The Robotic Industries Association (RIA) is pleased to announce the results of the recent Board of Directors election.

ANN ARBOR, MI - The Robotic Industries Association (RIA) is pleased to announce the results of the recent Board of Directors election. Winners of the election include:

Supplier Category - Scott Eckert, Rethink Robotics; Lou Finazzo, FANUC America; Milton Guerry, SCHUNK; and Scott Jenkins, Yaskawa Motoman.
Integrator Category - Chuck Keibler, Genesis Systems Group; Bob Locker, JR Automation; Pete Squires, Schneider Packaging Equipment; and Matt Wicks, Intelligrated.
User Category - Mark Franks, General Motors; Mark Lewandowski, Procter & Gamble; and John Lizzi, General Electric.
Educator/Researcher - Larry Sweet, Georgia Tech.
The RIA Board Executive Committee in 2017 includes the following industry leaders:

Chair Mike Jacobs, Applied Manufacturing Technologies;
Past Chair Stu Shepherd, Gudel;
First Vice Chair; Mick Estes, FANUC America;
Second Vice Chair; Joe Gemma, KUKA Robotics;
Secretary Curtis Richardson, Spirit Aerosystems; and
RIA President Jeff Burnstein.
"Im happy to be working with this esteemed group of new and returning board members to plan the strategic direction of our association this year," said Jeff Burnstein, president of RIA. "Its an exciting time for the robotics industry and RIA membership is at a record number. Were looking forward to continuing our mission of educating, promoting, and advancing robotics in North America and beyond."
The remaining board members for 2017 include Jon Battles, Amazon; Catherine Morris, ATI Industrial Automation; Matt Rendall, Clearpath Robotics; and Gustavo Sepulveda, ABB.

About Robotic Industries Association (RIA)
Founded in 1974, RIA is a not-for-profit trade association driving innovation, growth, and safety in manufacturing and service industries through education, promotion, and advancement of robotics, related automation technologies, and companies delivering integrated solutions. RIA represents over 430 robot manufacturers, system integrators, component suppliers, end users, consulting firms, research groups, and educational institutions. The association hosts a number of events, provides quarterly robotics statistics and has a content-rich website, Robotics Online. For more details on RIA, visit Robotics Online or call 734-994-6088.

About Association for Advancing Automation (A3)
The Association for Advancing Automation is the global advocate for the benefits of automating. A3 promotes automation technologies and ideas that transform the way business is done. A3 is the umbrella group for Robotic Industries Association (RIA), AIA - Advancing Vision + Imaging, and Motion Control & Motor Association (MCMA). RIA, AIA, and MCMA combined represent over 1,000 automation manufacturers, component suppliers, system integrators, end users, research groups and consulting firms from throughout the world that drive automation forward. For more information, please visit our websites: A3;RIA; AIA; MCMA.