I am greatly honored to serve the AeA as its chairman for the next year.  I have served as Vice-Chairman of the AeA for the last year, and as a National Board member for the last five years, and have found the experience to be second to no other in my career.  The quality of the AeA organization is reflected in the commitment of the staff and the board to providing real value to our membership.  I am thrilled to have the continued chance to contribute to an organization which truly believes and acts on the need to “Advance the Business of Technology."

I have been asked to provide a little information on Applied Films Corporation for the many of you who may wonder if we are in the entertainment business rather than high technology.  I can assure you that the “film” referred to does not require any business trips to Hollywood.  In fact, Applied Films Corporation is a leading provider of thin film deposition equipment to diverse markets such as the flat panel display (FPD), the architectural glass, solar cell, consumer products packaging, and electronics industries.  Our equipment is used by the major display, glass and film manufacturers worldwide.  At present, Applied Films has approximately 600 employees and revenues of approximately $200 million per year. We are listed in the NASDAQ under the symbol, “AFCO.” 

I am excited to have the opportunity to work with Bill Archey (bio) and the AeA staff for the next year on a number of important initiatives that will affect our industry.  At the Board meeting in October, the Board emerged with a strong consensus that the umbrella theme for our goals should revolve around enhancing U.S. competitiveness in high technology.  A wake-up call needs to be issued to our country about the continued deterioration in our country’s competitive position vis-à-vis developing countries such as India and China, and the need for a positive, unified policy addressing enhanced competitiveness.  The AeA issued an important paper regarding competitiveness earlier this spring which I would encourage all of you to read, and is in a position to have a strong positive effect on our government.  More will be forthcoming from the AeA in the coming months, and I look forward to working with all of you in effecting positive change at the local, state and national level. 

I wish all of you a wonderful holiday season in 2005. 

Best regards,
Tom Edman (bio)
President and CEO, Applied Films Corporation
Chairman, AeA 

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• learn more about important environmental issues affecting the design and manufacture of technology products, 
• expand upon their understanding of European environmental policy (legislation/regulations) development and implementation, and 
• solidify professional contacts with EU government officials and EU industry representatives.

The Energy Using Products (EuP) Directive, which was issued July 2005, does not introduce directly binding requirements for specific products.  But it does define conditions and criteria for setting, through subsequent implementing measures, requirements regarding environmentally relevant product characteristics (such as energy consumption).  For example, regulations could require mandatory lifecycle analysis for computers.  The AeA delegation urged European policymakers to incorporate voluntary energy efficiency initiatives, when possible, into the Energy Using Products (EuP) implementing measures rather than restricting innovation by drafting burdensome design measures. 

The AeA International Environment Committee and AeA Europe are working to keep members informed of energy efficiency and related environmental requirements developing globally.  If you would like to get involved with this AeA Committee, contact Becky Linder.

Rob Mulligan (bio)
Senior Vice President International

AeA Delegation to Brussels

For more information on the International Issues affecting your company, visit:

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The Democratic Innovation Agenda’s priorities include: 

(1) creating a new generation of scientists, engineers, and mathematicians, 

(2) making a sustained commitment to research and development, 

(3) promoting affordable broadband access for every American, and 

(4) creating a competitive environment for small business, in particular reexamining the use of stock options and the costly impact of Sarbanes-Oxley Section 404 on small businesses.

On the Republican side of Capitol Hill, AeA is one of five organizations sponsoring the National Summit on Competitiveness in Washington, DC, and serves actively on the steering committee developing the program for the Summit.  Chairman Sherwood Boehlert (R-NY) of the House Science Committee, Chairman Frank Wolf (R-VA) of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Science, and Chairman Vern Ehlers (R-MI) of the Subcommittee on Environment and Technology are the driving forces behind the December 6, 2005 event at the U.S. Department of Commerce.

AeA expects a number of recommendations to come out of the Summit that will also closely track some of the recommendations of the National Academy of Science’s report on competitiveness which was released earlier in November.

John Palafoutas (bio)
Sr. VP of Domestic Policy and Congressional Affairs

AeA Launches a New National Grassroots Program Targeting Parents & Teachers
The Competitive Challenge Facing America and How it Will Affect You, Your Kids, and Your Grandkids

In addition to our considerable bipartisan efforts on Capitol Hill on competitiveness, AeA is embarking on a program for raising the consciousness of parents and teachers about the competitive challenges facing the U.S., and in particular how those challenges will affect their kids’ jobs and indeed their kids’ standard of living if we don’t confront these challenges today.

It is our intent to have local executives from AeA's grassroots councils conduct presentations on competitiveness to parents, teachers, and others that will provide context for educational reform, particularly in math and science.  The presentation is not a how-to of educational reform, rather, it is intended to alert parents and teachers of the major trends taking place in the rest of the world and how those changes and trends can affect America’s economic well being.  If they knew what was going on then these needed changes, particularly educational reform, would take on a greater urgency.  The U.S. is a very insular society and too often leaders at the local level have no idea what’s going on in the rest of the world, or for that matter, in the next town.  For more information about, or to become involved in, this initiative contact your local council office executive director.

The impetus for doing this grassroots effort comes from a meeting Bill Archey, AeA's President & CEO (bio), had with Margaret Spellings, U.S. Secretary of Education.  There were a number of high-tech executives and association presidents present.  Sec. Spellings made the point that, “the demand side for educational reform is coming almost exclusively from the business community and not from parents.”  Archey told her that’s in large part a function of parents not knowing what’s going on in the rest of the world, and that calls for reform lack the larger, global context.

Archey is preparing a presentation on the focus of our initiative that will likely be given to all of the Democrats in the House of Representatives.  Archey had previously addressed the California Democratic delegation two months ago on AeA’s competitiveness paper.  The audience included 19 of the 33 Dems and also included Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-CA).  That meeting was a pivotal event in the Democrats developing their competitiveness agenda.  Also, AeA will be offering to the Republicans similar presentations to their members of Congress.

John Palafoutas (bio)
Sr. VP of Domestic Policy and Congressional Affairs

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