World of Concrete
March 9, 2012, 6:01 am EDT
By Charlotte Woolard
Producer/Owner: Hanley Wood
What: Annual event serving the international commercial construction market
Where: Las Vegas Convention Center
Date 2013: Feb. 4-8
Date 2012: Jan. 23-27
2012 floor space: 552,900 sq. ft.
2011 floor space: 512,203 sq. ft.
No. of attendees 2012: 52,088
No. of attendees 2011: 48,554
No. of exhibitors 2012: 1,202
No. of exhibitors 2011: 1,125
Producer comment: “We have had a couple of rough years because of the downturn,” said Tom Cindric, group director at Hanley Wood Exhibitions. “This year, our square footage was up; attendance was up.”
Exhibitor comment: “These past few years, it's been [business] owners who have come to the show,” said Jan Aument, trade show and event coordinator-building systems at BASF. “We were missing the contractors. They are huge influencers of product decisions. We were very happy with the number of them who were back this year.”
Breakdown: Hanley Wood nurtured World of Concrete during the downturn, seeding the regrowth of booth space with an incentive program and developing attendee initiatives that helped the show regain demographics in the hard-hit construction sector. The show featured products in new market segments and a larger outdoor demonstration area, as well as competitive arenas that showcased the skills of industry professionals. International attendance continued strong. An expanded education program that featured hands-on demonstrations provided an additional draw in a market preparing itself for an increase in activity. As construction projects resume, “people are really retooling and re-educating themselves,” Cindric said.