ISRI Convention and Expo Guide

So Y2K didn’t live up to its hype. You can bet that ISRI2K—the ReMA 2000 convention and exposition—will.
   This “greatest scrap show on earth” (to borrow from Barnum & Bailey) returns to Las Vegas from March 12-16. Though this marks the fifth time ReMA has held its big event in Las Vegas in the past 13 years, the location will be far from stale. That’s because ReMA is setting up shop at one of the newest—and classiest—properties on the Strip: the Bellagio. This casino resort is an intoxicating blend of Italian design, masterpiece artworks, upscale gaming, first-class dining and shopping—in short, “the best of everything presented in a singular setting,” as the hotel boasts.
   Combine that with the best educational workshops and commodity spotlights for professional recyclers, not to mention the world’s largest exposition of equipment, products, and services for the scrap recycling industry, and ISRI’s got a convention offer you can’t refuse.
   Still not sold? Read on for a description of the convention’s enticements.

Continuing a Big-Name Tradition
As at past ReMA conventions, the first two days of this year’s event—March 12 and 13—are dedicated to committee and division meetings, which culminate in the gala welcome reception the evening of March 13. 
   This event serves as the official grand opening of the exhibit hall and allows you to dine and drink while getting your first—but certainly not last—peek at the exhibitors’ offerings.
   The real action begins the following morning, March 14, with the keynote breakfast. As you’ve come to expect, it wouldn’t be an ReMA convention without big-name speakers to start each day with stimulating talk. This year, ReMA has three well-known figures on tap:
   John Major: In the lead-off position, serving as keynote breakfast speaker on March 14, is Rt. Hon. John Major, known around the world for his position as former prime minister of Great Britain. Drawing from his years of experience as a U.K. political leader, Major will offer observations on the current state of global politics, emerging global political and economic leaders, and the effect of the common European currency and the evolving new marketplace.
   Robert Reich: The March 15 general session breakfast features a well-known former U.S. political figure, Robert Reich, who served as Secretary of Labor for four years in the Clinton administration. His schedule is equally busy now in his roles as a professor at Brandeis University, adviser to political and corporate leaders, columnist, book author, and industry consultant. Don’t miss his talk, as he reviews the forces shaping business and politics globally.
   Doris Kearns Goodwin: Last but certainly not least, renowned journalist and author Doris Kearns Goodwin will be in the spotlight for the final general session talk on March 16. Among her many kudos, Goodwin has penned several bestselling books and won the Pulitizer Prize for No Ordinary Time: Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt: The American Home Front During World War II. She has been a regular panelist on PBS’s The News Hour With Jim Lehrer, a commentator for NBC, and a consultant and on-the-air personality for several PBS documentaries.

Getting on Track
These general session speakers start each convention day on a high note and provide perfect segues into the remaining workshops and spotlights each day. This year, ReMA is trying something different with its workshops, dividing them into five “tracks” composed of programs with a similar theme. The tracks are differentiated by colors that relate to the programs’ focus (green, for instance, pertains to environmental programs). Here’s a review of the different tracks and the workshops under each one. (For dates and times of all programs, see the “Schedule of Events” on page 54.)
   
Black Track—“Keeping Your Company in the Black”
This track encompasses sessions on sound business management, preserving the bottom line, cutting costs, and similar concerns.
• Your Financial Outlook: Estate and Succession Planning. The topics of estate and succession planning are critically important to your personal and professional well-being, but they’re easily set aside or overlooked. Offering some professional advice on these issues will be Laurie Blackburn of Morgan Stanley Dean Witter and Allyson Lewis of Million Dollar Car.
• Diversification as Survival Strategy. A select panel of scrap professionals—Charlie Medico of Louis Cohen & Son Inc., James Snyder of Assad Iron & Metals Inc., and John Ockenfels of City Carton Co. Inc.—will tell how diversifying into other businesses has helped their recycling companies weather the inevitable scrap market downturns.
• How to Develop and Execute Effective Employee Training Programs. In today’s tight job market, with its ever-escalating technological demands, employers have to give their employees the tools they need to be productive and satisfied in their jobs. The alternative is to potentially lose good employees and operate at less-than-optimal productivity levels. Harry Garber of Grossman Iron & Steel Co. and other scrap executives will review how they keep their employees well-trained.
   Red Track—“Cutting Through the Red Tape”
This track includes programs to help you navigate through government regulation, compliance, and insurance issues.
• The Superfund Landscape—Now What? ReMA won a great victory with the passage of the Superfund Recycling Equity Act, but now comes the challenge of complying with the act. Tracy Mattson, ISRI’s director of environmental compliance, will review what scrap processors must do to reap the benefits of the new law.
• How to Make Money and Manage Risk. How can you be sure you’re spending your insurance dollars in the most prudent and effective way when it comes to property, casualty, workers’ compensation, and environmental insurance matters? Easy. By attending this session sponsored by the ReMA group insurance trust and led by Michael Bank of Ferrous Processing & Trading Co. and John Schneider of E. Schneider & Sons Inc.
• Visual Identification of Radioactive Materials—A New Approach to Compliance and Safety. Mike Mattia, ISRI’s director of risk management, will review how scrap plant employees can use visual clues to identify likely radioactive sources in loads of scrap.
   Green Track—“Running an Environmentally Sound Operation”
Here you’ll learn about technologies, practices, and procedures to help you go beyond compliance requirements in your operations.
• Recycling White Goods Without White Knuckles. EPA’s regulations on CFCs and other refrigerants have made the recycling of white goods a concern for many scrap processors. Should you continue to process them, or simply avoid them? Tom Tyler, ISRI’s director of state and local programs/associate counsel, will explain EPA’s requirements and review strategies scrap processors are using to comply with the rules and remain competitive.
• Better Yards and Gardens—Perception Is Realty When You Plan the Public Face for Your Facility. Appearances count. That applies to your personal appearance as well as the appearance of your recycling facility. This panel, moderated by ISRI’s Director of Communications Evelyn Haught, will provide tips on how to ensure that your company’s image is all it can be.
• Developing an Effective Environmental Operating System. An EOS—environmental operating system—can keep your company ahead of the compliance curve. ISRI’s Tracy Mattson moderates a panel discussion that will outline how to develop a solid program that addresses the most common pollution and environmental compliance issues in the scrap industry.
   Blue Track: “The Blue Sky Is the Limit”
This forward-looking track will examine emerging technologies, future trends, and potential market directions.
• Recycling Research—Government Research That’s Opening New Avenues for Recycling. The Office of Industrial Technology—part of the U.S. Department of Energy—is pushing research into cost-effective technologies that can improve energy efficiency and resource conservation in industry. Four researchers from that office—Louis Sousa, Theo Johnson, Si Friedrich, and Charlie Russomanno—will discuss some of the emerging technologies being researched and how these might enhance recycling in the United States.
• Industry Forecast. Analysts will look at trends that could shape the scrap industry in the new millennium.
• E-Commerce and Commodity Trading. The Internet is rapidly transforming business, including commodity trading. Online trading sites are sprouting up for all types of materials, from metals to plastics to paper. Three e-commerce experts—Umash Khaitan of Coppernet.com, Alex Heath of MG Ltd., and Robert O’Brien of the U.S. Defense National Stockpile—will review their particular operations and explore the future direction of e-commerce in the commodity business.
   Gold Track: “Enrich Yourself.”
   Here’s where you get to focus on you, with programs dedicated to personal enrichment, both in and out of business.
• Work as a Positive Addiction. 
A strong work ethic is one thing. Working long hours to the detriment of your personal life and the lives of those around you is quite another. Here’s where to learn how to control your workaholic tendencies to bring more balance—and sanity—to your life.
• Networking—The Skills the Schools Forgot to Teach. Back by popular demand from last year’s ReMA convention, Cynthia D’Amour of People Power Unlimited will review the networking skills you need to know to be successful in both business and social circles.
• All in the Family—Focus on Family Business. Running a business is difficult under any circumstances. Running a family business adds another layer of potential interpersonal complications to the mix. Russell Allred of Allred & Assocs. Inc. will lead a panel discussion about the emotional issues involved and how to deal with common business and family problems.

Keeping Up With Commodities
Wait! There’s more. In addition to the color-tracked programs, there’s the ever-popular series of commodity spotlights. This year includes the normal six—ferrous, aluminum, copper, lead/zinc, nickel/ stainless steel, and paper—as well as one new event.
   The newcomer focuses on aluminum used beverage can (UBC) recycling and explores “What’s Hot With America’s Most-Recycled Container.” 
   This interactive session, being hosted by leading UBC consumers, will cover everything related to UBC recycling—on-the-job safety, supplier recognition programs, quality audits, moisture and contamination prevention and testing, emerging technologies, shipping, and UBC market growth, UBC recycling promotions (such as Aluminum Cans Build Habitat for Humanity Homes).
   The commodity spotlights get rolling with a look at the ferrous scrap market. Headlining this event are four executives from some of the largest scrap companies in North America—and some of the most-active consolidators: Daniel Rifkin of 
OmniSource Corp., Anthony Fernandes of Philip Services Corp., Robert Philip of Schnitzer Steel Industries Inc., and Albert Cozzi of Metal Management Inc.
   Following the ferrous spotlight, the focus shifts to nickel and stainless steel, as Peter Cranfield of Q&I Services/Billington International and Edward Blot of Ed Blot & Assocs. Inc. review what’s happening in those markets.
   The commodity action continues the next day with both the aluminum spotlight, featuring Kevin Moore of General Motors Corp. and Mike Lynch of McCook Metals L.L.C., and the copper spotlight, showcasing Arthur Miele of Phelps Dodge Corp. and Victor Lazarovichi of Nesbitt Burns Securities.
   The last day of the convention offers something for both metallic and nonmetallic processors, serving up first the paper spotlight—led by Ed Sparks of Weyerhaeuser Co./Cedar River Paper Co.—and later the lead/zinc event, offering comments on lead from Richard Amistadi of Doe Run Co. and zinc remarks from Edward Schmidt of Big River Minerals.

What’s New?
Aside from the new approach of “tracking” the workshops, there are a few other firsts worth noting at this first ReMA convention of the new millennium.
   For one, the convention is being held in a new Las Vegas venue for ISRI. For its previous four visits to Las Vegas, ReMA made the Mirage its home base. This year, the association is moving to the Bellagio, a Mirage sister hotel and the undisputed crown jewel of Las Vegas resorts.
   Another notable first this year is that there won’t be a closing night banquet with entertainment. Instead, full registrants will receive a voucher to attend one of two performances of Cirque du Soleil’s “O” on Tuesday evening, March 14.
   Also new this year is ISRI’s virtual trade show, an online complement to the on-site exposition. This “cyber resource” allows you to preview the exposition, locate specific product and service vendors, develop business contacts, and more—all from your computer. (You can access the virtual trade show through ISRI’s home page at www.isri.org, the Explore ReMA page, or the Annual Convention & Expo page.)
   So, are you sold yet? That’s what I thought. See you at the Bellagio.                   —Kent Kiser •