I have considered most of the points raised above and would propose this:

1. This needs to be a factory visit/demo room/coffee/forum type session arranged by Meridian. I agree that this shouldn't cause Meridian a problem as our business also has factory visitors all the time.

2. If they don't respond to this thread (either yes or no) then our esteemed webmaster - or other nominee - should raise it with them in case they just haven't seen our request.

3. We leave it to Meridian as to which equipment they demo (to avoid arguments).

4. Numbers would have to be limited to what M. feel appropriate (but they could run separate morning and afternoon sessions as I see 3-4 hours as sufficient). I suggest Hitchhikers have first invites as we have relevant feedback to make and questions to ask. M could also ask us what features we would like to see on new equipment etc.

5. After meeting we could get together informally to chat and have a drink at a place of our choosing. Thus no expensive hotel bookings are needed.

Well, what do people think?

Malcolm