shadeports as General Manager.The Shade Industry has taken him from Northern Michigan (Traverse Bay Canvas) to Louisville,KY (Bluegrass Awning Co.) and now to FortLaudedale, FL with Industrial Shadeports.

Patrick Sattler is the Director of Engineering Services & Business Development for NDN Software, which specializes in the design/engineering of tensile membrane structures ranging in size from playground shade sails and boat covers, to full stadium roofs. With 11 years of experience in the tensile membrane industry, he is also the primary training point of contact for NDN’s family of users around the world.

Patrick graduated from the University of California, San Diego (UCSD) in 2009 with a degree in Aerospace Engineering. Away from work he enjoys running, cycling, baseball, and is a huge college football fan, but the vast majority of his free time is spend chasing 2 small kids around his house.

Michael Savarie is the Sustainability Manager of the Piana Group, a multi-faceted organization comprising of Tintoria Piana, Piana Eco Planet, and Piana Nonwovens. Michael has worked toward social and environmental sustainability across Canada, Europe, and the United States in various industries. Dedicated to driving sustainability strategy across the apparel and textile industry, he has helped businesses develop strategic initiatives to improve sustainability of materials, products, supply chains, and operations. Michael holds a B.B.a. in Sustainable Business Operations, a M.S. in Sustainable Design, is an accredited LEED Green Associate and Circular Economy Designer.

Dr. Reinhold Schneider is senior scientist at the German Institute for Textile and Fiber Research (DITF) Denkendorf. Dr. Schneider is chemist and received his pHD degree at the University of Stuttgart in 1992. His scientific work focuses on the field of textile printing, dyeing and finishing of textile materials.

Conventional textile printing as well as the innovative inkjet printing technology and the digital functionalization of surfaces are subject of his main research. This work includes the formulation of color and functional inks as well as the physico-chemical pre-treatment for inkjet printing and functional coatings. In particular, electrically conductive inks have been developed, with the help of which electrical conductors and electrical switches could be printed on textile materials. Furthermore, sensors for composite materials as well as electroluminescent textiles have been developed. In addition, there are innovative invisible markings on textiles that are of interest for the protection against plagiarism. These and other works are documented in more than 200 publications, technical papers and research projects.

Chris Semonelli Vice President of Sales & Marketing at ESquared , and is the President of Coated Technical Solutions

He holds a BS in Chemical Engineering from Northeastern University and MBA from Pepperdine University.

He has be involved with Technical Textiles for over 40 years also, holding previous positions at Cooley Incorporated and Intertape Polymer group.

He is currently the chair of the IFAI Advanced Textiles Products (ATP) group , a member of the Rhode Island Textiles Innovation Network (RITIN), and on the board of education program , FabNewport in Newport Rhode Island

He was a member of the ambassador design team, developed by rhode Island Education Council on Elementary and Secondary Education which developed and wrote the next strategic plan for elementary and secondary education in Rhode Island,

He has been involved in various volunteer activities for many years to enhance the educational and career opportunities available to middle and high students in the Science Technology Engineering Arts and Math ( STEAM) environment.

Recently he has changed course and directed his efforts to help those in the disabled community, and as a result, today he is the Vice Chair of the Rhode Island disability Council, Chair of the Rhode Island Force advocacy group for the disabled , and Director of the Newport County Parents Disabled Advocacy Group.

Christopher Semonelli was the 2019 recipient of The Newport Daily News Community Service Award for Educational Outreach.

Marc Shellshear, IFM, MFC has been in the Industrial Fabrics business for over 25 years, nicknamed Dr. Shade. Marc has held positions within 4 companies in the past 25 years from sales, sales administration, marketing, operations and almost every facet of manufacturing. Marc has worked with companies such as Nissan, Sirius XM, Martha Stewart, Wal-Mart, Play Power, MD Anderson Hospital, NASA, and Volkswagen to name a few and has worked all over North and South America. Marc is currently on the IFAI Board of Directors and is the Immediate Past Chairman of the Fabric Structures Association and has served on the Education Committee of IFAI, International Achievement Awards Judge, Certification Judge, and IFF judge for IFAI.

Bill is the Defense Logistics Agency Troop Support - Clothing and Textiles (C&T) Industrial Capabilities Program (ICP) Team Lead since 2013. The team assesses industrial capability and supply chain risk of vendors and suppliers supporting C&T managed items. Bill works with three other industrial specialists monitoring the C&T industrial base for constraints and supply chain disruptions that may negatively impact vendor deliveries. The team along with DLA buyers identify potential at-risk industrial base segments. Bill is also the C&T Warstopper Program liaison responsible for identifying industrial base investments that will close a gap in Service requirements and industrial capability. Prior to DLA, Bill worked as a publishing company project manager and a database programming consultant.

Sandy Smith is a communications consultant for the International Sign Association.

Jeff Sponseller has been in the industrial fabrics and graphics business for over twenty years. As an Executive for Miller Weldmaster, he has worked with numerous industrial fabrics manufacturers, government contractors, sign industry leaders, and has consulted on numerous projects requiring thermoplastic welding and fabric handling. Jeff is a past member of the Board of Directors for the Industrial Fabrics Industry and past Chairman of the Equipment Division of the Industrial Fabrics Industry.

Prior to the industrial fabrics industry, Jeff worked as a biomedical engineer and as a sales representative in the pharmaceutical industry. He has degrees in Engineering and Management.

R. Trevor Stevenson is Vice President of Eastman Machine Company, a family-owned and operated business since 1888. Born in Buffalo and raised in Columbus, Georgia, Mr. Stevenson is a 1998 B.A. graduate of the University of Vermont and 2011 M.B.A. graduate from the University of Buffalo. Upon graduation and prior to joining the Eastman team, he worked in Europe for an internet company as well as a manufacturing firm in Colorado. He currently works closely with all departments at Eastman and is major influencer on product design, sales, and tech service.

Mr. Stevenson is married with twins (11), a daughter (20) and two dogs. He enjoys spending time with his family, skiing, hiking, travelling, and playing golf.

Dr. Alexander (Sasha) Stolyarov is the CEO of Advanced Functional Fabrics of America (AFFOA) Manufacturing USA Institute, with a mission to develop revolutionary advanced fiber and fabric system capabilities for commercial and national security applications.

In 2017, Sasha spearheaded the founding of the Defense Fabric Discovery Center (DFDC), a joint enterprise between MIT Lincoln Laboratory, Natick Soldier Systems Center, the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, and AFFOA focused on developing advanced fiber systems for critical defense problems.

Sasha conducted his graduate and postdoctoral training at MIT, focusing on developing advanced fabrication capabilities for multimaterial fiber devices and systems, including fiber-based chemical sensors, electro-optic modulators, multi-modal waveguides, and opto-fluidic systems. He has coauthored 18 peer-reviewed journal articles and 4 US patents in this emerging field. Sasha earned a PhD in Applied Physics from Harvard University in 2012 and a BS in Physics from the University of Texas at Dallas in 2005.

George is the founder and CEO of Nextiles. George studied at Berkeley where he received his Bachelor’s in Bioengineering and Electrical Engineering & Computer Science. He went on to complete his PhD in Biological Engineering at MIT. While at MIT, George was recruited to lead Puma’s Embedded Engineering team where he applied his materials science knowledge with his electrical engineering expertise to optimize footwear projects in the Puma innovation lab. After seeing shortcomings from wearable technology during his time at Puma, George set out to reinvent the industry — from the ground up with fabric. George spun out Nextiles from MIT after being awarded three patents around the domain of fabric-based sensors.

Combining aesthetics and functionality, Pvilion specializes in the design, engineering, and manufacture of lightweight products that integrate solar cells to generate electricity. The company’s diverse products include clothing, stadium roofs and building facades. Mr. Touhey recently received the Forbes 30 Under 30 award for energy. He has worked in wind and ocean current energy with NASA, THOR, and others, and is also the founder of Foray, a medical device engineering firm.

Rian True serves as President of Carolina CoverTech, a manufacturer of high-quality products that cover, protect, contain, and enclose.

His strategic focus is Business Development and Product Innovation.

He specializes in helping Carolina Cover Tech partners turn their innovative ideas into high quality products.

Rian is a graduate of Augusta State University. He is married to Rhonda, and they have three children Dorian, Diana, and Dalton. He is also an avid Clemson University football fan. Rian is an active participant in the C12 business group and a member of the Chief Executive Boards International.

After graduating from the University of Delaware with a BS in Business Administration in 1982, Mr. Vavala joined Sony Corporation of America where he held various sales and marketing positions in the consumer products division. In 1988 he joined W. L. Gore & Associates Inc. a science and technology driven enterprise headquartered in Newark, DE. During his 30-year career at Gore, Mr. Vavala served in numerous business and sales leadership positions including, Business Development Leader for North American General Outerwear, Sales Leader North American Consumer Footwear, Business Leader of the Asia Pacific Domestic Fabrics Business, and Director of Military Government Relations. During his tenure at Gore Mr. Vavala served on the Boards of Directors for the Warrior Protection and Readiness Coalition and the National Textile Association. Mr. Vavala is currently the President of Vavala & Associates Inc. a government relations consulting firm specializing in helping clients navigate the complex environment of doing business with the U. S. Government.

Bud Weisbart, Vice President of A&R Tarpaulins, Inc., and A&R’s Divisions, AR Tech and AR Industries, was born in Los Angeles, California, where he grew up and went to school. After graduating California State University, Northridge, with a degree in Political Science, he joined the Peace Corps, teaching English in Thailand from 1963 to 1965. He attended the CORO Foundation’s Fellowship as a post graduate program and then moved to Peru to run Foster Parents’ Plan’s program there with his wife, Carmen.

Bud and Carmen moved back the Los Angeles area in 1968, preparing for the birth in 1969 of their first son, Ken, and Bud managed a number of social service programs in Southern California and in 1975 their second son, Chris, was born. In 1978 the Weisbarts purchased 1/3 of A&R, which since its founding in 1976, had dedicated itself to serving the trucking industry in Southern California.

Under Bud and Carmen’s leadership, A&R capitalized on the culture and core competency it developed to expand and diversify into new markets, first serving the large aerospace industry in the local area and subsequently addressing the commercial and residential needs for architectural products.

At the foundation of A&R’s diversification is the company’s ability to build upon the longevity of its staff and their growth and development in ability to design and manufacture products required in the new markets A&R pursues.

Dr. Andre West is the Director of the Zeis Textiles Extension (ZTE) and an Associate Professor in the Department of Textile Apparel Technology and Management at the Wilson College of Textile at NC State University. His role as the Director of ZTE is to keep sustainable textiles at the forefront of future textiles, cultivating a more responsible ecosystem for the fashion industry. This is achieved by education and mobilizing students, industry, and consumers to be positive advocates while leveraging industry-related partnerships. He is involved in sustainable manufacturing techniques with Wholegarment knitting for zero waste. He has made numerous national and international presentations on how textile production should achieve a total circular economy.

Michael McKeldon Woody is CEO of Trans-Tex LLC, a textile company based in Cranston, RI. He is currently chair of the Rhode Island Textile Innovation Network (RITIN), past president of the Narrow Fabrics Institute (NFI), and a member of Rhode Island's Manufacturing Advisory Council. In 2017, his book American Dragon: Winning the Global Manufacturing War Using the Universal Principles of Fewer, Faster, and Finer was named a finalist for Business and Economics Book of the Year by Foreword Indies.

Bruce Wright is an architect and writer whose publications, teaching, and technical expertise strengthen the profession’s knowledge base, especially in the area of new materials and architectural fabrics. Over the last 40 years, he has worked in architectural offices, written hundreds of articles, edited design journals, co-written books, and supported continuing education. For 17 years, Bruce served as editor-in-chief of the international journal, Fabric Architecture, generating themed issues that told stories of how architects could achieve lightweight, sustainable, and beautiful buildings through fabric applications. He helped to introduce ETFE and other breakthrough products to the profession through featuring prominent projects such as Zaha Hadid’s Serpentine Pavilion in London (2000), Herzog & de Meuron’s Alliance Stadium in Munich (2005), and Kieran Timberlake Architects’ US Embassy in London (2012-2017). In addition to ongoing contributions to design journals and Specialty Fabrics Review, Bruce is a senior instructor in architecture and construction management departments at Dunwoody College of Technology, Minneapolis.