The ever-popular seminars at Southern Manufacturing & Electronics 2015 will now consist of 28 sessions delivered over the three-day event, which takes place at FIVE, Farnborough from February 10th to 12th. The programme will address its customary broad range of technical and business subjects, with sessions being delivered by leading figures from industry, business associations and academic institutions. Running in two lecture theatres, focused on manufacturing and electronics respectively, the programme aims to deliver something to interest anyone involved in industry.

One of the most popular presenters, Stefan Knox of Bang Creations, returns with his look at Designing for Commercial Success and New Product Development. Wayne Kite of Stanford Marsh delivers An Introduction to 3D Print and the exciting benefits it brings to manufacturers. Alistair Williamson of Lucid Innovation takes the debate one stage further by looking at how additive manufacturing techniques are driving commercial success.

Hugh Dunlop at RGC Jenkins & Co. demystifies patents and trademarks, and takes a look at how “Patent Box” can help you save tax. Rebecca Silva of attorneys Cleveland IP takes a detailed look at protecting your intellectual property through registering your trademarks and designs. In a later session, colleague Stephen Turner looks in detail at the patent process.

Practical applications of manufacturing ideologies such as Lean and Six Sigma are covered in several sessions. Barry Byrne of Process Management International looks at some of the core concepts, and illustrates how these ideas can be applied in manufacturing. In Best Practice and World Class Manufacturing Ailsa Kaye of Manufacturing Insights looks at the story behind the success of some of the UK’s top manufacturers. Tim Scurlock of Automotive Lean Consulting draws on examples from industry to illustrate how Lean concepts can be used to target waste.

The legislative environment is covered in sessions such as CE Marking – 2015 and beyond with Peter Evans of the CE Marking Association, a review of export controls for UK’s Electronics Manufacturing supply chain by Kings College London and Ken Ball of Tech UK and a look at the latest requirements of the EMC Directive, with Pete Dorey from TÜV SÜD Product Service. Colleague Paul Laidler looks at the legal requirements for machine safety and how they can be implemented.