- ABB Motion Australia recently held their Sales and Channel Partner Conferences for 2023
- The dual event was held March 21st-23rd, 2023 in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
- The theme for the conference was “Visionaire” to encapsulate the strong expression for the event’s objective to demonstrate ABB’s pioneering technology, and future-forward and evolving strategies
From March 21st -23rd , 2023 ABB Motion Australia held their Sales and Channel Partner Conferences at ultra-modern venues the Pullman Albert Park and The Park Melbourne, for a crowd of up to 130 attendees. It was the first time bringing the national sales team and Channel Partners together for an in-person conference post-pandemic.
The theme for the conference was “Visionaire” to encapsulate the strong expression for the event’s objective to demonstrate ABB’s pioneering technology, future-forward and evolving strategies, and capabilities to support business growth for sales team members and Channel Partners alike.
The Visionaire concept pervaded through the entire program with presentation content that communicated how ABB Motion is tangibly revolutionising the way technology is adopted in industries such as the commercial building sector, food and beverage, water and wastewater, mining. Attendees were energized to learn more about ABB’s market-leading solutions including Low-Voltage multidrives, life-cycle management and digitalisation offerings that are driving the advancement in energy efficiency, cost effectiveness, and reliability of system infrastructure and operations. The program was complete with an interactive demonstration on how to influence sales opportunities and influence ABB Drives product and pricing positioning, a look at the global channel approach for Low Voltage induction motors, plus an update on new Channel Partner resources to support the partner network business.
The event featured a stellar line-up of ABB’s VIP Global Leadership team including Aki Kulmala, Head of Sales for the Drive Products Division, Joris Cocquyt, Head of Sales for Low Voltage Motors, and Dave O’Rourke, Global Lead Division Channel Manager for Drive Products, who participated by way of plenary presentations and leading some of the nine breakout workshop sessions for more comprehensive conversations.
The conference was emceed by world-class comedian Sam McCool who entertainingly navigated an agenda of plenary program, panel discussions, executive networking hours, and a Gala Dinner complete with awards ceremony.
To complement the Visionaire theme, an Expo Zone was produced that featured a virtual reality Water World, offering an immersive experience to promote the evolution of sales in the water and wastewater industry with a hands-on approach to experiencing leading edge functionality of ABB Drives such as pump clean, aeration, and multi-pump control. Additional display zones showcased ABB’s SynRM motors, which feature synchronous reluctance technology in a motor that has no magnets or windings and suffers virtually no power losses. They’re revolutionising the way industries are helping to cut global energy consumption by allowing users to experience up to 40% lower energy losses compared to IE3 induction motors.
Additional displays included a food and beverage zone which presented ABB’s ACS580 IP66 drive – a general purpose drive for harsh environments which is enabling reliable drive operability in challenging environments where applications are exposed to high levels of moisture and dust. This food and beverage zone also featured a demonstration of ABB’s soon-to-be released ACQ80 solar pump drive, which puts the sun’s clean energy to work for reliable, sustainable, and efficient pumping of water for irrigation needs.
To completely capture the Visionaire theme of creating an experiential way to experience ABB’s solutions, the Expo Zone also presented a bespoke digital hologram that displayed a suite of digital solutions offered by ABB that’s taking uptime and productivity to new heights in a range of industries, the ABB Ability™ Condition Monitoring for powertrains. It accentuated the solution’s motor, drive, bearing, and cloud-based analytics output in 3D, and it allowed attendees to discover all the features and angles in motion.
Launching the 2023 Channel Partner Conference with a cocktail event at The Royal Melbourne Hotel. Kicking off with a fireside chat moderated by Mike Briggs and featuring R. Narayanan, Aki Kulmala, and Joris Cocquyt 
Entering Visionaire: The tunnel to learn about new strategies, solutions, product developments, and network with ABB’s Channel Partners and local and global experts 
The view from The Park 
A special Acknowledgement of Country opening performance 
Visionaire’s immersive Expo Zone 
Christopher Probst, Drive Products Product Manager at ABB Australia talks to booth visitors about ABB’s machinery drives and PLC and servo solutions that power machine automation 
The ABB Ability™ Digital Powertrain observed in hologram form 
Understanding how Motion Services maximises uptime, extends product lifetime, enhances performance, and boosts energy efficiency in operations with ABB Australia's Geoff Douglas, Product Manager for Motion Services 
Adrian Matthews of Remtron celebrates his company’s journey with ABB with a closer look at their significant milestones on the Visionaire partner History Wall 
Panel discussion featuring (L-R): Mari Emilia Haapala, ABB Motion Digital Lead; David O’Rourke, Global Lead Division Channel Manager for Drives Products; moderator Rory Paltridge, Division Manager for Motors at ABB Australia; R. Narayanan, Senior VP for Motion Asia; Jennifer Nkire, Global Business Line Channel Manager for Motors and Generators, and Aki Kulmala, Head of Sales for Drive Products. 
The second panel discussion featuring (L-R): Brith Isaksson, Global Segment Manager for Food and Beverage, ABB Motion; Andy Preston, Global HVACR Channel and Strategy Manager; moderated by Mike Briggs, Head of Motion and Innovation Lead for ABB Australia; James Chalmers, Global Vice President, Water & Wastewater Sales for ABB Motion; Ata Douzdouzani, Head of Sales for System Drives; and Joris Cocquyt, Head of Sales for Low Voltage IEC Motors 
Welcome to Water World, an immersive VR experience into water industry applications using ABB’s motors and drives 
Event Emcee Sam McCool highlights conference topics raised 
Mari Emilia Haapala, ABB Motion Digital Lead, discusses drive modernisation solutions and data and advisory services with dedicated workshop attendees 
Head of Motion and Innovation Lead for ABB Australia, Mike Briggs, leads the plenary presentation 
Aki Kulmala, Head of Sales for Drive Products Division talks to the new 2027 strategy and market positioning 
Joris Cocquyt, Head of Sales for IEC Low Voltage Motors talks to ABB motors divisional updates including offerings like the IEC ultra premium SynRM motor and how the adoption of high-efficiency motor systems would cut global electricity consumption by up to 10% 
Visionaire conference attendees at the Gala Dinner giving a warm welcome 
Mike Briggs and Rory Paltridge thank Australian champion basketballer Andrew Gaze for his inspirational keynote presentation 
One of the winning teams: Mike Briggs and Dave O’Rourke award ABB Channel Partner IPD with a special note of recognition to HTC and Control Logic for their Lifetime Achievement
A live sketch artist chronicled the day’s standout topics which included what strategies and portfolio development mean for ABB’s partners, which industries are being target and why, how to increase energy efficiency in operations, and continuing to create serviceable products. The sketch also zeroed in on the importance of geographical targeting and the enabling of faster delivery and installation timeframes.
The evening welcomed a Gala Dinner event with a powerful keynote delivered by Andrew Gaze, Australian basketball champion, who led an inspirational presentation about his experiences and lessons learnt across his remarkable career as an Olympian, and what family values have taught him.
The dinner concluded with a special awards presentation which celebrated the achievements of ABB Motion’s highest performing Channel Partners including A1 Electric Motors, AWM Bendigo, and IPD.
Mike Briggs, Head of Motion and Innovation Lead for ABB Australia says, “it was important for us to create an experience that encouraged our sales, business development, and channel partner guests to understand our evolving market approach in a more interactive and thought-provoking way. This unique opportunity to gain insight from the global presenters in attendance, along with the chance to experience our technology in a new light will help to spur a more enriched affiliation for the solutions we offer and how we deliver them to our customers.”
Natalie Landrito, Marketing and Public Relations Manager for ABB Motion Australia says, “Visionaire’s bilateral event was intended to challenge the traditional concept of a conference and succeeded in delivering a revolutionary experience closely aligned with ABB’s position in the market and gave attendees a captivating encounter many have said they’ll never forget. For us, this success beyond measure.”
