Concrete Giant Tames Jungle

CONEXPO-CON/AGG exceeds previous levels for size, attendance

By Heidi Genoist -- Tradeshow Week, 4/4/2005

Las Vegas—CONEXPO-CON/AGG 2005 broke a couple of its own records and came close to surpassing its highest attendance number ever.

The triennial tradeshow for the construction equipment industry, collocated with the fluid power industry show IFPE 2005, drew an estimated 124,200 industry professionals to visit 1,968 companies occupying 1.9 million net square feet of exhibit space at the Las Vegas Convention Center, reported co-organizers the Assn. of Equipment Manufacturers and the Intl. Concrete and Aggregates Group. The attendance figures will be audited.

The show nearly met its 1999 attendance record of 124,261 professionals. Still, organizers were satisfied with the turnout. A concerted effort to draw international buyers paid off, with 21,220 attendees coming from 130 countries outside the United States — 29 percent more than in 2002.

There were also a record 44 official foreign customer delegations, including one comprised of about 40 private-sector business people from Iraq.

The show's owners (AEM, the Natl. Ready Mixed Concrete Assn. and the Natl. Stone, Sand and Gravel Assn.) are counting on it. Rossi Ralenkotter, president of the Las Vegas Convention & Visitors Authority, reported that CONEXPO is booked through 2023.

He estimated the non-gaming economic impact of the 2005 show at $160 million.

By the show's next staging, March 11–15, 2008, the LVCVA plans to have completed the first phase of a $400 million upgrade of the convention center. The project will add about 300,000 sq. ft. of space — mostly for meetings and general sessions.

When asked whether the show planned to expand to other venues in Las Vegas, Peter Vlahos, co-managing director of CONEXPO-CON/AGG for ICAG, said, "That will be up to show management."

Vlahos was referring to the consolidation of the show's management under one roof at AEM, a change that took effect after this show and led to the elimination of ICAG's office in Maryland, including the positions of Vlahos and his staff.

Vlahos reported that he was still planning his next career move.

Meanwhile, sole production responsibilities fall on the managing director of AEM's Show Management Services division, Kenneth Snover, formerly a CONEXPO exhibit manager for Ingersoll-Rand for nearly two decades. The 2005 show was Snover's first on the show management side.

He said, with the management consolidation, some of his existing staff would take on new responsibilities and some new people might be hired. However, he stressed, "the transition will be seamless. The attendee will not even know the difference."

Exhibitors are aware of the change, but not concerned about it. "I don't think anything will change, because the core (membership) will remain the same," said Linda Page, sales promotion and tradeshow coordinator for construction equipment manufacturer Link-Belt. She pointed out that major industry players have participants who stay active in AEM, so "we always know what to expect."

She and other exhibitors that spoke with Tradeshow Week were pleased with traffic at the show. "It seems like there are more people coming through here every time," she noted. "The association has joined with a lot of smaller groups, and that keeps new buyers coming in."

AEM Chairman Gerald Shaheen, group president of Caterpillar, noted that nine other organizations collocated their conventions with CONEXPO.

Still, when it comes to expanding the show's focus — into, say, materials — organizers balk.

"Those discussions are constantly taking place, but there's a right size and right focus for any show," Vlahos said.