The co-located Medical Design & Manufacturing (MD&M) West, WestPack, PLASTEC West Pavilion, Electronics West, Pacific Design & Manufacturing, and Automation Technology Expo (ATX) West shows held in January, had record-breaking performance at the Anaheim Convention Center in California. Show producers estimate that in excess of $600 million in sales were generated for the 2,045 participating exhibitors. “Preliminary attendance figures are up about 15% over last year, which means the shows attracted nearly 45,000 OEM buyers,” says Diane O'Connor, Canon Communications' trade show director.

What's more, more than 80% of available exhibit space for 2007 has already been reserved. “The show is a tremendous opportunity to meet hundreds of biotech and pharma companies,” states Barbara Biller, president of Intellitech, a manufacturer of liquid fill and finishing equipment.

The event's conference program, attended by close to 500 people, consisted of 32 sessions, a few grouped into all-day workshops on topics such as medical packaging, software and process validation, intellectual property, six sigma, risk management, and corrective and preventive action (CAPA) programs.