Heavy Equipment Guide is an Official Supporting Publication of CONEXPO-CON/AGG 2008, the largest North American trade show of construction equipment and one of the two largest in the world (the other is Bauma in Germany). Our other magazines that are also Supporting Publications are: Contractors Magazine, Recycling Product News, Oil & Gas Product News, Canadian Environmental Protection, Government Buyer, and Landscaping & Groundskeeping. All these magazines will be distributed at the show, including this issue of Heavy Equipment Guide.

In all, we are sending 14 staff from the various magazines to cover CONEXPO and the co-located IPFE (power transmission) show. And believe me, we could do with another 14 clones. This show is HUGE. If you have never been there, it is probably hard to comprehend.  But here are some statistics:

• exhibits now cover more than 2.28 million net square feet (212,024 square metres) with nearly 2,000 exhibitors;
• exhibits at IFPE cover 127,000 net square feet (11,799 square metres) taken by 400 exhibitors;
• more than 125,000 industry professionals are expected to attend;
• there are 10 international exhibit pavilions from Brazil, Canada, China, Finland, Germany, Italy, Korea, Spain, Turkey and the United Kingdom;
• a record 11 associations are holding annual conventions or board meetings at the shows, and in total the shows expect to host more than 300 meetings of associations and companies;
• more than 120 educational sessions will be delivered by industry experts with a focus on industry trends, case studies and “how to” application techniques and strategies.

If you are reading this at the show, here are some new features this year.

Best Practices for Small Fleet Management is a free education program taking place Saturday, March 15.
Mixer Driver World Cup is the first ever international competition of concrete mixer truck drivers, sponsored by the National Ready Mixed Concrete Association, and it takes place on Wednesday, March 12.

IPAF Safety Zone – Click-It! is a fast-paced live demonstration that shows why professionals always wear a full body harness in boom type aerial work platforms, and what could happen if you don’t.

The Antique Equipment Display shows how far the industry has come with the latest innovations and technologies by viewing equipment from decades past.

So, how do you prepare for a show this big? For us, it starts months before. It’s like training for a marathon. To keep us organized, we have a spreadsheet of who is going where, for what press event, exhibit, booth visit and interview. And individual members of the Baum team have their own agenda of companies to visit. At the show, we walk as many miles as we can, ferreting out new products and stories.

When it is all over, we limp back with sore feet to Vancouver, and begin sorting through all the information we have gathered, to prepare it for upcoming issues that you can read and enjoy – without walking all those miles.