Air Force IT Conference is Dead

Originally posted by on immix Group Blog

R.I.P., AFITC.

As many of you know, the Air Force IT Conference held each August in Montgomery, Alabama was cancelled this past year. It had been held annually since 1983 and was the largest IT conference within the Department of Defense.

Now it looks like it's not coming back.

According to an announcement on Friday by Montgomery AFCEA President Joe Besselman, "the Air Force has no plans to ever restart an Air Force-led conference like AFITC." Besselman continued: "...the earliest one could expect a conference similar in nature is 2014. AFCEA International is working with the Air Force to gauge the need, content, and potentially the location."

This provides further evidence that DoD in particular is looking to consolidate trade shows and conferences to eliminate duplication and save taxpayer money. I'm all for that, but this takes a great marketing vehicle off the table for those looking to pitch their offerings to the Air Force IT community. This show was always a source of qualified leads and great relationship-building opportunities for us.

For those immixGroup clients who need to find a way to stay in front of this community, please contact us and we'll see what we can do. The Montgomery AFCEA chapter hosts a number of other events, including MITS 2013 in June. There's a tentative Air Force Industry Day event planned for the same time.

As I said in a previous post, keep your marketing plans and budgets fluid this year to accommodate changes like this. More are coming.

Department of Defense Maintenance Symposium and Exhibition

2012 Theme: Leadership in Producing Readiness and Shaping the Industrial Base.

November 13-16, 2012
DeVos Place Convention Center
Grand Rapids, Michigan, USA
http://www.sae.org/events/dod/

The mission of the 2012 DoD Maintenance Symposium and Exhibition is to create an environment that enables attendees to share relevant information, identify critical issues, discuss key topics, and increase their awareness of Department of Defense maintenance initiatives. At this event, attendees have the unique opportunity to influence the future of the maintenance community. Here, your voice will be heard.

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Army attendance at non-DOD conferences banned for the rest of the year

Originally posted by Barry Rosenberg on Defense Systems

The fallout continues over the General Services Administration's $800,000 conference, with Secretary of the Army John McHugh suspending all Army attendance at non-Defense Department conferences for the remainder of the year.

"I am suspending Army attendance at non-DOD conferences between now and December 31, 2012, unless I previously approved attendance, for example, the AUSA Annual Meeting, or an exception is granted," wrote McHugh in an October 17 memorandum obtained by Defense Systems.

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Top Level Panel to Discuss DoD Acquisition at I/ITSEC 2012

I/ITSEC 2012 is an outstanding opportunity to hear directly from DoD senior leaders on the latest Acquisition, Technology and Logistics (AT&L) challenges. Learn from subject matter experts on a variety of AT&L topics and network with Military, Government and Industry acquisition professionals.

As the Defense Acquisition Executive, Mr. Frank Kendall, Under Secretary of Defense, Acquisition, Technology & Logistics, will address DoD Acquisition in terms of balancing the warfighters' requirements with the significant reduction in the budget. Mr. Kendall's opening remarks will be followed by the Service Acquisition Executives (SAEs) from the Army, Navy and Air Force who will address improving the efficiencies and affordability of their respective organizations by implementing Better Buying Power initiatives.

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TerraSight® EX Expeditionary System Launches at AUSA 2012

Originally posted by PR Newswire

The TerraSight® EX video exploitation system, a compact, lightweight expeditionary version of the proven TerraSight platform, was introduced today (October 22, 2012) by SRI International Sarnoff. Housed in a ruggedized Windows® laptop, TerraSight EX brings advanced video exploitation to forward operators. The system can process standard video feeds from an unmanned aerial system (UAS) and convert them into real-time, integrated tactical information that can enhance total situational awareness.

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