The fastener industry will be gathering October 17-19 at the Las Vegas Convention Center at the traditional trade show in Las Vegas, but with a new name: International Fastener Expo.

Emerald Expositions, which acquired the National Industrial Fastener & Mill Supply Expo at the end of 2015, acknowledged that even the shortened “NIFMSE” name “has been a mouthful for years.”

Emerald cited  “all the evolutions taking place in the industry in 2017, from innovation to globalization to massive distributor mergers” in announcing the name change. 

For the first 22-years the trade show was named “National Industrial Fastener Show & Conference” and held in Columbus, OH. The Las Vegas version started in 1997 as “NIFS/West.” In 2011 with the demise of the East show in Columbus, “West” was dropped and “Mill Supply” was added to the name.

The IFE initials had been a Mack Brooks’ fastener machinery trade show – first held in 1983 in Atlanta. A version of the original IFE was last held in 2005. Then IFE owner Reed Exhibitions assigned the International Fastener Exhibition (IFE) name to Billingslea & Zirkle Inc. Subsequently Ray Zirkle and Doug Zirkle began selling machinery section booths for NIFMSE. 

In 2010, NIFMSE co-owner Jim Bannister told Zirkle in an email that the show was not interested in buying the IFE name. “We just want to eliminate IFE as a competing and redundant event. You can keep the IFE name with all the rights and property that go with it.”

Emerald also announced IFE would move to Mandalay Bay Resort in Las Vegas for the October 30-November 1, 2018, trade show to put the trade show “back on the strip with an even bigger venue that brings attendees and exhibitors that much closer to all the action that Las Vegas has to offer.

NIFMSE was at Mandalay Bay for four shows from 2007 to 2010; then the Sands Expo Center from 2011 through 2015.

“We are already working on a 2018 seminar agenda that focuses on an even more robust education offering, from technology and 3D printing, the pressure to keep up with a competitive online and social presence, globalization and consolidation, and solutions to the ever-growing gap between highly skilled workers and the vital manufacturing positions that remain unfilled on a daily,” Emerald’s announcement stated.

Located on the south end of “the Strip,” in addition to convention facilities, Mandalay Bay has four hotels, a wave pool, shark aquarium and underwater viewing area and multiple restaurants and lounges. Web: FastenerShows.com

Emerald noted that the 2018 IFE at Mandalay Bay would be concurrent with SEMA Show – a global automotive specialty products trade event at the Las Vegas Convention Center. The SEMA Show draws more than 70,000 domestic and international buyers.