Omni Hotel Louisville

About

The 64th Annual Society of Plastics Engineers Color and Appearance Division RETEC® will be held in Louisville, KY during September 13-15, 2026. Come join us at the Omni Hotel to celebrate Where Color Leads the FIELD and engage in topics related to plastics coloration and appearance.

Preconference Color Seminar (separate registration required)
Preconference golf outing (separate registration required)
Two full days of technical sessions
PlastiVan presentation for local schools
60+ exhibitors showcasing products and services
Opening reception, Sunday evening September 13
Network Reception, Monday evening September 14
Fun Run for local charity

CAD RETEC® is the longest running and largest technical conference in North America devoted to the coloring of plastics. It started as a technical conference focused on development, manufacturing and research in the field of color science, color measurement, and coloring plastics but has grown to be THE place to network with others in the industry.

Registration

Hotel Registration is through Omni Hotel Louisville.

Type	Advance (By 8/15/2025)	Late (After 8/15/2025)
SPE Member	$480	$580
SPE Non-Member	$740	$840
Tabletop	$1,650	$1,850
Speakers/Moderators	$225
Student (w/valid student ID)	$100
Emeritus	$200

Registration

Exhibitors

5-Pack

Sponsorships

Hotel
Questions? Contact the Hotel Chair

++We are working on securing additional rooms for Tuesday, September 15. As of June 22, September 15 is sold out. You can still check out on the 15th, you just can’t reserve the 15th until further notice.

Program

Technical Program

Updates will be posted as they become available. The conference will be held at the Omni Hotel, Louisville, KY .

Program (pdf)

Speaker Information

Monday, September 14, 2026

Omni Hotel

Morning Program

Time	Category	Speaker/Company	Title/Sponsor
7:00-8:00 AM	Breakfast	Omni Hotel Olmstead Ballroom 5-7	*Sponsored by The Shepherd Color Co.*
8:00 AM	Opening Remarks	TJ Stubbs – Teknor Apex Commonwealth Ballroom 1-3	Welcome to CAD RETEC® 2026
8:05 AM	Keynote	Patrick Krieger – PLASTICS	Appearances Aren’t Deceiving: PLASTICS and SPE Look Good
8:30 AM	Keynote	Robby Helminiak – CPMA	Color at the Crossroads: Navigating the Policy Landscape of the Color Value Chain
9:00 – 10:00 AM	New Technology Forum	Tony Tanner – Trust Chem
10:00 AM	Break Exhibits Open	Exhibits Area Commonwealth Ballroom 4-8	Sponsored by
11:00 AM	Presentation	Dr. Breeze Briggs – Sun Chemical	Expanding Role of Heat‑Management Pigments in High‑Performance Technologies
11:30 AM	Presentation	Bonnie Piro – Sudarshan	Solvent Dyes in Plastics: Performance, Processing, and Regulatory Considerations
12:00 – 1:30 PM	Lunch	Open – on your own

Afternoon Program

Time	Category	Speaker/Company	Title/Sponsor
1:30 PM	Presentation	Mark Ryan – The Shepherd Color Co.	Something old, something new, something borrowed, and two things Blue: Updates on recent inorganic pigment advances
2:00 PM	Presentation	Anne Stelzer	High-Tech Dyes for Plastics and New Mobility
2:30 PM	Presentation	Kelsey Anlicker	Updates on the Regulation of Chemicals in Food Packaging
3:00 – 3:30 PM	Break	Exhibits Area	Sponsored by Susonity
3:30 – 5:00PM	Exhibits Open	Exhibits Area	Commonwealth Ballroom 4-8
8:00 – 11:00 PM	Vendor Hospitality Suites	Omni Hotel	*Multiple Vendors*

Tuesday, September 15, 2026

Omni Hotel

Morning Program

Time	Category	Speaker/Company	Title/Sponsor
7:00 AM	Fun Run / Walk	Omni Hotel	*Sponsored by Chroma Specialty*
8:00 AM	Pre-Conference Break	Omni Hotel Olmstead Ballroom 5-7	SPE Color & Appearance Division
8:55 AM	Opening Remarks	TJ Stubbs – Teknor Apex Commonwealth Ballroom 1-3	Welcome Day 2
9:00 AM	Presentation	Doreen Becker – Ampacet	Regulatory & Sustainability Updates for Colors, Effects and Plastics
9:30 AM	Presentation	John Howard – Tronox	Green today, Red tomorrow? A traffic-light framework for regulatory-resilient substitution
10:00 -10:30 AM	Break	Exhibits Area Commonwealth 4-8	Sponsored by Tomatec
10:30 AM	Presentation	John Seymour – John the Math Guy	CIELAB at 50
11:30 AM	Presentation	Jack Ladson	Why D65 Spectral Fidelity Matters in Industrial Spectrophotometry
12:00 – 1:30 PM	Awards Luncheon	Omni Hotel	Sponsored by Liberty

Afternoon Program

Time	Category	Speaker/Company	Title/Sponsor
1:30 PM	Presentation	Kevin Lucero – Susonity	Additives for durable, fast and accurate laser marking silicones
2:00 PM	Presentation	Frank Neuber – Clariant	Maintaining clarity, smoothness, printing, labelling and hot-sealing properties while using an FDA-approved, PFAS-free PPA to eliminate sharkskin in LLDPE films.
2:30 PM	Presentation	Doug Koerner – Paramount Colors	The Influence of Carbon Black on Dye Photodegradation in Polymer Coloration Systems
3:00 – 3:30 PM	Break	Exhibits Area	*Sponsored by Vivify*
3:30 PM	Presentation	Ed Gay – KraussMaffei	Color Compounding with Co-Rotating Twin Screw Extruders
4:00 PM	Presentation	Dean Elliot & Philip Brunner – Entek & BioRegion Technology	Innovative Color Compounding applied to a renewable pigment. A Collaborative Approach to Circular Plastics
4:30 PM	Closing Remarks & Raffle	TJ Stubbs – Teknor Apex	Closing Remarks & Raffle Must be present to win
Conference Ends			Conference Ends

Activities

Activities

Activity	Date	Cost
“Coloring of Plastics” Tutorial	Sunday Sept 13	$550
Golf Outing at Covered Bridges	Sunday Sept 13	$120
Welcome Reception	Sunday Sept 13	Included w/registration
Breakfast	Monday Sept 14	Included w/registration
5K Fun Run/Walk	Tuesday Sept 15	$25
Breakfast	Tuesday Sept 15	Included w/registration
Awards Luncheon	Tuesday Sept 15	Included w/registration