y all measures, APEC 2012 in Orlando was a resounding success.  Our General Chair – PSMA’s own Frank Cirolia – and his outstanding conference committee, along with the tireless support of our conference management team at Courtesy Associates, turned in record setting performances in total attendance, total number of exhibitors, total number of professional seminars, and total number of technical papers presented.

Attendance at APEC has been growing year-on-year since 2009.  This year, our attendance figures exceeded 3,000 for the first time – easily breaking that barrier with over 3,400 engineers in attendance! Members of the global power electronics community come to APEC in growing numbers because they expect to find the highest quality presentations and world-class exhibit. And APEC has once again delivered. Here are some of the milestones that Frank Cirolia reported for APEC 2012:

• Largest number of attendees – 3,400+
• Largest number of exhibitor booths – 262  (with a total of 177 exhibitors)
• 30 student travel grants of up to $1,000 each enabling university students from all over the world to attend
• 404 Technical Paper Presentations
• Professional Seminar and Technical Session proceedings on USB drives instead of CDs
• 11 Partner firms provided added revenues – more coffee breaks, FREE Wi-Fi

Siamak Abedinpour, this year’s Program Chair, now takes over the reins as General Chair for APEC 2013. As we bask in the glow of a job well-done, work is already underway to make APEC 2013 even bigger, even better. APEC moves back to the West Coast next year, convening in Long Beach, CA March 17-21, 2013. Early indications are that we may break 200 exhibitors for the first time!

As a final note, we wish to acknowledge the efforts and tireless dedication of Don Woodard, who after many, many years as Exhibits Chair is stepping down. Thanks Don for all you have done and will continue to do for APEC and PSMA.

Provided by Greg Evans, APEC 2012 Publicity Chair

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