Trevor Jones elected 2006 president of the RIA

DECEMBER 15--Trevor Jones, Director of OEM business development of the Thermo Electron Corporation (Burlington, ON, Canada) Laboratory Automation and Integration Business, has been selected as the new president of the Robotic Industries Association (RIA; Ann Arbor, MI). RIA has been the industry's trade group for more than 30 years. Jones is the RIA's 17th president.

Jones, who cofounded CRS Robotics in 1983, is the first Canadian to assume the association's presidency. CRS Robotics was acquired by Thermo Electron Corporation in 2002. He succeeds Ǻke Lindqvist, group vice president, Robotic Products and Automation NA of ABB Inc. (Auburn Hills, MI), who served as RIA president for the 2004 and 2005 terms. Lindqvist remains on the RIA board as past president.

Regarding the current status of the industry, Jones comments, "The North American robotics industry has followed two consecutive years of solid double-digit growth with an absolutely explosive first nine months of 2005, with sales 30% over the same period in 2004. It is exciting to be leading the Association in the coming year during such a robust time for the industry."

Jones has been on the RIA board of directors since 1999 and was most recently the RIA first vice president and the three-term chairman of the new markets committee.

Founded in 1974, the RIA is North America's leading robotics trade group, representing some 240 robotics manufacturers, component suppliers, system integrators, end users, research groups, and consulting firms. RIA is the official secretariat for the ANSI/RIA R15.06-1999 Robot Safety Standard and offers in-house training on safety and robotic applications. For more information, contact RIA headquarters at 734/994-6088, or on the Web atwww.roboticsonline.com.