EMAIL INTERVIEW – Ron Zimmer and Ken Sinclair

Ron Zimmer is President & CEO
Continental Automated Buildings Association (CABA)

Sinclair:  Tell me about CABA's Forum?
 
Zimmer:  The Continental Automated Buildings Association is pleased to announce that its next Intelligent Buildings & Digital Home Forum (http://www.caba.org/forum) will be held April 28-28, 2016 in San Diego. CABA’s event, will be held at the same time as LIGHTFAIR International 2016, North America's largest annual architectural and commercial trade lighting show.
 
Sinclair:  What is the aim of the Forum?
 
Zimmer:  CABA is pleased to bringing together leading organizations involved in the integration of IoT, intelligent building systems and connected home technologies, through its Forum event. CABA estimates that over 150 industry stakeholders will gather to discuss current trends in the intelligent and integrated buildings and connected home sectors.
 
For nearly three decades, our organization has been in the business of bringing the industry together and we are very excited to have another opportunity to unite the best and brightest people and organizations in order to network and share essential market research and information.
 
Sinclair:  What will the Forum focus on?
 
Zimmer:  The event, to be held at the Handlery Hotel San Diego, will feature exclusive track sessions and workshops that examine the impact of the Internet of Things (IoT) and cybersecurity on intelligent buildings, consumer demands for privacy and trust in connected homes, interoperability between competing standards and protocols in commercial buildings and connected home market channels.
 
Sinclair:  Who are the keynote speakers?
 
Zimmer:  We have several keynote speakers for the event.
 
Speaking on intelligent buildings will be James Carlini. James Carlini, MBA, is a strategist for mission critical networks, technology, and intelligent infrastructure. President of Carlini & Associates, since 1986.  Author of LOCATION LOCATION CONNECTIVITY, a visionary book on the convergence of Next-Generation Real Estate, Intelligent Infrastructure, Technology, and the global Platform for Commerce.  The US ARMY Corps of Engineers in their Handbook, “Infrastructure and the Operational Art”. (2014) refers to his concept the “Platform for Commerce” as “the business definition of infrastructure and impact economic growth.” Currently, he is writing his second book, NANOKRIEG: BEYOND BLITZKRIEG, a book about Military Infrastructure, Strategies & Tactics to fight the War on Terrorism. He served as an award-winning adjunct faculty member at Northwestern University’s Executive Masters and undergraduate programs for two decades (1986-2006). He appears in civil & federal courts as an Expert Witness on mission critical networks, network infrastructure, and cabling issues. His career began at Bell Telephone Laboratories (real-time software engineering), AT&T (technical marketing & enterprise network designs) and Arthur Young (now Ernst & Young, Director of Telecommunications & Computer Hardware consulting).
 
Speaking on home systems will be Kevin Petersen. Kevin Petersen is President for AT&T Digital Life. Kevin is responsible for spearheading the commercial launch and overall leadership of AT&T Digital Life services including Home Security, Home Automation, Home Healthcare, Energy Management and International Wholesale Services.  Prior to this role, Kevin served as senior vice president of Consumer & Wireless Strategy for AT&T Mobility and Consumer Markets, leading cross-functional teams to develop, analyze and present long-term strategies for AT&T.  Kevin also served as vice president and general manager for Wireless Operations in Illinois and Wisconsin. He was appointed to the position in June 2008 and oversaw all wireless financial and operational matters, including all company-owned retail stores, in his two-state territory.  Previously, he led a team of 850 employees that provided voice and data solutions to 35,000 customers in the Midwest and East regions. These business customers, which typically range in size from 10 to 300 employees, generate several hundred million dollars in annual revenue for AT&T.  A 20-year veteran of the industry, Kevin began his career with SBC Communications Inc. in 1993 in the company’s Leadership Development Program. He later worked as finance director for Dell Computer Corp. in Austin, Texas. He returned to AT&T in 2000 and served for three years as vice president of Corporate Finance and another two years as vice president of Corporate Planning in San Antonio. Since then, Kevin was the vice president and general manager of AT&T Ohio and vice president National Business Markets for AT&T Midwest and East regions.  Kevin currently serves on the Board of Directors for the Technology Association of Georgia (TAG) and the President’s Advisory Council, Ogelthorpe University. A native of St. Louis, Kevin holds a bachelor’s degree from Missouri State University and a master’s degree from St. Louis University.
 
Sinclair:  How about other speakers?
 
Zimmer:  CABA will have an "all-star" line-up of 50 speakers including representatives from great organizations like IBM, Jones Lang LaSalle, Intel Corporation, CBRE, Southern California Edison and Cisco Systems. There will three concurrent tracks: connected home, intelligent buildings and workshops.
 
Sinclair:  Will there be delegate tours again this year?
 
Zimmer:  Yes. The event will feature exciting intelligent building and smart home facility tours, which will include some of San Diego's most notable connected buildings.
 
Sinclair:  Are there networking opportunities?
 
Zimmer:  Yes. CABA's Forum will be an opportunity to attend the organization's Council meetings and network with the majority of CABA Board of Directors during the entire event. The Forum will also feature evening networking meals, breaks and receptions. The majority of CABA's Board members will be in attendance, due to a regularly scheduled Board meeting held in conjunction with the Forum.
 
[an error occurred while processing this directive]Sinclair:  Tell me more about CABA as an organization?
 
Zimmer:  The Continental Automated Buildings Association (CABA) is a not-for-profit industry association dedicated to the advancement of connected home and intelligent building technologies in North America.
 
Founded in 1988, the organization is supported by an international membership of 330+ organizations involved in the design, manufacture, installation and retailing of products relating to home automation and building automation. Public organizations, including utilities and government are also members.
 
CABA's mandate includes providing its members with networking and market research opportunities. CABA also encourages the development of open industry standards and protocols, and leads cross-industry initiatives.
 
Sinclair:  Where can we find more information about CABA's Forum?
 
Zimmer:  Program information and early-bird registration for attendees is now open online at: http://www.caba.org/forum with very reasonable event pricing and hotel rates.  Register today!