Good Morning, Class

Publisher & Editor-in-Chief
Michael Goldstein

If you haven’t already done so, you should make plans to attend Gear Expo in October. It’s a unique and important show, and you should take advantage of it.

Over the years, I’ve often described Gear Expo as the greatest concentration of gear knowledge under one roof at one time. The exhibitors include all the leading companies of the gear industry—both the equipment suppliers and the gear manufacturers— most of whom bring their top technical people and make them available to answer your questions and solve your gear-related problems. So whether you make gears or buy them, a lot of knowledge is available to you.

The standard reasons for attending are still valid, but I’m excited to add just one more.

You see, this year, Gear Technology is doing something a little different at Gear Expo—something new and exciting that we believe will enhance your experience by making it easier to tap into all that expertise.

For the first time ever, we’re offering a live, in-person version of our popular “Ask the Expert” column. We’ve already lined up a number of experts who will be available in our booth (#2030) to answer your questions. These are some of the most knowledgeable people in the industry, the type who routinely write for our magazine, who’ve spent decades solving gear-related problems, and who are actively involved with developing gear manufacturing technology. These are the gurus from the machine tool suppliers, leading universities and independent consultancies who are the most knowledgeable about gear manufacturing in the world.

I can’t tell you who they are just yet, because we’re still finalizing our roster and our schedule, but you’ll recognize and be impressed by their names. Suffice it to say that if Gear Expo is the greatest concentration of gear knowledge under one roof at one time, Ask the Expert Live will be the greatest concentration at Gear Expo in one booth.

These experts have graciously agreed to give us some of their valuable time. Normally, these people are extremely busy at a show like Gear Expo. When they’re working at their own booths, they are often tied up with customers, so unless you have an appointment, you might not get the chance to talk to them directly. We’re making them available to you, no appointment necessary.

We’ll be scheduling our experts by session, with a moderator, and each session will emphasize a broad topic and last about an hour. That way, if you have a question about gear grinding, for example, you can make sure to stop by the booth when we have grinding experts on the schedule. The topics are just guidelines, however. They shouldn’t dissuade you from stopping by any time, because most of our experts have very broad experience on a wide variety of topics.

Also, Ask the Expert Live is for everybody. We welcome questions from the very basic to the very technical. So, if you’re brand new to the gear industry and just want to know what an involute is, please stop by. Likewise, if you’ve been making gears for 30 years and you’re looking to solve a very specific problem, please stop by. No matter who you are, and no matter your level of experience, our experts can help you.

Even if you don’t have any specific questions, we hope you’ll stop by, because you can learn a lot just by listening in.

In fact, learning the answers to other people’s questions is what’s made our printed Ask the Expert column so popular over the last several years. The column has allowed us to expand our mission of being “The Gear Industry’s Information Source” in a very practical, hands-on way. We’re confident that the live version at Gear Expo will take that fundamental premise one step further. The in-person format not only allows for instant gratification—answers to your questions right when you ask them—but it also will afford you the opportunity to take part in a back-and-forth dialogue between the experts and the audience.

So come to Gear Expo, and bring your questions.

Michael Goldstein, Publisher & Editor-in-Chief,

Michael Goldstein, Publisher & Editor-in-Chief, began his career in the gear industry in 1964, when he joined his father at Cadillac Machinery Co., Inc. As a machine tool dealer specializing in Gleason bevel gear machines, Michael rose to prominence in the industry, with leadership roles in the Machinery Dealers National Association (MDNA), as well as the European Association of Machine Tool Merchants (EAMTM). He founded Gear Technology in 1984, and has been involved with the American Gear Manufacturers Association (AGMA) throughout his career. [50 years in the gear industry]