News

The Manufacturer, part of Nineteen Group, has announced the launch of Smart Manufacturing Week in the United States, expanding the company’s global manufacturing portfolio into North America. The inaugural event will be held April 19–22, 2027 at Huntington Place in Detroit, MI, with the exposition running April 21–22.

The launch represents Nineteen Group Americas’ continued investment in the U.S. manufacturing sector following its recent acquisition of Reliabilityweb and marks the next step in building a comprehensive platform for advanced manufacturing, industrial technology, reliability, and asset management.

“Our approach to growth combines strategic acquisitions with organic launches that expand their reach and complement one another,” said Mary Larkin, President of Nineteen Group Americas. “The acquisition of Reliabilityweb gives us a deep connection to the reliability and asset management community, while The Manufacturer and Smart Manufacturing Week’s UK event provide the audience and credibility to scale the platform into the U.S. manufacturing market.”

The event will bring together leaders responsible for modernizing production, improving operational performance, and deploying new technologies across manufacturing organizations.

Smart Manufacturing Week U.S. will feature two major co-located exhibitions:

·    Smart Factory Expo, focused on digital manufacturing, industrial IoT, automation, and factory transformation
·    Maintec, dedicated to maintenance, reliability, and asset management

The event will also host two major content anchors: the Manufacturing Digitalization Summit, focused on the strategic adoption of digital technologies, and The Reliability Conference, which joined the Nineteen Group portfolio through the acquisition of Reliabilityweb.

Detroit was selected as the host city due to its position at the center of North American manufacturing. Within a 250-mile radius of Detroit, there are over 3.3 million manufacturing jobs, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics—one of the largest industrial concentrations in the world.

The opportunity for expansion is significant. The U.S. advanced manufacturing market is estimated to be roughly ten times the size of the UK market, providing a substantial platform for the continued growth of the Smart Manufacturing Week brand.

"What makes this event distinctive is its ability to connect the entire spectrum of advanced manufacturing: from software and digitalization to the physical infrastructure and reliability strategies that keep operations running," said Melissa Ooi, Vice President of Nineteen Group's U.S. Manufacturing Portfolio, who will lead the development of the event in the United States. "Where other events focus on a specific niche or process, Smart Manufacturing Week U.S. breaks down those silos."

“Smart Manufacturing Week has grown into one of the UK’s most dynamic gatherings for manufacturing and engineering leaders,” said Grace Gilling, Managing Director of Nineteen’s Manufacturing group. “Expanding into the United States is the natural next step. The scale of the American manufacturing market presents an incredible opportunity to bring the Smart Manufacturing Week model to a much larger stage.”

The UK edition of Smart Manufacturing Week takes place June 3–4 at The NEC Birmingham.

For more information about Smart Manufacturing Week U.S., including exhibitor and sponsorship opportunities, visit smartmanufacturingweek.com/us or email exhibit@smartmanufacturingweek.us.