SESSION SCHEDULE

Register Here: Home - IFE Golf Tournament 2026

Welcome to the seventh annual IFE Golf Tournament being held October 7th at the Papago Golf Club in Phoenix, AZ! This engaging networking event offers exhibitors and attendees the opportunity to enjoy an 18-hole round of golf while building professional connections. 

Participants will compete for prizes awarded at the conclusion of the tournament. Lunch will be provided to ensure an enjoyable and seamless experience throughout the day.

Sign up today to secure your spot and make the most of this exciting event.

Golf participants will also receive free access to our IFE Welcome Party at The Churchill from 5:00pm- 8:00pm on October 7th with one drink ticket and one meal ticket included.

Address: 5595 E Karsten Way Phoenix, AZ 85008

Manufacturing is entering a decisive new chapter, defined not by incremental improvement, but by a fundamental rewiring of how plants plan, operate, and compete.

Performance pressure is intensifying. OEE losses, unplanned downtime, scrap and rework, and excess working capital continue to erode margins in complex assembly environments. Many manufacturers have invested in digital platforms, yet fragmented MES, SCADA, ERP, and PLM systems still limit real‑time decision making, creating an opportunity for AI to deliver innovative, high‑impact solutions. 

This session will focus on how AI is reshaping complex assembly operations and creating measurable business impact. Participants will gain insight into how intelligence embedded across the industrial blueprint can deliver competitive advantage, enhance throughput across OT and IT platforms, and improve working capital efficiency, all contributing to stronger margins and operational resilience. Manufacturers that integrate intelligence, automation, and human capability into core operations rather than treating them as add‑ons achieve significant performance gains and sustainable competitive advantage.

Why it matters

• Global supply chains remain structurally more volatile, driven by geopolitical shifts and fluctuating demand patterns
• Skilled labor is constrained and harder to upskill at scale as demographic shifts reduce available talent pools 
• Sustainability expectations now require measurable performance improvements, not just reporting
• The technology stack across AI, automation, and industrial connectivity has matured to enable speed, precision, and resilience simultaneously
• Digital twins are expanding from isolated line simulations to enterprise‑wide decision platforms
• OT cybersecurity is evolving from basic IT hygiene to continuous, real‑time protection for connected production systems 

Learning Objectives

1. Diagnose revenue leakage across complex assembly lines and quantify where AI can create value to improve throughput, reduce scrap and rework, and increase asset utilization
2. Translate AI‑enabled automation into measurable gains in OEE with direct impact on margin expansion
3. Build a scalable AI roadmap tied directly to profitability, working capital efficiency, sustainability integration, and operational resilience

Global manufacturing and assembly operations are operating in an era of unprecedented disruption, driven by geopolitical volatility, shifting trade policies, regionalization, and ongoing capacity constraints. This session examines how OEMs and suppliers are rethinking traditional supply chain models to build greater resilience, flexibility, and responsiveness. Attendees will explore how organizations are adapting to supply chain fragility by redesigning production ecosystems that balance cost, risk, speed, and reliability across regions and tiers.

Through a cross‑industry lens, this discussion will focus on strategies for building diversified supplier networks, improving multi‑tier visibility, and strengthening risk management frameworks. Panelists will address rising expectations for transparency, data sharing, and collaboration between OEMs and suppliers, and how these expectations are reshaping procurement, quality, and operational decision‑making. The session will provide actionable insight into how manufacturers can future‑proof their supply chains while maintaining performance, compliance, and customer trust.

In industries where failure is not an option, achieving zero‑defect performance requires more than inspection—it demands a disciplined, system‑wide approach to quality embedded across design, manufacturing, and operations. This session explores how leading organizations operationalize zero‑defect strategies in high‑reliability environments, focusing on daily management practices, error‑proofing techniques, validation frameworks, and advanced quality metrics. Attendees will gain insight into how manufacturers prevent defects before they occur, strengthen process capability, and leverage real‑time data to drive continuous improvement while maintaining strict compliance and performance standards.

This session will be led by Ian Hooley, Senior Director of Quality at Zimmer Biomet, who brings extensive experience overseeing global post‑market engineering, medical device quality systems, and product lifecycle performance in a highly regulated MedTech environment. With a career spanning quality assurance, product development, manufacturing, and continuous improvement, Ian has led initiatives across validation, audit readiness, CAPA, and acquisition integration to ensure consistent, high‑quality outcomes at scale. Drawing on his experience managing complex quality ecosystems, Ian will share practical strategies for aligning engineering, manufacturing, and supplier performance to deliver zero‑defect results—and how organizations can use data, governance, and disciplined execution to sustain quality in the most demanding applications.

As products and systems grow more complex and performance requirements tighten, ensuring reliability at the joint and connection level has become a defining challenge across aerospace, automotive, medical, semiconductor, and other high‑spec industries. This session examines how manufacturers design, validate, and sustain reliability in safety‑critical joints—where failure can compromise performance, safety, and brand trust. Attendees will explore how different industries define and measure reliability, and how those definitions translate into engineering decisions, material selection, fastening strategies, and validation methodologies.

Through a cross‑industry discussion, this panel will highlight common failure modes observed at scale and the engineering strategies used to mitigate risk across the product lifecycle. Topics include tolerance management, process control, verification and validation, and the role of manufacturing and field feedback in improving joint performance over time. The session will provide practical insight into how organizations align engineering rigor, quality systems, and supplier capabilities to achieve consistent, repeatable reliability—moving beyond isolated design excellence to performance that holds up in real‑world conditions.

This session will focus on the two of the most critical risks facing the international defense manufacturing sector: a widening talent gap at a time of unprecedented technological change and a declining manufacturing work force. As the industry confronts a wave of retirements from its most experienced engineers, it must simultaneously integrate complex Industry 4.0 technologies like AI, digital twins, and advanced automation. This creates a perfect storm where massive capital investments in technology are at risk of being underutilized due to a workforce unprepared for the future.

Moving beyond a simple technical overview, this session provides a strategic roadmap for turning this challenge into a competitive advantage. We will dissect the four essential pillars for building a resilient and agile future workforce: workforce upskilling and recruitment, modernized training with industry-relevant credentialing, and adaptive culture with visionary Leadership. This session frames talent development not as an HR function, but as a core business and national security imperative for any organization seeking to lead in the 2030 manufacturing landscape.

Attendees will leave this session with a clear framework to:

·         Identify the critical gaps between current engineering competencies and the skills required to effectively leverage advanced manufacturing technologies.

·         Evaluate innovative training models—including modern apprenticeships and continuous upskilling programs—needed to build a culture of perpetual learning.

·         Define the essential role of leadership in championing cultural transformation and driving the adoption of new skills while driving recruitment into critical manufacturing sessions

·         Connect strategic investments in workforce development directly to improved operational resilience, risk reduction, and long-term business success.

Intended Audience:

This briefing is essential for senior leaders and decision-makers responsible for the strategic direction and operational readiness of their manufacturing organizations, including:

·         C-Suite Executives and Business Unit Leaders

·         VPs and Directors of Engineering and Manufacturing

·         Human Resources and Talent Management Professionals

·         Government and Defense Program Managers

Guided discussions and open-seating lunch.

As OEMs face increasing pressure to reduce carbon impact while maintaining performance, reliability, and profitability, sustainable engineering has moved from aspiration to operational imperative. This session explores how leading manufacturers are advancing sustainable materials, embedding circularity into product design, and responding to global decarbonization mandates without compromising quality or innovation. Attendees will gain insight into how sustainability is being engineered directly into products, manufacturing processes, and supply chains—shaping the next generation of high‑performance, low‑impact systems.

This session will be led by Kristen Siemen, Senior Advisor at McKinsey & Company and former Chief Sustainability Officer and Global Product Development & Engineering Executive at General Motors. Kristen has led sustainability, electrification, energy systems, and advanced manufacturing initiatives at global scale, overseeing the integration of sustainable materials, lifecycle design, and carbon‑reduction strategies across complex OEM portfolios. Drawing on her experience driving enterprise‑wide transformation in automotive and industrial manufacturing, Kristen will share practical, executive‑level perspectives on designing for circularity, navigating regulatory and market pressures, and aligning sustainability goals with engineering, quality, and business performance.

Manufacturers across industries are moving beyond isolated automation projects toward fully integrated, data‑driven factory environments. This session explores how robotics, automation, and connected data systems are reshaping modern production—from assembly and material handling to inspection, quality, and maintenance. Attendees will examine what a digitally connected factory floor truly looks like, including the role of robotics, intelligent automation, real‑time data, and predictive modeling in driving consistency, throughput, and operational resilience.

Moderated by Lisa Masciantonio, Chief Workforce Officer at ARM (Advanced Robotics for Manufacturing), the discussion will be guided by a leader deeply focused on aligning workforce development with the future of robotics and automation. She will be joined by Ani Kelkar, Partner at McKinsey & Company, who brings a strategic, cross‑industry perspective advising global OEMs on scaling AI, robotics, and advanced manufacturing systems, and Chris Caldwell, Product Manager at Yaskawa Motoman Robotics, representing the robotics OEM perspective with hands‑on experience developing and deploying industrial automation solutions across diverse manufacturing environments. Together, this panel brings a powerful combination of workforce, strategy, and technology expertise, enabling a truly cross‑industry dialogue. The session will highlight how organizations are scaling automation beyond pilots, aligning investments with long‑term business strategy, and preparing their workforce for transformation—while offering practical insight into how manufacturers can successfully integrate robotics and data to drive performance and value creation at scale.

As manufacturing ecosystems become increasingly complex and globally distributed, traditional, transactional supplier relationships are no longer sufficient to meet rising demands for quality, reliability, speed, and resilience. This session explores how OEMs and suppliers across tiers 1–3 are redefining partnerships—shifting from reactive issue management toward proactive, performance‑driven collaboration. Attendees will examine how shared accountability, clear expectations, and trust‑based relationships are becoming essential to managing risk and ensuring consistent outcomes across multi‑tier supply networks.

Moderated by Peter Zimm, Principal at Charles Edwards Management Consulting, who brings deep experience advising aerospace and industrial organizations on supplier ecosystems and market strategy, this panel features Jeff Hicks, Senior Vice President of Solutions at Fastenal with extensive experience driving global sourcing, customer alignment, and operational performance, and Dee Ward, Senior Vice President at Würth Group, representing a global supplier perspective across fastening and assembly solutions. Together, they bring a powerful combination of OEM, supplier, and advisory expertise, enabling a true cross‑industry dialogue. This discussion will focus on how organizations are improving transparency, integrating data across fragmented systems, and aligning quality expectations across tiers to enable predictable performance. Panelists will share practical approaches to strengthening supplier relationships, driving accountability, and building resilient, high‑performing production ecosystems through better coordination of people, processes, and data across the value chain.