Canadian Association for Composite Structures and Materials (CACSMA)

What Canadian Association for Composite Structures and Materials (CACSMA) does

The Canadian Association for Composite Structures and Materials (CACSMA) is a Canadian not-for-profit professional society founded in 1988 by Suong Van Hoa and registered under the Canada Not-for-profit Corporations Act. The organization convenes the Canadian composites community — academic researchers, government professionals, and corporate stakeholders from aerospace, automotive, marine, construction, and renewable energy sectors — through four core programs: the biennial CANCOM Conference Series (held since 1991, most recently in Waterloo in 2024, with Vancouver scheduled for 2026), a tiered membership program (individual, student, corporate, and associate categories priced in CAD), an awards program spanning undergraduate through lifetime-career recognition (including the Canada Composites Fellow designation and Timotei Centea Memorial Award family), and a mentorship program paired with Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion workshops introduced in 2022.

CACSMA's underlying technology footprint is limited to a bilingual English/French WordPress website (cacsma.ca, with the French brand ACSMAC) and a LinkedIn presence; the society does not develop proprietary technical products. Its business model is community- and event-driven: membership dues ($32-$464 CAD per tier) and conference registration fees, where conference attendance often bundles membership, are the primary revenue streams. The organization has been run entirely by volunteers since 1999, when a group led by founder Suong Van Hoa took over administration to prevent closure; prior to that, from 1988-1992, it had two full-time employees (Executive Director and Secretary) whose costs drove a financial crisis resolved by the successful CANCOM 1993 conference.

The current seven-person Executive Committee is led by President Chun (Lucy) Li of the National Research Council Canada, with representation across Canadian universities (Calgary, McGill, York, Moncton, New Brunswick, UBC, Waterloo) and NRC. CACSMA's customer-acquisition channels are community-led and event-driven, anchored by CANCOM and supported by the mentorship, EDI, and awards programs. Governance was modernized through updated by-laws enacted in February 2026 and confirmed by special resolution of the members in March 2026.

Name

Canadian Association for Composite Structures and Materials (CACSMA)

Legal name

Canadian Association for Composite Structures and Materials

Website

https://cacsma.ca

Company type

Private

Founded year

1988

Operating status

Operating

Short description

CACSMA is a Canadian not-for-profit professional society founded in 1988 that convenes academic researchers, government professionals, and corporate stakeholders in composite structures and materials through its biennial CANCOM conference, tiered membership, awards, and mentorship programs.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Professional Association Services

NAICS

Professional Organizations (81392), Business Associations (813910)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600)

akta.pro primary industry

Association & Society Conference Management (Nonprofit, Professional Bodies) (THAHACAA)

Keywords

• Composite materials research
• Professional society membership
• Composites conference series
• Engineering materials association
• Academic awards program

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Membership Fees: Annual/biennial membership fees collected from individual members, student members, and corporate members. Membership fees are primarily collected through participation in CACSMA-organized events such as the CANCOM conference series.
2. Conference Revenue: Revenue generated from conference registrations for the CANCOM series and other events. Conference registration fees include membership costs for registrants meeting membership requirements.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

CACSMA is a Canadian not-for-profit professional society that brings together researchers, government professionals, and corporate stakeholders who specialize in the science, technology, and application of composite materials. Its core deliverables are the biennial CANCOM (Canadian-International Conference on Composites) series, a tiered membership program (individual, student, corporate, and associate), an academic and lifetime awards program, and a structured mentorship program connecting students and early-career researchers with experienced professionals.

Product overview

CACSMA is a Canadian professional society that serves as a platform for researchers, government professionals, and corporate stakeholders in the composite materials field. The organization's offerings consist of four interconnected core programs: the CANCOM Conference Series (biennial international conferences on composites), the Mentorship Program (connecting students with industry professionals), the Awards Program (recognizing achievements from undergraduate to lifetime career levels), and Membership (providing access to the professional community). These programs work together to advance the understanding, application, and development of composite materials across Canadian industries.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• CANCOM Conference Series The Canadian-International Conference on Composites (CANCOM) is Canada's largest technical forum on composite materials, featuring research presentations, education days, networking, and technical exchange across sectors including aerospace, automotive, marine, construction, and renewable energy. Targets researchers, industry members, and government professionals involved with composite materials.
• CACSMA Membership Professional society membership available in Individual (Canadian voting, $94 CAD), Student ($32 CAD), Corporate ($312 CAD, with designated voting rights tied to company size), and Associate International categories ($125–$464 CAD). Provides access to conferences, networking, awards, and community activities in the composite materials sector.
• CACSMA Awards Program Recognition program honoring outstanding achievements at undergraduate ($200 prize), masters ($1,000 prize), doctoral ($1,500 Timotei Centea Memorial Award), and lifetime career (Canada Composites Fellow) levels in composite structures and materials. Includes the Professor Suong V. Hoa Student Paper Award at CANCOM conferences (total $1,750).
• CACSMA Mentorship Program Structured mentorship program connecting experienced composite materials professionals with students and early-career researchers, featuring up to eight meetings over one year with formal guidelines for mentors and mentees. Coordinated with EDI (Equity, Diversity, and Inclusivity) initiatives.

Named customers3 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• SAMPE (Society for the Advancement of Material and Process Engineering)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 27 April 2026CACSMA collaborates with SAMPE for the SAMPE 2026 Conference & Exhibition scheduled for April 27-30, 2026 in Seattle, USA. SAMPE provides a forum for the presentation, exchange and discussion of the latest research into composite materials and their applications.
• American Society of CompositescoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2009CANCOM 2009 and CANCOM 2011 were organized together with the American Society of Composites. CANCOM 2009 was held at the Delaware Center for Composite Materials, co-chaired by Jack Gillespie and Suong Van Hoa. CANCOM 2011 was organized in Montreal, co-chaired by Suong V. Hoa, Mike Hyer, and Ozden Ochoa.
• National Research Council Canada (NRC)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNRC plays a significant role in CACSMA governance. Lucy Li (President) is from NRC's Structures, Materials and Manufacturing Lab. NRC professionals participate in CACSMA activities and conferences.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• ASM International: Larger, established professional society for materials scientists and engineers with broader scope than composites alone. Comparable in member-driven society structure, conferences, and awards programs.
• Materials Research Society (MRS): Global professional society for materials research with large annual meetings and student programming. Operates a similar conference-and-membership model but at much broader scale across all materials disciplines.

Direct peers

• American Society of Composites: U.S.-based technical society for composites research that co-organized CANCOM 2009 and CANCOM 2011 with CACSMA. Directly comparable in mission (advancing composites science) and conference-driven operating model.
• International Committee on Composite Materials (ICCM): Organizer of the biennial International Conference on Composite Materials—the global flagship conference for composites research. Highly comparable in mission and event-driven member engagement.
• SAMPE (Society for the Advancement of Material and Process Engineering): Global professional society focused on advanced materials and process engineering, including composites. CACSMA is an explicit co-organizer of SAMPE 2026 in Seattle, making it the closest functional peer in mission and event programming.

Regional players

• Canadian Society for Mechanical Engineering (CSME): National Canadian professional society for mechanical engineering, encompassing structural and materials sub-disciplines. Comparable as a Canadian member-based engineering society, though with broader mechanical-engineering scope.
• European Society for Composite Materials (ESCM): European counterpart running the ECCM conference series for composite materials research. Highly comparable in mission and conference-driven member engagement, but operates in a different geography.
• Composites Institute (American Composites Manufacturers Association): U.S.-based trade association serving composites manufacturers with conferences (CAMX) and industry advocacy. Comparable member-driven conference model, but oriented to manufacturing industry rather than academic research.

Others

• Society of Plastics Engineers (SPE): Large international professional society for the plastics industry with adjacent scope in polymer matrix composites. Comparable membership/conference model, but its core focus on plastics is broader than CACSMA's composites structures focus.

Emerging players

• Society for Experimental Mechanics (SEM): Professional society focused on experimental mechanics, with significant overlap in composite structures testing and characterization. Comparable niche technical society with conferences and student awards.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/posts/canadian-association-for-composite-structures-and-materials-cacsma-803651232_the-canadian-association-for-composite-structures-activity-7105230963625906176--7l_

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Canadian Association for Composite Structures and Materials (CACSMA)