Revamping your plant, rolling stock and more

We’re now three months away from ConExpo-Con/Agg 2020, the largest construction industry trade show in North America. The once-every-three-years trade show welcomed more than 128,000 visitors in 2017, and even larger masses could be on the way to the upcoming 2020 event.

But who is coming and when? How many of those visitors plan on making equipment purchases? And what other trade shows will these visitors explore throughout the new year?

To answer these questions, Pit & Quarry surveyed its readers to capture a sense of their plans for the show, including attendance, purchasing strategies and more.

Attendance

The five-day show will feature 2,800 exhibitors displaying their latest wares across 2.6 million sq. ft. of show floor. That’s a lot of ground to cover, a lot of hands to shake and a lot of equipment to see.

According to the fall 2019 survey P&Q conducted, nearly half of respondents (49 percent) will attend ConExpo-Con/Agg 2020 while nearly one-third (33 percent) are still unsure whether they’ll be at the Las Vegas trade show. Only 18 percent of respondents say they will not be attending.

But what days, specifically, will be busiest at ConExpo-Con/Agg 2020?

Similar to a bell curve, the middle day of the five-day show – Thursday, March 12 – should be the most heavily attended with 89 percent of respondents planning to roam the show floor that day.

Day two of the show – Wednesday, March 11 – should be the next-best-attended day of the week with 78 percent of respondents planning to be there. Friday, March 13 (day four) isn’t far behind at 72 percent.

Nearly 60 percent of respondents plan to be there for the show’s opening day on Tuesday, March 10. As expected, Saturday, March 14 – the fifth and final day of ConExpo-Con/Agg 2020 – will be the most lightly-attended day of the show with 31 percent of respondents planning to be there for the final day.
A small percentage of respondents (6 percent) are unsure which days they’ll be at the show.

Purchasing plans

The main draw of ConExpo-Con/Agg 2020 is, of course, equipment and technology. Two-thirds of P&Q survey respondents (67 percent) listed equipment and technology as the main reason for their attendance, which leads directly to a next potential step: purchasing equipment.

Purchases, of course, do not always occur at the show. A majority of respondents (56 percent) do not plan on making an equipment purchase at ConExpo-Con/Agg 2020. In addition, 39 percent are unsure if they’ll purchase equipment while in Vegas.

Still, 6 percent of respondents do plan to purchase equipment while at ConExpo-Con/Agg 2020. Of those, 21 percent plan to purchase conveying and material handling equipment, specifically, with 12 percent focused on purchasing portable plants.

Seventy-eight percent of respondents say they plan to explore conveying and material handling equipment at the show, making this category the most popular of any equipment category P&Q asked about. Fifty percent of respondents, meanwhile, plan to check out portable plants – the fourth-most popular equipment category.

In terms of exploration, crushing and hydraulic breaking (64 percent) and excavators and loaders (53 percent) were the second- and third-most popular equipment categories among survey respondents.

Additionally, 36 percent of respondents say they’ve made a previous equipment purchase at a past ConExpo-Con/Agg while 64 percent say they have never purchased equipment while at the show.

According to ConExpo-Con/Agg, one in three attendees purchases or makes a purchasing commitment as a result of attending the show.

Other trade shows

While ConExpo-Con/Agg 2020 is the king of North American construction industry trade shows, it won’t be the only trade show aggregate producers attend in the new year.

World of Concrete, which runs Feb. 4-7 and is also at the Las Vegas Convention Center, will be a big draw along with state association events in 2020. About 41 percent of P&Q survey respondents are interested in World of Concrete and a state association event.

MINExpo International is also of interest to a significant percentage of respondents (32 percent). The once-every-four-years trade show takes place Sept. 28-30 in Las Vegas.

Just over 9 percent of respondents are interested in attending the International Society of Explosives Engineers’ 46th Annual Conference on Explosives & Blasting Technique from Jan. 26-29 in Denver. Likewise, Hillhead 2020 – the United Kingdom quarry, construction and recycling exhibition – is of interest to 9 percent of survey respondents.

Lastly, 18 percent of respondents plan to attend other industry trade shows throughout 2020.

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Who’s coming and when?

Pit & Quarry conducted a producer survey this fall to determine who’s coming to ConExpo-Con/Agg 2020 and when. Nearly half of survey respondents indicate they plan to attend ConExpo-Con/Agg. Most of those who plan to attend anticipate being at ConExpo-Con/Agg during the Wednesday, Thursday and Friday of the show week.

Attendance breakdown

When Pit & Quarry readers plan to be at next year’s ConExpo-Con/Agg in Las Vegas

Tuesday, March 10 – 58.3 %
Wednesday, March 11 – 77.8 %
Thursday, March 12 – 88.9 %
Friday, March 13 – 72.2 %
Saturday, March 14 – 30.6 %

Source: Pit & Quarry ConExpo-Con/Agg 2020 Survey