President's Charge: Ring the Changes
Posted on Wednesday, April 19, 2017
By: Ron Cudzilo
For more than 35 years, The
Powder Coating Institute (PCI)
has been serving its members by
promoting the benefits of powder
coating technology as the voice of
powder coating worldwide.
During the last several years,
PCI has experienced some
tremendous changes, including
the decision to work with the
association management firm,
Goyer Management International
(GMI), which provides the
association with more staff,
expertise and accountability. Since
this management change, PCI has
replaced the Powder Show with
the Powder Coating Technical
Conference; we have merged
numerous databases into one,
increasing our efficiencies; and just
this past year, we have restructured
our committees to compensate for
some overlap and allow for greater
transparency.
These changes, among others,
were initiated to increase the value
of being a member of PCI. We want
to spread the word that one of the
biggest benefits of PCI membership
is the opportunity to invest in
our industry by participating in
one of our committees—whether
it be Promotion, Education,
Certification or Membership.
Already underway, 2017
has greeted us with existing as
well as perhaps yet-unidentified
challenges. High on this year’s
priority list is 1) the revitalization
of our PCI Certification Program
and increased promotion of the
value of being certified to those
looking for an applicator; 2)
updating and possibly expanding
our educational services for the
manufacturer and applicator;
and 3) continuing our general
promotion of powder coating
technology as a greener, more
environmentally friendly coating
to end users and consumers. If you
haven’t already seen our new video
that promotes powder technology
to consumers, you can visit PCI’s
website at www.powdercoating.org
to check it out. It is splattered with
our Powder Coated Tough Mark on
numerous consumer products.
We continue to work on
top-notch programming for our
events, and it is our hope that
you will see the results of that
work at the POWDER COATING
2017 Technical Conference in
Indianapolis from March 27-31
(visit www.powdercoating.org/event/PC17 for more information).
In addition, we have also begun
our new Peer Group Program with
our Custom Coater members.
These small groups will have their
first meetings this spring and then
again in the fall. We have three
groups so far. If you are a custom
coater, this is a great opportunity to
team up with others in the industry
to learn ways to grow and improve
your business.
I expect that 2017 will be yet
another year of growth for PCI, and
as the association’s new president,
I am asking that you participate in
one of our committees. If you are
already an active participant, thank
you. Through word of mouth,
you can convey to less-active and
non-members just how beneficial
participation really is. If you are
employed in any aspect of the
powder coating industry, don’t
miss out on the benefits of PCI
membership and all of the industry
connections that can benefit your
business. Come join us!
Ron Cudzilo
rcc@kochllc.com