Plastics Engineering - May 2014 - (Page 2)

FROM SPE A New www.4spe.org-with New Opportunities for Networking a s many readers have already noticed, the society of Plastics Engineers recently started rolling out a major redesign of its website-essentially a brand new site-at www.4spe.org. Overseeing the effort is sPE's director of sales and events, tom conklin. Plastics Engineering asked tom to talk about the new features of the site, including its forthcoming social networking functions. and in the final paragraphs below are observations about the re-boot from sPE Executive committee members Jaime gomez (vice president of communications) and Jon ratzlaff (2013-14 president). PE: What were the major goals of the SPE website re-boot? Conklin: Our old website was perceived as being too static and lacking any incentive for someone to revisit it on a regular basis. We primarily wanted to create a destination for our members to return to time and again with the expectation of learning something new on every visit. also, with so much information contained in our old site, it had become hard to navigate. Many users complained that they couldn't find what they were looking for very easily. Our redesign took this into account, and i believe we now have a much more user friendly website. Finally, we thought it was high time to revise our brand and create a new, fresher look that would appeal to a younger and broader audience. PE: Why is 2014 the right time to redesign the SPE site (with its social networking features)? Conklin: the sPE Professional e-network, which will be called "the chain" when it is launched later this summer, is actually a separate project from the website redesign. the two platforms are intended to work together seamlessly to produce interactive technical and industry-related content for our membership, and to provide a place for the rest of the world to learn more about sPE and what we have to offer. Discussions taking place on the chain will be linked to content on the website, and virtual groups of individuals will be formed in the connected community around various topics of interest and sPE events. the time is right for such an undertaking for two reasons: First, sPE is making a concerted effort to expand our influ2 ence around the world, and a highly functional website is necessary to deliver more value to our members who do not live in areas where section membership is available. second, the role of social networking in the sharing of any type of information is becoming a huge factor that we cannot ignore. Building and improving sPE's online presence now will have many benefits for the society in the coming years. PE: What are some limitations of current social networking sites that plastics professionals use? And how does the SPE site address these? Conklin: We have learned that groups [like professional groups on common social networking sites] attract a great deal of interest but fail to deliver much value. Discussions need to be moderated by someone who is very familiar with the topic under discussion and can tell when information is being shared properly. When questions are posted to the forum they deserve to be answered quickly and accurately; this is not always the case with un-moderated forums. [current social networking groups] also contain too many discussions around job offerings and too much "infomercial"type content to meet the needs of all of our members and prospects. it should be a place where anyone in the industry can turn for accurate information from industry experts who are sharing their wisdom in the spirit of sPE's Mission: to promote scientific and engineering knowledge relating to plastics. the chain promises to address these concerns, deliver high-quality information to our members, and connect sPE to the rest of the worldwide plastics community. PE: What will SPE members most value in the new site's features? Conklin: Dynamic content will be one of the key features of the new website. news items and selected technical information will be delivered daily to the homepage. Our new Online technical library will contain all of the technical papers, presentations, journal briefs, and recorded webinars that we have collected over the past two decades and present them in one place where they can be searched together. Members will be able to download any of these resources to | Plastics EnginEEring | MaY 2014 | www.4spe.org | www.plasticsengineering.org http://www.4spe.org http://www.4spe.org http://www.4spe.org http://www.plasticsengineering.org

Plastics Engineering - May 2014

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