Finishing Today has launched its third annual innovation awards competition. This year's competition has been restructured to include concise and critical criteria, an outside panel of industry experts to serve as jurors, and an online format that will make it simpler for you and your team to enter.

The 2008 awards will honor the greatest technological achievements in eight dynamic categories:

• Coatings/Coating Technologies
• Plating/Anodizing Technologies
• Pretreatment/Cleaning Chemicals
• Ovens/Curing Equipment
• Application Equipment
• Materials Handling/Finishing Lines
• Quality Control/Testing
• Environmental/Pollution Control

Winning entries will receive prestigious display awards and will be published in the November issue of Finishing Today. Selections will be made by a panel of independent industry experts based on the following criteria:

• P/S Factor. How successful was the company in identifying an industry-specific problem and developing a solution?
• Technical Innovation. How successful was the company in developing a unique technology and/or finding a unique application for an existing technology?
• Bottom-Line Breakthroughs. How successful was the entry in helping to reduce finishing costs, labor, etc.?

To enter, visit fia.finishingtodaymag.com, where you will find entry forms and information about submission guidelines and entry fees. If your finishing operation has benefited from an innovative technology, encourage your suppliers to enter that technology in the FIA competition.

Don’t delay...The deadline for entering is July 15!

For more information, contact Joe Jancsurak at 440.804.4113 or jancsurakj@bnpmedia.com.