Former USS Benfold Commander Abrashoff to Deliver PEI Convention Keynote [1]

TULSA, Oklahoma, May 31, 2017/Petroleum Equipment Institute/ -- Mike Abrashoff, former commander of the USS Benfold and author of “It’s Your Ship,” will deliver the PEI Kick-Off keynote Wednesday, Oct. 18 during the PEI Convention at the NACS Show. The show will be Oct. 17-20 at McCormick Place in Chicago. 

At 36, Abrashoff took command of the ship with the highest turnover rate in the U.S. Navy and used a leadership road map to transform the morale of its crew. In only 12 months, the USS Benfold achieved a No. 1 performance ranking among the U.S. fleet. Abrashoff will share how similar strategies apply to the business world and how leaders may “right their ships.”    

Tickets to Abrashoff’s keynote and the Kick-Off Breakfast are $30 and may be purchased during registration at www.pei.org/show [2] or by calling Sondra Sutton at 918-236-3967. Full attendees of the 2017 PEI Convention at the NACS Show can save $150 if they register by July 11. Early bird rates are $295 for individual PEI members and $495 for nonmembers. After July 11, full attendee registration will be $445 for individual PEI members and $645 for nonmembers. 

“Industry heavyweights tell us year after year that the PEI Convention at the NACS Show is their No. 1 place to do business, check out new technologies and gain leadership strategies,” said Sarah West, convention director at PEI. “That $150 early bird savings adds up quickly for companies that send several people, so PEI also offers early bird group discounts to members. It’s another reason the PEI Convention is the best investment in the industry.”     

Housing for the PEI Convention at the NACS Show is available through Connection Housing, the official PEI housing company. 

The official hotels [3] with PEI discounted rates are: 

• PEI HQ: Hyatt Regency McCormick Place (connected to the convention center)
  2233 S. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Drive 
• Chicago Marriott Downtown Magnificent Mile (4.9 miles from convention center)
  540 N. Michigan Ave.
• Palmer House Hilton (4.2 miles from convention center)
  17 E. Monroe St.
• W Chicago Lakeshore (4.9 miles from convention center)
  644 N. Lakeshore Drive

Attendees who make housing reservations should indicate they are with the PEI housing block. Housing may be reserved several ways:

1. Online [4]. (If your session times out, enter code NACSPEI17.) 

2. Email this housing form [5] to nacshousing@connectionshousing.com [6].

3. Fax this housing form [5] to 678-228-1920. 

4. Call 866-983-6227 or 404-842-0000. 

For more information and to register, visit www.pei.org/show [2].

Contact: Sarah West, Convention Director

Phone: 918-236-3968

Email:  swest@pei.org [7]