The 15th annual Global Outlook for Carbon Fibre conference will bring together the most influential figures from the carbon fiber industry. Taking place October 2–4 in London, GOCarbonFibre 2012 will address key issues in the carbon fiber value chain and give expert insight into the entire manufacturing process for carbon fiber from beginning to end. Edward Carson, formerly of Boeing Co., will comment on his report “The Future of Carbon Fiber to 2017,” which forecasts that over the next five years the global carbon fiber market will have an annual growth rate of 17 percent, with an estimated market value of $7.3 billion by 2017.

Carbon fiber’s role in driving automotive environmental performance will be covered at the conference by Dr Armin Plath, head of materials research and manufacturing processes group research at Volkswagen. Doug Parks, director of lightweight materials and government programs at Dow Chemical Co., will discuss new ventures in carbon fiber production and connecting the downstream markets.