ILDA Conference 2009 Amsterdam

[andy_con]

i really really really wana go, i suspect it would an amazing 3 days, but i dont think i can justify the cost. ive even got an ok from the GF!

ive got the money, not a problem but im saving for a house and its probably not a good use of money.

im not saying 100% no, but i think its probably worth further discussions at the next UKLM

[Banthai]

ahh you are totaly wrong there me ol laddy

That guy kept trying to steal my glass of white wine ....

in the end i had to take the glass off the table and place it on the shelf behind me .... then i gave him that look to warn him not to do it again

( BTW thats my serious, hanging with some inteligent people listening face, ) complete with a light refection that makes my face look that it been attacked with a broken bottle

old Sofaclean said....Why do you look like that guy just slipped a turd on to your lap? Yesterday 23:51

[Lasermad]

Ok Guys ..just had a look at ILDA ...cmon lets get as many of us over there as possible ...spread the cost ..theres months to go ... !

This month join the ILDA ...it will cost you $125 as an individual ..whats that around £86 or $250 ( errr £175 ) if you are a company ..ILDA has its own benefits ( http://www.laserist.org/benefits.htm )
£86 aint too bad for member of any organisation and for a company the fees tax deductable and adds to your company profile. Sign up this month to spread the cost !

Flights are going to be under £100 im sure ..BMI do returns for £59 book that in march !

Pay your entrance fee in april £150 ( since you now have ILDA memebership ) .........

and I am pretty damn sure we can pull together a decent hotel for £150 for the 3 nights to be paid in may!

YES its a lot of you try and pull it ll togther in one month but hey start thinking about it seriously now , sell off om bits n peices on ebay ! LOL

It can be done and lets face it .. it should be laser heaven !

Cmon lets get a pile of us over there ! and have a UKLEM v ILDA lase off hahaha ..if you go you know you wont regret it !

PAUL

[buffo]

The "hotel" that they are holding the conference at is supposed to be fairly plush. In fact, I think it's an old castle that was renovated... That's what Clandestiny was talking about a couple weeks ago anyway. (He's on the ILDA board.) So that explains the high cost of the rooms. There's nothing preventing you from staying someplace else, however.

I agree that the conference fees are expensive, but ILDA does have expenses of it's own. (It can't be cheap for them to rent out several conference rooms and the large ball room for the entire weekend at a plush hotel like that!) And there are usually "goodie bags" to be had for all the conference attendees. I know that on the ILDA cruise in 2008, everyone walked away with a high powered green laser pointer, among other things. (I think the conference fee for that event was under $150...) So those little gifts help to soften the blow of the entrance fee somewhat.

I agree that this event seems expensive, and it is certainly out of my price range given that I'd have to fly to Europe to attend. However, I also agree with Karl in that the chance to sit down and talk with so many great minds is very valuable. So for people that could take a short flight (or drive) to the event, and maybe stay in a cheaper hotel in the area, it is probably worth the price of admission.

I know that if I lived in, say, Germany, I'd be going for sure...

Adam

[andy_con]

has no one sorted a group discount for PL forum members yet?!

[LaserWizard]

I hear you on the PL discount. We'll discuss it.

Well, we looked at a lot of places, and a lot of ways to do it. This solution was the best price versus facilities to try and have a professional event, and be close to Amsterdam. If you examine each item, it is easy to say that it could or chould be cheaper, but we got a lot of quotes, and this is the best all around deal.

I went to Amsterdam to work on this planning. Most of the facilities we looked at in Amsterdam were quite cramped, and very expensive (unless you rent a room by the hour). This is a good solution for our conference, and by staying all in the same hotel, it allows for a lot more networking, and a lot less running back and forth. Even on the cruise last September, I still did not get a chance to really speak with everyone there over the 5 days. So it is a pretty intense networking situation at an ILDA Conference. And it has generated quite a few leads for me over the years, especially from Europeans who need to do shows in the USA but don't want to ship their equipment overseas, and deal with the FDA, etc.

What you get out of it, is that this is the place to meet people who not only love lasers, but do it for a living. I am a little guy in this bunch, even though I am the pres! I went by Hugo Bunk's, I could not believe it; he builds 20 5W projectors at a time, using the Coherent OPS lasers etc; he had two JenLas 10W WL lasers just sitting there - obsolete already. Most attendees have 5- 10 -15 watt + solid state lasers back at their shops. I don't know how they afford it, I am still squeezing everything I can out of my ion WL lasers.

The €175 (or whatever the fee is is going to be) will be unbelievably low for a conference of this type. I've gone to a lot of them. It pays for the registration, the meeting rooms, all of the behind the scenes stuff. Trust me, there is no one padding this bill. But ILDA cannot go broke trying to put on the conference, we have to ensure the continued viability of the organization by being fiscally responsible.

I believe that there are some other hotels nearby that could be looked into. I have gone that route at an ILDA conference, and ended up moving into the main conference hotel. It was just more trouble that it was worth to move back and forth, and you never who you're going to meet when you've got more free time to relax at the bar.

That's it for now, see you in Amsterdam, and on PL.

Tim Walsh
ILDA President

[andy_con]

can you sort a PL discount out before this event?!

[Lasermad]

Tim

Great to hear out thoughts might be taken on board ..and its unlikely you comment about looking into it will be forgotten , with flight bookings cheaper the earlier they get booked time is of the essence for everyone

I have met most of the UKLEM members and i can assure you they are a great bunch of folks most of whom SIMPLY LOVE THE LIGHT , so the networking aspect might not be so critical as simply getting access to the "lase-off" etc

Im sure a discount for PL members (and likely laserfreak members too ) would send a determined message that hobbyist are welcome and would increase visitor numbers which provides a bigger audiance for advertising for your sponsors and also a bigger audiance for the "big boys" to show off and also INCREASE THE ILDA REVENUE.

Sounds like a win win situation to me

PAUL

[andy_con]

a nice 50% discount would be great

(joking)

[Lasermad]

" a nice 50% discount would be great " ONLY JOKING

WHY ?

I think overall the majority of PL and Laserfreak members could be considered "Students" of the Art of Laser Light , and as such a student type 50% discount would be appropriate ........ ILDA can encompasse the hobbyist , encourage end educate by making it more easier ( cheaper) to join , and join in ! - at the same time increase revenue ... 50% of something is better than 50% of nothing ! and it would help them better meet there aim of Education.

At the moment they only have a handful of "student" memeberships which proves people are only joining when they feel they are "IN" or part of the buisness ? making money ? ... the ILDA has so much information about safety and processes Im sure it would benefit the laser world to see a hundred more "students" join , passing on quality "from the horses mouth ! qualified safety information!"

YES , there will be the od person who joins with a student memebership when they are actually making money , but in the main i am sure people will stand up and join in the correct package as im sure there wont be many folks making money ? who will want to have PL / STUDENT MEMBERSHIP ???? next to their name

Anyways , yes a discount would be nice !

PAUL