Configura, maker of CET Designer software, announces the complete schedule for the seventh annual CET Designer User Conference being held October 22–23 at DeVos Place in Grand Rapids, Mich.
“We’re excited to offer more speakers, breakout sessions and variety,” said Configura Vice President Peter Brandinger, who heads up Configura’s Grand Rapids office. “With more than 20 sessions and events, we’re looking forward to the best conference yet.”
The conference is for contract furniture dealership interior designers, dealer IT professionals, and office-furniture dealer management. Last year, people attended from all over North America and even parts of Central and South America.
“Attendees will have the opportunity to learn from and network with CET Designer ‘power-users’ and Configura team members,” said Tracy Lanning, Configura support and training manager. “We’ve designed the conference so people learn new skills and gain valuable information from industry leaders that is relevant to their daily work.”
The conference unofficially opens the evening of Tuesday, October 21, with a slate of welcome events designed to showcase Grand Rapids. The conference officially opens Wednesday, October 22, with presentations by Configura leaders offering an update on what’s new and upcoming in CET Designer, followed by Göran Rydqvist, Configura cofounder and vice president of R&D, presenting Good Design and Why We Do What We Do!
The day’s highlight is keynote speaker Primo Orpilla, the award-winning co-founder of Studio O+A, the San Francisco design firm responsible for groundbreaking workplace designs at Facebook, AOL, Microsoft, Yelp, Evernote, Cisco, Open Table, and many other companies. Orpilla will speak on The Paradigm Shift in workplace design. The day concludes with a dinner and Halloween-themed party at The B.O.B., a popular nightclub venue in Grand Rapids.
The conference continues Thursday, October 23, with a special presentation by Rob Kirkbride, Monday Morning Quarterback senior reporter and editor, who will join the conference from Orgatec in Germany via live-video stream. Orgatec in Cologne, Germany, is the largest contract furniture and facilities fair of its kind in the world. Kirkbride will give a virtual tour of what’s exhibiting at Orgatec and the global trends on the horizon.
The winners of the Best of CET Designer Awards will be announced that same day, followed by official closing of the conference. The call for entries for the awards program—which this year will feature a grand prize of a trip to Configura headquarters in Sweden—will be announced soon.
