Aerospace, automotive summits heading to Birmingham this week
Birmingham is hosting a pair of business summits this week that showcase Alabama’s growing automotive and manufacturing industries, providing participants with high-level networking opportunities and one-on-one meetings. The conferences are the Aerospace Innovative Technology Summit (AITS), held May 7-9, and the Automotive Advanced Technology Summit (AATS), held May 8-9. Both events are taking place at the Birmingham-Jefferson Convention Complex, with 200 companies expected to participate. The Alabama Department of Commerce is among the sponsors of the summits, which feature workshops, presentations and business-to-business meetings. “The automotive and aerospace industries are major drivers of economic growth in Alabama, and these business conventions in Birmingham offer a pathway for companies from across the country and around the world to seek new opportunities and understand how their peers are utilizing and advancing the latest technologies,” said Greg Canfield, secretary of the Alabama Department of Commerce. “Besides companies from Alabama and multiple U.S. states, an international presence representing 11 different countries is here to participate,” he said. “These summits bring a focus on innovation, which is critical to growing and sustaining these manufacturing sectors and placing Alabama in a leading role for the latest technologies.” Focusing on innovation The Aerospace Innovative Technology Summit targets the aerospace, space and defense industries, all with a significant presence in Alabama. With a focus on new technologies being deployed in the sector such as 3D metal printing, digitalization of manufacturing and cyber security, the event aims to connect leading companies and participants in the sharing of ideas in the application and development of these innovations in their businesses. To kick off the aerospace conference, Canfield will provide an overview of the industry sector in the state. Other scheduled speakers include R.G. “Corky” Clinton Jr. of NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center, Nick Bowman of GKN Aerospace and Jeff Chang of Lockheed Martin. The Automotive Advanced Technology Summit will focus on advanced manufacturing and new technologies at use within an industry growing rapidly in Alabama. Scheduled speakers include Mark Brazeal of Mazda Toyota Manufacturing USA, Tom Shoupe of Honda of America Manufacturing, and Brad Newman of ZF Chassis Systems in Tuscaloosa. Also speaking is Chuck Ernst, a former Honda Alabama executive who now serves as manager of the Alabama Robotics Technology Park, a unique training facility in Decatur. “It is an honor to have Birmingham chosen as the site for both of these conventions,” said Brian Jennings, vice president of economic development for the Birmingham Business Alliance (BBA). “It speaks to Alabama’s prominence in both the aerospace and automotive industries, and we look forward to bringing so many people together to foster continued growth of both industries.” Joining the BBA and the Department of Commerce in supporting the business conferences are the City of Birmingham, Jefferson County, the Birmingham Airport Authority, the Alabama Automobile Manufacturers Association and the Alabama Community College System. Mayor Randall Woodfin said Birmingham is the ideal location for the events. “Now, more than ever, Birmingham is focused on bringing high-quality technology jobs to our city. The summit gives a great chance to identify innovative partners that share our commitment to the next generation of manufacturing in the aerospace and automotive industries,” Woodfin said. This story originally appeared on the Alabama Department of Commerce’s Made in Alabama website.
Cory Booker proposes national license for all gun owners
Democratic presidential candidate Cory Booker is proposing that all gun owners be licensed by the federal government, a process that would include an interview and safety training. National licensing is one of more than a dozen specific proposals in a sweeping gun control agenda the U.S. senator from New Jersey released on Monday. It’s his second policy rollout in three weeks as he tries to break through the crowded Democratic primary field . While current gun owners and first-time buyers would be subject to the federal license requirement, a transition period would allow current owners to come into compliance, the Booker campaign said. No such national gun license program currently exists. Thirteen states and the District of Columbia have enacted some form of licensing or permit rules before people can buy guns, according to the Giffords Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence. “I am sick and tired of hearing thoughts and prayers for the communities that have been shattered by gun violence — it is time for bold action,” Booker said in a statement. Last month during a high-profile speech in his hometown of Newark, Booker vowed to “bring a fight” to the National Rifle Association, which generally opposes gun restrictions. Booker, a former mayor of Newark, New Jersey’s largest city, said gun violence is an issue close to him, with several people being shot in his neighborhood recently. “We must step up and deal with something that is crushing communities, destroying lives and really just tearing apart families,” Booker said in an interview on CBS’ “CBS This Morning.” Booker’s gun control agenda includes universal background checks for gun buyers; the reinstitution of a ban on assault weapons and high-capacity firearm magazines; and the modernization of the Federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. The plan would face a steep climb to winning approval from a Democratic House and would face even stiffer resistance in a Republican-controlled Senate, where less-sweeping gun control measures have failed in recent years. President Donald Trump has said the constitutional right to bear arms is “under assault.” Trump, a Republican, spoke at the NRA’s annual convention last month, vowing to fight for gun rights and imploring NRA members to rally behind his reelection bid. Booker, who launched his presidential campaign in February, has struggled to rise from the low single digits in polls of the 21-candidate Democratic primary field, though he recently secured the 65,000 donors necessary to meet both qualifications for participation in next month’s first debate . He released an environmental justice plan late last month. Republished with the permission of the Associated Press.
