Thawing Out

Whether the winter of 2010 2011 was one of discontent or not for contrators and recyclers, many of them still appreciated the chance to go somewhere warm in March and catch up with industry colleagues.

Several such opportunities to do that occurred in March, with ConExpo-Con/Agg and the National Demolition Association both drawing contractors to Las Vegas and an event known as MiaGreen convening in Miami Beach.

All three events gave attendees the chance to attend sessions and programs, talk to colleagues from other parts of the country or from related industries and to visit the displays of and talk to industry suppliers.

HITTING THE BEACH
The Miami Beach Convention Center served as the setting for the third edition of the MiaGreen Expo & Conference on March 3-4. The event’s organizer, José Garcia-Piñeyro, put together two days of programming focusing on sustainable construction practices, including several sessions on recycling.

In a session  titled “Recycling in Construction, Remodeling & Renovation,” presentations from a building products supplier, a contractor and a mixed C&D recycler were offerred.

Carole Schafmeister of D & B Tile Distributors, Sunrise, Fla., and a member of the Ceramic Tile Distributor Association (CTDA), provided an overview of sustainability initiatives taken by the ceramic tile industry and contractor John Banting of Hedrick Brothers Construction, West Palm Beach, Fla., provided that point of view.

Patti Hamilton of Southern Waste Systems/Sun Recycling, Lantana, Fla., provided attendees with an overview of the company’s mixed C&D recycling business, including a video tour of its West Palm Beach, Fla., plant.

The 2012 MiaGreen event is scheduled for the same venue Jan. 26-27.

REUNION AT THE MIRAGE
As it has several times in the past 15 years, the National Demolition Association (NDA) held its Annual Convention at The Mirage in Las Vegas.

Nearly 1,000 attendees gathered March 5-8 at The Mirage to tour the convention’s exhibit hall, take part in committee meetings, go to receptions and banquets and listen to guest speakers.

Keynote speaker Clyde Fessler, who was active for many years in marketing and merchandising for Harley-Davidson, provided an insider’s insight on how the company sharply upgraded its product quality and exponentially built its brand in a two-decade span.

In another session, Nathan Brainard of Insurance Office of America, Longwood, Fla., related several ways in which contractors can help themselves lessen the chances of injuries and accidents and then take advantage of a clean track record via lower insurance rates.

The NDA’s Tuesday morning session featured an Industry Round Table in which seven different demolition contractors offered summaries of business conditions in their regions and their views on key industry issues.

“There seems to be a lot going on right now; we have work on the books,” said Mike Casbon of ERM Inc., who is working on a major project in Texas for the global demolition and environmental remediation company.

Tom Robinette of Chicago-based Robinette Demolition Inc. said the Chicago area is “seeing a significant increase in bid requests, which has caused some increase in activity—but others are waiting to pull the trigger,” he says of property owners and developers.

The NDA’s 2012 Annual Convention will be in San Antonio March 10-13 at the Henry B. Gonzalez Convention Center & Grand Hyatt Hotel.

MASSIVE SCALE
Nearly 120,000 registered attendees spent part of the week of March 22-26 in Las Vegas at the ConExpo-Con/Agg and IFPE (International Fluid Power Expo) 2011 expositions.

Attendees had the chance to view an enormous array of equipment and product technologies spread throughout several exhibit halls and parking lots of the Las Vegas Convention Center and Las Vegas Hilton hotel.

“It was really great to see our industry looking ahead with some enthusiasm after the recession,” says Mike Haberman, chairman of the ConExpo 2011 management committee and president of Gradall Industries, New Philadelphia, Ohio.

The next ConExpo-Con/Agg will be held March 18-22, 2014, again at the Las Vegas Convention Center.