Auto Executives to Share Best Practices at KPMG-'IndustryWeek'

16 December 1998
Auto Executives to Share Best Practices at KPMG-'IndustryWeek' Value Chain Conference
    DETROIT, Dec. 15 -- At the North American International Auto
Show (NAIAS), KPMG and "IndustryWeek" magazine will present an "America's Best
Plants" conference on "Driving Auto Industry Excellence throughout the Value
Chain."  The conference will be held at the Cobo Center on Thursday,
January 7, from 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., and Friday, January 8, from 8:00 a.m.
to 12:30 p.m.  More than 100 senior automotive managers are expected to
attend.
    The Value Chain Conference will feature presentations from top industry
leaders on the use of world-class quick response manufacturing, inter-company
teams, quality control techniques, and Internet links to suppliers and
customers to cut costs, improve customer relations, and reduce cycle time.
Brian M. Ambrose, KPMG National Industry Director for Industrial & Automotive
Markets, said, "We are very pleased to be teamed with IndustryWeek to offer
industry insights from the 'best of the best,' including several past
America's Best Plants winners."
    John R. Brandt, Editor-in-Chief of IndustryWeek, will give the opening
presentation on "The Value Chain -- Prospects and Profits."  Peter S. Hellman,
President and CEO of TRW, Inc., will give a keynote speech on "Integration
through Partnerships," and Dr. David Cole, director of the Office for the
Study of Automotive Transportation at the University of Michigan, will discuss
the "Auto Industry of the Future: A World of Vanishing Boundaries."
    Other conference topics will include "Best Supply Chain Practices,"
delivered by George Perry, President and CEO of Siemens Automotive Corp.;
"Building Trust with Suppliers," presented by Dana Corp. President and CEO
Southwood Morcott; and "Quick Response Manufacturing," given by Don
Wainwright, Chairman and CEO of Wainwright Industries Inc.  KPMG supply chain
expert Robin Palmer will also lead a session at the conference.
    For additional information about attending the conference, contact
IndustryWeek customer service at 800-279-4996 or http://www.industryweek.com.
Press inquiries should be directed to Bill O'Hearn, KPMG Public Relations, at
201-505-3527.
    KPMG Peat Marwick LLP is the U.S. member firm of KPMG International, a
leading professional services firm.  In the U.S., KPMG partners and
professionals provide a wide range of accounting, tax and consulting services.
As one of the foremost providers of information-based value added services,
KPMG serves clients with complex needs by capturing, managing, assessing and
delivering information to create knowledge that can help maximize shareholder
value.  KPMG International has more than 6,500 partners and
85,300 professionals in 155 countries.  KPMG's Web site is:
http://www.us.kpmg.com.
    IndustryWeek, which is the flagship publication of Penton Media, is a
management magazine that helps senior executives in manufacturing and
supporting industries build, safeguard, and expand the wealth of their
companies.  Now in its twenty-eighth year, "IW" has an audience of more than
800,000 readers.  Copies of IW can be ordered through its customer sales and
service department at 800-325-4146.