Troy, New York - November 13, 2000 - STEP Tools, Inc., the forerunner in developing STEP-integration software toolsets for the global marketplace, announced today the Honorable Michael R. McNulty, U. S. Congressman (NY-21), and Mr. Richard Neal, Executive Director of the Integrated Manufacturing Technology Initiative (IMTI), will be guest speakers at the STEP Tools' Press Conference to be held at 5:00 pm, Thursday, November 30, 2000 at Benet Laboratories (Watervliet, NY). STEP Tools will perform the first milestone demonstration of STEP-NC in the United States during the Press Conference and the third Industrial Review Board (IRB) meeting for its Model Driven Intelligent Control of Manufacturing program, known as the "Super Model" Project. Dr. Martin Hardwick, president and CEO of STEP Tools, will explain how the STEP-NC system will allow numerically controlled (CNC) machine tools to be controlled by the Super Model's product design data.
Congressman Michael R. McNulty represents the people of New York State's 21st Congressional District, which includes all of Albany and Schenectady Counties, and parts of Rensselaer, Saratoga and Montgomery Counties. Congressman McNulty is in his 31st year in elective public office. His record includes extensive legislative and executive service at the local, state and national levels.
"STEP Tools' Advanced Technology Project is yet another example of the exciting, cutting-edge technology being developed by small, high-tech firms here in the Capital District," said Congressman McNulty. "STEP Tools remains at the forefront of the development of the Capital Region as 'Tech Valley'."
Mr. Richard Neal is the Executive Director of the Integrated Manufacturing Technology Initiative (IMTI), a not-for-profit organization focused on delivering solutions for manufacturing challenges. With more than 30 years of experience in manufacturing research and development, Mr. Neal has held numerous positions from development engineer to R&D manager. For the past ten years, he has focused on visionary programs supporting the nation's manufacturing infrastructure. He has served as the Program Manager for the Technologies Enabling Agile Manufacturing (TEAM) program, as one of three principal investigators for the Next Generation Manufacturing (NGM) project. Neal has also served as the project manager for the NGM follow-on project called Integrated Manufacturing Technology Roadmapping (IMTR). IMTR delivered a set of manufacturing technology plans, which have been received as the most comprehensive and broadly representative roadmaps (plans) ever produced. IMTI is the continuation of this series of national programs and is charged with the mission of facilitating the implementation.