February 10-12 | Wynn Las Vegas
Live from CONNECT 2026: Daily Highlights

Learn innovative ways to optimize your technology investments, drive profits in both good and turbulent markets, network with peers, exchange ideas, and hear from industry experts and partners.

Our mission has always been to empower our customers. And in that spirit, we’ve listened to your feedback and have decided to move CONNECT back to a more familiar time of the year, which we hope is more accessible, regardless of your size or location. As a result, the next edition of CONNECT takes place from February 10-12, at Wynn Las Vegas.

Wrapping up CONNECT 2026 by turning compliance into opportunity and embedding quality for scale.

The Pulse of Day 3

We’ve officially closed out CONNECT 2026, and Day 3 brought the entire week's conversations home. Over the past three days, the themes have stayed consistent: a demand for clarity over complexity, systems that match reality, and operational decisions grounded in real data. Our final sessions proved that sustainability and quality are no longer just back-office requirements—they are frontline competitive advantages.

Feature: The Mindset Shift in Sustainability Speaker: Kevin Blakey

Kevin Blakey kicked off the morning by exploring how sustainability conversations are evolving fast. What was once focused strictly on compliance is now about credibility, competitiveness, and measurable impact.

• The Goal: Moving beyond high-level targets toward meaningful measurement and confident carbon reporting.
• The Opportunity: Packaging manufacturers are learning to align sustainability with both profitability and regulation, successfully shifting the mindset from obligation to opportunity.

Feature: Quality Embedded, Not Appended Speaker: Bill Benett

Bill Benett wrapped up the event with a practical look at why quality control can’t simply live at the end of the line. Relying on inspection after the fact leaves margin on the table.

• The Strategy: Leading packaging operations are now embedding quality throughout the entire production lifecycle.
• The Impact: By automating checks and capturing data in real-time, manufacturers prevent issues before they escalate. It’s not about adding more manual checks; it’s about making quality repeatable, scalable, and measurable to strengthen customer confidence.

The Pulse of Day 2

The energy in the room today was exactly what we hoped for: focused, practical, and grounded in real operational challenges. The conversation moved away from "quick fixes" and tackled the industry's biggest friction points head-on: the skills shortage and the financial reality of waste.

Feature: Solving the Skills Shortage Moderated by Craig Tait This morning’s panel didn’t just discuss the labor gap; it offered system-level solutions. The consensus is that we must reduce reliance on "tribal knowledge" and simplify workflows for frontline teams.

• Key Takeaway: Resilience comes from connected systems that support better decisions, allowing operations to scale even with a changing workforce.

Feature: Waste as a Margin Protector Speaker: Bill Benett

Bill Benett followed with a critical breakdown of waste reduction—not just as a sustainability initiative, but as the most immediate lever packaging operations have to protect margin.

• The Strategy: Leading operations are now measuring waste accurately to translate insight into action.
• The Goal: Aligning waste reduction with financial performance to drive better decisions, not just better reporting.