March 2024 | Wire Rope Exchange | By MHI, with added content from WRE
MHI’s MODEX 2024 saw a record-shattering number of registered manufacturing and supply chain professionals, reaching a total of 48,733. The event, held March 11-14 in Atlanta, saw attendees engaged with 1,200 exhibitors showcasing the latest supply chain technology and innovation across three halls and 580,000 net square feet at the Georgia World Congress Center. This was the largest MODEX event to date for MHI, with 32% more registered visitors than MODEX 2022.
“From attendance to exhibition space and educational sessions, MODEX 2024 exceeded all expectations, delivering our largest and most comprehensive supply chain event to date,” said John Paxton, CEO, “The success of this event is a testament to the industry’s ongoing vitality, dedication to innovation, and delivering world-class solutions for supply chain operations. It was a massive win for the entire industry.”
“The excitement on the show floor and the engagement in educational sessions is a sign of the overall power of the supply chain industry and the demand for the latest solutions and technologies in the space,” added Daniel McKinnon, EVP of Exhibitions at MHI. “Attendees representing the Fortune 500, the top 100 retailers, and top 100 consumer goods firms brought large teams to MODEX with plans in hand and budgets in place to make large supply chain investments.”
Among lifting and rigging vendors, OZ Lifting Products had a notably large presence a the show. Steve Napieralski, President of OZ Lifting, echoed the enthusiasm of the show’s management. He told Wire Rope Exchange: “This record-breaking MODEX fostered a spirit of collaboration unlike any other. OZ Lifting has the privilege of connecting with industry leaders to exchange ideas and explore the future of material handling. This collaborative environment fuels our passion for developing innovative solutions that elevate the lifting industry.”
The biggest trends at MODEX surrounded digital supply chain solutions including automation, robotics, artificial intelligence, autonomous vehicles, augmented reality, the Internet of Things, and data analytics.
“We’re seeing a big acceleration in the adoption of these technologies to build resilience, sustainability and real-time responsiveness into operations,” said Paxton. “The solutions on display and the education offered this year reflected this trend.”
The MODEX Supply Chain Conference sessions which included 200 educational seminars and five keynotes. On March 11, Bill Seward, President, UPS Supply Chain Solutions, spoke on the lessons he has learned at the front lines of UPS’s supply chain efforts. The March 11 afternoon keynote tackled the future of smart ports with representatives from the Ports of Rotterdam, Long Beach, and Virginia. Futurist Gerd Leonhard discussed the exponential change we will see in the coming age of AI in his March 12 keynote.
The March 13 keynote featured Coach Nick Saban who delighted and inspired the audience with tales leadership from his storied football career.
During the March 13 afternoon keynote, MHI’s John Paxton and Deloitte’s Wanda Johnson released the findings of the 2024 MHI Annual Industry Report: “The Collaborative Supply Chain – Tech-Driven and Human-Centric.” during a panel discussion with four industry thought leaders. The report includes new insights into trends and technologies that are transforming supply chains and the priorities of the people who run them. The report can be downloaded here.
MHI Industry Night with comedian Colin Jost was an exciting and entertaining evening. Five thousand dollars in proceeds from the event were donated to Atlanta’s Chattahoochee Riverkeeper and $63,200 was donated to the Material Handling Education Foundation to fund scholarships and programs for students and educators in our industry.
Gig and Take was awarded the 2024 MHI StartUp Award at Industry Night. The StartUp Pavilion is a specialized area on the MODEX show floor where companies showcase emerging supply chain tech and innovation. This award was chosen by supply chain professionals at the MODEX event. Gig and Take impressed the judges with their software solution, showcasing a user-friendly interface and the capability to offer flexible, accessible schedules to workers, effectively mitigating concerns related to labor shortages.
During this event, MHI announced the winners of the 2024 MHI Innovation Awards during MODEX. The MHI Innovation Awards serve to educate and provide valuable insights on the latest manufacturing and supply chain innovative products and services. The awards had 193 submissions from MODEX 2024 exhibitors, and the winners were:
- Best Innovation of an Existing Product – ForwardX Robotics
- Best IT Innovation – Configura, Inc.
- Best New Innovation – Slip Robotics
- Best New Innovation in Sustainability – Avery Dennison
Student Day at MODEX introduced 367 high school and university students and educators to career opportunities in material handling, supply chain and logistics through hands-on learning and networking with industry professionals. This year’s Student Day combined an interactive educational session with a dynamic guided tour of the MODEX show floors.
On-demand content from the event, including keynote sessions, educational sessions and video presentations will soon be available online at modexshow.com via MODEX Digital Entry.
The next MHI-sponsored trade event will be ProMat 2025 held March 17-20 in Chicago’s McCormick Place. For more information on exhibiting at ProMat, or to register as an attendee, visit promatshow.com. The next MODEX will be held at the Georgia World Congress Center in 2026.