MICHauto Sponsors Engineering Summit

SOUTHFIELD, Mich., April 30 -- MICHauto, an automotive business accelerator that advocates the Michigan automotive industry, announced today that it is sponsoring a first-of-its kind summit that will bring together Michigan university and college engineering program deans and OE and supplier engineering leaders to address the retention of high-potential engineering talent in Michigan. The Engineering Society of Detroit will also be assisting in the summit, which takes place on Tuesday, May 20, 2008 at the St. John's Retreat Facility in Plymouth, Michigan.

"We've all heard the horror stories about the brain-drain occurring in Michigan," said Frank Loftus, general manager, 3M Automotive Market Center and member of the MICHauto Engineering Summit organizing committee. "This summit is a practical way of initiating an action plan to prevent the continued loss of automotive talent and to maintain Michigan's position as the global hub of automotive development."

MICHauto, a non-profit corporation established in 2007, is an automotive industry cluster organization whose purpose is to accelerate economic development of Michigan's automotive industry. Membership in MICHauto is available to anyone doing business or planning to do business as part of the Michigan automotive industry. Specifically, the objectives of the summit include:

  -- To facilitate discussion and understanding of the issues facing the
     state, the education system and the automotive industry about the
     retention of engineering talent in Michigan.
  -- Initiating actions to secure increased collaboration in the recruitment
     and retention of students in Michigan.
  -- To discuss the increasingly high-tech nature of the automotive industry
     and opportunities that exist within that industry.
  -- To create a framework that will allow closer collaboration between the
     automotive community and the university system that will integrate real
     world experience with education and produce graduates who are fully
     prepared to assume active roles in this technically demanding industry.

In addition to MICHauto member companies representing the engineering community, MICHauto announced that it has received commitments to participate from the deans of 7 universities and colleges. The group also announced that a Toyota representative will be the keynote speaker.

For information about attending the summit, visit the MICHauto Web site, MICHAUTO .

About MICHauto

MICHauto was formed to leverage Michigan's automotive industry cluster to sustain and grow its position as a global leader in research, development and manufacturing. MICHauto serves as the automotive hub of Michigan promoting collaboration and unlocking its power to increase Michigan's competitive advantages. MICHauto is the only Michigan automotive organization that is all-inclusive, counting automakers, suppliers, and others with ties to the automotive industry as members. It serves its members by providing unique benefits that will help grow and enhance their Michigan-based businesses.