MHIA rebrands, changes name to "MHI"

The Material Handling Industry of America said today it has renamed itself "MHI—The Industry That Makes the Supply Chain Work," as part of a rebranding move to emphasize material handling's role in supporting the global supply chain.

"People in our industry, both members and end users, have an expanded role beyond material handling to the overall supply chain," said George W. Prest, MHI's CEO, in a statement. "As these roles changed, we saw the need to evolve our association to reflect what's happening in today's supply chain."

Prest said the rebranded organization "will be more relevant to professionals in manufacturing and the supply chain, as well as offer solutions and content to meet their needs."

To that end, MHI said it will demonstrate to end users how its member companies can use their skills to facilitate their customers' manufacturing, distribution, logistics, and transportation efforts.

"For several years, the Board of Governors and staff explored the concept of broadening our focus beyond the four walls of a facility, but we had to make sure that this would fulfill a need and was the right thing for our members and the industry as a whole," said Larry Strayhorn, MHI's executive chairman.

Effective today, the association's web site address is www.mhi.org.

The association said it would continue its sponsorship of the ProMat and MODEX trade events. It will also continue to provide support to MHI's Industry Groups.

The new MHI logo will officially be revealed at ProMat, held Jan. 21-24 at McCormick Place in Chicago.