ConExpo Attendance Topped 120,000

More than 124,220 industry professionals from around the world attended the ConExpo-Con/Agg show in Las Vegas in mid-March.

The show, which was co-located with the IFPE (International Exposition for Power Transmission) and several trade association annual meetings, featured an array of equipment from around the world.

The ConExpo-Con/Agg show in 2005 featured a record-breaking amount of exhibit space: More than 1.88 million net square feet of exhibit space used by 1,968 exhibiting companies.

Attendance and exhibit numbers reflected an improved economy, including pent-up demand to replace aging fleets, notes show management, but also reinforced the exposition’s reputation as a global “one stop” source for comparison shopping, educational programs and networking.

International attendance was at a record high – more than 21,220, which is 17 percent of total attendance figures. International visitors to the shows hailed from more than 130 countries.

The shows hosted a record 44 official international customer delegations, representing 35 countries. These delegations were organized by the U.S. Department of Commerce as well as in-country trade associations and related groups. Russia was well represented with eight official delegations attending, as was China with two official delegations. Delegations were in attendance from Thailand and Indonesia, discussing the tsunami relief situation and reconstruction needs.

An Iraqi delegation of more than 40 businesspeople was at the shows, in the first private-sector trade delegation to the U.S. from that country in about a decade. The trip was planned by the Iraqi-American Chamber of Commerce and the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad.

Other delegations were from Albania, Armenia, Australia, Austria, Belarus, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Georgia, Germany, India, Japan, Kazakhstan, Moldova, Netherlands, New Zealand, Philippines, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, South Korea, Sweden, Ukraine, United Kingdom, Venezuela and Vietnam. Show exhibitors and their dealers also arranged for international customer groups to attend the shows.

Exhibitors hailed from around the world as well. In addition to the leading U.S. and multi-national manufacturers, suppliers and services providers, the ConExpo show floor included eight international exhibit pavilions highlighting products and services developed outside the U.S.: Two from China and one each from Finland, Germany, Italy, Korea, Spain and the United Kingdom.

Hotel occupancy by show attendees of the shows and co-located association conventions reached more than 104,000 cumulative room nights. The shows brought an estimated $180 million worth of non-gaming revenue to Las Vegas.

The 2002 ConExpo and IFPE shows attracted more than 108,000 attendees.