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Events/Trade Shows

2014 Con/Agg Show – Looks Like Construction Is On Its Way Back

by | Mar 18, 2014 | Events/Trade Shows

Con-Agg 2014

Photo courtesy of Brennan Industries – www.brennaninc.com

I recently returned from the 2014 Con/Agg Show in Vegas #CONEXPOCONAGG. As some people call it, the Disneyland for contractors. All exhibit hall, parking lots and staging lots were filled to the brim with equipment. Contractors were like kids in a candy store.

I’ve been going to that show  for several years and it’s good to see that they are getting back to pre-2008 levels. In talking with exhibitors, distributors and contractors, they all seemed upbeat on what the future holds. Let’s hope their optimism is well founded.

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3 Reasons Why The 2014 International Builders’ Show Was A Success

by | Mar 11, 2014 | Events/Trade Shows

By Matt Sonnhalter, Vision Architect, Sonnhalter

I attended the NAHB International Builders’ Show in Las Vegas (February 4-6, 2014). This was the first time that IBS and NKBA’s Kitchen & Bath Industry (KBIS) were colocated under the Design & Construction Week umbrella. With over 1,700 exhibitors combined, covering more than 650,000 square feet of floor space, these shows delivered more than 75,000 residential construction and design professionals.

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Courtesy of Oscar Einzig Photography

Here are three reasons why I thought this year’s show was a success compared to recent years:

  1. IBS/KBIS Combination – Since both of these shows had been struggling in recent years, it was a no brainer to combine these two shows under the same roof. The synergy of this marriage helped drive renewed energy for both of these shows. Exhibitors benefited from attendees they wouldn’t normally see; that is, KBIS attendees that normally would not have attended IBS and vice versa. It is much easier to walk down to a separate hall than to plan a trip for a separate show. Each show had its own dedicated app to help navigate the vast array of booths, educational sessions and speakers. Although I wished you could search exhibitors for both shows within each respective app.
  2. Stronger 2014 Outlook – The 2014 forecast for the residential new construction market is the strongest it has been since the 2008/2009 housing collapse. This helped drive overall attendance from the number of exhibitors to the building and design professionals crowding the aisles.
  3. Las Vegas – Like it or not, Vega is still one of the best places to have industry trade shows of this magnitude.  Especially this year, given the terribly cold Midwest/Northeast winter and Polar Vortexes, everyone was more than happy rushing to the sunny and warm desert!
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Courtesy of Oscar Einzig Photography

Was IBS a success for you?

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Five Observations From The 2014 AHR Expo

by | Feb 6, 2014 | Events/Trade Shows

By Matt Sonnhalter, Vision Architect, Sonnhalter

2014_AHR_EXPO-2I attended the 66th International Air Conditioning, Heating, Refrigeration Exposition in New York City (January 21-23, 2014). For those not familiar with this trade show, it is the largest HVACR show in the United States, endorsed by 33 leading HVACR industry associations and co-sponsored by ASHRAE  and AHRI. This year’s attendance was once again very strong, with more than 61,000 people attending and more than 1,800 exhibitor booths.

Here are five of my observations from the show:

  1. Strong 2014 Outlook – in addition to the positive sentiment of almost everyone I spoke with at the show, the recent ASHRAE/AHR Expo survey forecasts a pretty good year for the HVACR business. Of the 1,000 HVACR manufacturers worldwide surveyed, 79% of the respondents said their prospects for business were either “excellent” (19%) or “good” (60%) for the coming year, 90% of the HVACR manufacturers believe sales will increase and hospitals/healthcare, light commercial and data/telecom centers were the top three market segments identified to be the most promising for 2014.
  2. Trade Publications Are Not Dead – 35+ publications had a presence at the this year’s show, each with their army of sales people combing the aisles for new and potential advertisers; there also seemed to be an increase of international publications covering both Latin/South America as well as Asia.
  3. Technology Continues To Play Strong Role – it seems every year at this show more and more technology is introduced to the products and services showcased, whether it is the software driving these products or the tablets used to control and monitor them. Again this year, there was a dedicated AHR Expo app for the show which not only helped you find your favorite booth, but also had valuable information about the speakers, educational sessions, transportation and local NYC attractions.
  4. Growing International Attendance – exhibitors from more than 30 countries attended the show. Asian manufacturers have been coming to this show for a number of years and 2014 was no different; however I did notice an uptick of Latin/South American as well as European exhibitors and attendees this year.
  5. “Efficiency” Is Still The Buzzword – with the way the economy has been over the last few years I think we have all gotten used to “doing more with less.” In the HVAC market that is nothing new, no matter which aisle you walked down during the show “efficiency” rang out in booth messaging, product benefits and sales pitches.

These are just a few of my observations, but if you attended, I would love to hear any key takeaways you had from the show.

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IBS/KBIS – Las Vegas Insider’s Guide

by | Jan 30, 2014 | Events/Trade Shows

SON-397_LasVegas-Web

For those of you that are heading to Las Vegas for this International Builder Show or Kitchen & Bath Industry Show, we put together an Insider’s Guide to Las Vegas by asking friends and business associates about gems in the city that you might not be aware of. It includes Restaurants, Nightlife, Events and more. It’s available here.

We hope you have a good show. See you there.

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