Year in Review - Your Association

Memorandum of Understanding provides underpinnings for AEM success

Gerard Geraghty Gary MacDonald

During the November AEM Annual Conference, 2002 Co-Chairmen Gary MacDonald of MacDon Industries and Gerard Geraghty, representing IR Co., updated attendees on the progress of the Association this year in achieving the goals outlined in the CIMA-EMI consolidation's Memorandum of Understanding (MOU). Here is an excerpt.

The key factor in AEM’s success this year has been the foundation which the membership voted on last year — our Memorandum of Understanding, or MOU. This has guided the organization and operation of your Association in 2002.

The four goals of our MOU are:

• Increased Service and Value
• Stronger Industry Voice
• Cost Benefits
• Representation

Service and Value

By Service and Value, we essentially mean the programs we offer to members and the value they represent.

We are combining our staffs and resources for greater efficiencies. We are consolidating duplicate services and providing enhanced participation in single, more cost-effective programs. These include education programs and other Association meetings.

The Association’s website is another area where AEM has shown significant progress in combining services and increasing value. We initially operated with a small transition website. By mid-year, we were up and running with a fully consolidated site.

Stronger Industry Voice

Our next MOU objective is a Stronger Industry Voice. A stronger voice means two things: numbers, and that when numbers talk, people listen.

With the AEM consolidation, our membership rolls stand at 712 companies. This includes 329 Full members as well as 308 Associate members and 75 Light Equipment members. Those numbers have given us the ability to make a louder, if you will, statement both on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC but also at the state level.

We took advantage of our membership size and scope to help promote passage of Presidential Trade Promotion Authority, to organize opposition to new IRS excise tax proposals, and to win a four-fold increase in off-road engine research from the Department of Energy and the Environmental Protection Agency. We also successfully fought and won an appeal on distribution laws in the state of South Dakota.

Cost Benefits

The third MOU objective is Cost Benefits. The AEM consolidation has especially meant cost savings for those companies that held dual memberships in our two predecessor groups. These savings amount to some $529,000.

And, all our member companies benefit from the cost savings we’ve achieved through elimination of duplicate services. These include educational programs – such as this annual conference, and our annual customer support conference and product safety seminar. We’ve also eliminated duplications in other meetings, such as for noise standards and EPA and OSHA regulations, for example.

We are looking at greater efficiencies by consolidating the operation of our statistical programs, and in the operation of our trade shows.

And, we’ve expanded the cost savings of our international trade development services to all members. The efficiencies are just starting.

Representation

Now, on to the final MOU objective, and that is Representation. This is resounding through all our services.

Technical is a great example. We’ve eliminated duplicate technical boards and replaced them with a single group, which has equal member representation from both predecessor organizations.

In our technical dealings with others, the Europeans and the rest of the world can now look to only one U.S. organization for answers on ISO issues and safety standards, for example.

It’s a challenge but a great opportunity for our Ag and Construction divisions as they look to maximize the impact of combining programs and services. A good example is the public policy area. We have made great strides, and we continue to explore how to increase participation at the national as well as state levels to advance our government priority issues.

Get Involved

We urge all members to actively participate in AEM activities so your Association can reach its full potential in the years ahead.

Equipment Manufacturing Industry Salutes Emmett Barker >>
The First Year - A Winning Season >>
Year-End Report: Your AEM Finances >>
Welcome New Members >>

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Year-End 2002