Issue link: https://iconnect007.uberflip.com/i/1335241
34 SMT007 MAGAZINE I FEBRUARY 2021 well with attendees and even other exhibi- tors, if they want to. e most important part of both of these fea- tures is to turn on the networking capabilities so other attendees and exhibitors can connect with each other. Since there are so many vari- ables and features with this program, we are actually in the process of creating customized videos—one specific for attendees, and one specific for exhibitors—which will be available on our website weeks before the virtual event, to show people how to use this platform and how to get the most out of it. Johnson: at is something that, to my knowl- edge, is unique when it comes to doing virtual events. I don't think I've ever seen anybody give advanced tutorials on how to use the envi- ronment. Balonek: at's the point (laughs)! We want to make sure that people have a successful expe- rience with IPC APEX EXPO. e more that we can do ahead of time to help people with their experience, then that's what we want to do to make sure that everyone comes away with everything possible on how to connect, how to find products and services that they're looking for, and how to find any education that they need, as well. Johnson: Will there be links to access this infor- mation? Balonek: Yes. In fact, the agenda planner is live now. Johnson: Great. When will this be turned on for the public? Balonek: It is turned on right now, but the key is you have to register for the event in order to access the information. If an attendee is not sure whether they want to register for a paid option at this time, they can register for Event Essentials, there's no charge for that, and it will allow access into this platform. Additionally, our eBrochure is due to come out any day now and will be available by the time this interview goes to print. Johnson: If I register with an Event Essentials package as my choice, what is available to me? Balonek: e Event Essentials includes three keynote presentations. One will be given by IPC's president and CEO, John Mitchell, and another keynote is by IPC's chief economist, Shawn DuBravac. Our third keynote, Travis Hessman, editor-in-chief of IndustryWeek, will speak about Factory of the Future. All three keynotes are included in the Event Essen- tials package, as well as exhibitor product dem- onstrations and other presentations that are focused on IPC. ese presentations include IPC-at-a-Glance, which will cover: Standards, Education, Advocacy, Solutions and Indus- try Intelligence, Forgotten Tribal Knowledge (featuring IPC's Emerging Engineers and IPC Hall of Fame Recipients), and a presentation on IPC's Education Foundation, just to name a few. ese presentations will also be available for 90 days aer the event. Johnson: If I were to take a step up from Event Essentials, Alicia, what would be in my regis- tration? Balonek: We have several options available depending on your budget. We're offering a one-day conference package, which offers access to the technical conference sessions for the day of the attendee's choice. ere's also the full conference, which will give someone access to all 70 technical conference sessions with on- demand access for 90 days aer the event. And then—the cream of the crop package—the All- Access Package, which includes all 70 techni- cal conference sessions, as well as all 29 half- day professional development courses also with access for 90 days aer the event. Some- thing new this year, which has never been done