SelecTech’s Joe Berkowitz and Horizon Sales’ Dave Trail
Excitement filled the air as Horizon Sales, a leading distributor of high-tech manufacturing equipment, hosted its highly anticipated Horizon Tech Days event. The event, held from May 3-4, 2023, at its new location in Brighton, MI, provided attendees with a hands-on opportunity to explore cutting-edge technology from industry giants.
The Horizon Tech Days event boasted an impressive range of advanced manufacturing equipment, including cobots, PCB routers, paste jetters, nozzle cleaners, storage towers, and much more. What set this event apart was the opportunity for attendees to receive demonstrations directly from the factory experts themselves. Designers, builders, engineers, and specialists intimately familiar with these machines were present to offer their insights and experience and to address any inquiries.
Seika Machinery’s Steven Yukutake and Max Bernard
“It was a great open house,” said Joe Berkowitz, Director of Sales at SelecTech. “The Horizon Sales team provided a tremendous opportunity for their vendor partners to showcase their offerings for a number of Horizon Sales clients. The event was well attended and the new facility looked great. Horizon did a fantastic job, and their hospitality was over the top. Looking forward to doing another event like this at Horizon soon!”
Steven Yukutake, Sales Manager at Seika Machinery Inc.,agreed. He said, ”The event was great! We had approximately13 companies visit our table, and we received numerous inquiries. I am already looking forward to Horizon’s next event.”
Registered attendees eagerly anticipated not only the opportunity to witness groundbreaking technology but also the chance to win door prizes, engage in games, and enjoy complimentary food and beverages. However, the true highlight of the event lay in the exceptional lineup of vendors present.
Insituware’s Morgan Miller
Morgan Miller, Insituware’s Field Application Engineer, said, “It was a pleasure to have the opportunity to attend this perfectly organized and well-attended event in Horizon Sales’ new facility. The Horizon Sales team never ceases to amaze me with their accommodating nature, hard work ethic, and personability. As a vendor at this event, I was able to demo new equipment and have meaningful conversations with over a dozen customers in one place. It was a great networking experience, and I hope it will become an annual event.”
Prominent companies and technologies were available for attendees on-site and demonstrated over the two-day event.The expansive vendor and equipment list included the following:
● Juki Automation Systems: ISM 3600, IMS Table
● PARMI: XCeed MP AOI/SPI
● Seika: Sayaka Benchtop Router
● PDR: IR Machine
● Essemtec: Puma Machine, All–in=One Paste Jetting and Pick–&–Place
● StaticStop: ESD flooring
● OMNI: Custom–designed functional testers
● Impossible Objects: 3D printing, fixtures, pallets
● PROMATION: Soldering Robot and Cobot
● Gen3: UV Booth, AutoSIR, Contaminometer, Gensonic
● Insituware: Vision Mark 1, Paste Mixer, Conformal Coat Thickness Tester
● CTTI: IPC Certifications and Training. This was showcased in Horizon Sales’ new training room equipped with Thermaltronics’Soldering Irons and OC White LED magnifiers
● XDry: Controlled Humidity Storage Solutions
● Check Sum: Parallel Functional Test
● WPI: SpectraScope
PDR Americas’ Dave White
“Tech Days at Horizon Sales was truly the intersection of advanced technology awareness and demonstrating these technologies to address the industry’s ever-demanding needs for excellence in electronics production, repair, inspection, and employee certification,” added PDR Americas President Dave White. “PDR’s Focused IR advanced Rework Software was on display with attendees commenting as to the simplicity and ease of use of the software, vision alignment clarity, and air nozzle–free, visible infrared technology.”
With so many industry heavyweights gathering in one location, Horizon Tech Days became an unparalleled event not to be missed. The newly established Horizon Industrial Systems Office and Demo Room, situated at 7041 Grand River Ave., Suite 300, showcased state-of-the-art facilities designed to impress attendees.
The two-day event attracted 56 individual attendees from 31 customer companies. Attendees traveled from various regions across the Midwest, with some even making the journey from Wisconsin, Western Pennsylvania, Southern Ohio, and Indiana to participate in the event. One aspect that garnered significant interest was Horizon Sales’ new training center, which is set to host IPC training classes organized by CTTI. The company plans to schedule the first classes in this new center shortly, catering to the growing demand for skill development in the industry.
WPI Vision’s Steve Dunn, CTTI’s Caitlin Samples, and Thermaltronics’ Ed Zamborsky
Ed Zamborsky, Region Sales Manager said, “The Horizon Tech days brought in an impressive number of customers who were provided with the freedom to interact with vendors for both information and hands–on experiences. It was wonderful to see so many customers travel to see Horizon’s new facility. This is a testament to the relationships that have been built by the team serving this loyal client base. Also, the new IPC training facility is beautiful, and Thermaltronics is both proud and grateful to provide our soldering systems in such a world–class environment.”
Customers expressed particular enthusiasm upon discovering Horizon Sales’ expansive warehouse, stocked with a range ofsupplies and maintenance, repair, and operations (MRO) items. This feature further cemented the event’s appeal and demonstrated the company’s commitment to fulfilling customer needs comprehensively.
Juki Automation Systems’ Gerry Padnos presenting during the Tech Days
The vendors agreed. “The Horizon Tech Days was an excellent event for vendors and customers to connect and for customers to see the latest technologies in a relaxed setting. For customers, they had a chance to send people who may not normally go to big trade shows due to time or budget. This is great to get more input and perspective on new purchases. For the vendors, it was a chance to meet and give detailed demonstrations in a regional area,” said Gerry Padnos, Director of Technology, Juki Automation Systems. “I thought the concept and execution by Horizon to get good number of customers and vendors was great. I hope we can do this kind of Tech Days in other areas of the United States as a supplement to the big, sometimes crazy, trade shows.”
WPI Vision’s Steve Dunn best summed up the feeling of the event: “The amount of effort, thought and hospitality was on thenext level. The organization and amount of customer visitors made it a very successful two days.”
To find out more about Horizon Sales, its new facility, and future Tech Days events, visit www.horizonsales.com.
