The International Construction and Utility Equipment Exposition
Courtesy of the Association of Equipment Manufacturers
Big. Thirty acres big.
The International Construction and Utility Equipment Exposition is charged up and powered on for October 1 – 3, 2019, at the Kentucky Exposition Center in Louisville. Equipped with test drives and hands-on product demonstrations, the biennial event is naturally branded the Demo Expo.
Billed as North America’s largest utility and construction trade show, more than 18,000 utility professionals will attend ICUEE — pronounced Eye-Q. Utility companies and construction contractors anticipate ICUEE for access to new technologies, innovations and trends.
“Industry trade shows like ICUEE are prime opportunities to see the latest and greatest equipment set to go to market,” said ICUEE Show Director John Rozum. “There’s simply no better place for attendees to find new ideas, make new connections and – most importantly – discover new solutions.”
The Association of Equipment Manufacturers (AEM) owns and produces ICUEE, and with it, brings together manufacturers and suppliers with purchasers and utilities. AEM is the premier trade association for off-road equipment manufacturers and suppliers, and is known for best-in-class conferences and trade shows. AEM’s ICUEE is a Gold 100 trade show, and won top honors in 2016 as the largest biennial exhibition, as compiled by Trade Show Executive magazine.
“As the U.S. utility industry grows,” Rozum said, “our attendees need the equipment to keep the lights on and the water flowing.”
The Demo Expo has the type of equipment that makes construction projects and utility work on some of the more impossible properties, well, possible. Whether it’s preparing a site for a healthcare facility, or bringing broadband to rural communities or reclaiming abandoned mine land, the right equipment is key to completing projects.
The same holds true for emergency response equipment deployed by utilities and contractors in the aftermath of hurricanes, tornadoes and wildfires. Heroes, human kindness and dependable equipment go a long way after disasters.
Go Big Before You Go Home
AEM thinks this year’s expo will be a record-breaker, their largest-ever ICUEE. Indoors and outdoors ICUEE is expanding, to almost 1.3 million net square feet of exhibit space.
“The ICUEE show experience is changing and we’re expanding our footprint to accommodate new exhibitors — exhibitors who want to bring more product and technology to help our attendees do their jobs better, faster and safer,” continued Rozum.
“ICUEE 2019 will cover more than 30 acres of the industry’s latest technology and equipment, hands-on equipment test drives and interactive product demonstrations — with more than 240 utility industry product categories, and more than 200 new exhibitors joining longtime favorites. They’re all here to help attendees find the right jobsite solutions.”
A sample of exhibitors at ICUEE Demo Expo includes:
- Altec
- Bronto Skylift
- CASE Construction Equipment
- Cummins Inc.
- Ditch Witch
- Ford Commercial Vehicles
- Hyundai Construction Equipment Americas Inc.
- John Deere Construction & Forestry Company
- Milwaukee Tool
- Railhead Underground Products LLC
- Subsite Electronics
- Tulsa Rig Iron
- Vermeer Corporation
- Versalift
- Of course, because this is Demo Expo, many more
Bridging The Gap
In addition to adult educational offerings at ICUEE, today’s youth will get an up close look at skilled labor careers.
AEM is partnering with the workforce development organization Bridging America’s Gap to host what they call their Career Skills Event – a career day at the expo for more than 350 students from high schools and tech schools, from as far away as Indianapolis.
“AEM is excited to work with Bridging America’s Gap, and ICUEE and our exhibitors are looking forward to meeting our student attendees and showing them how rewarding an industry career can be,” said Julie Davis, AEM’s director of workforce development in a statement. “AEM has worked for many years to help strengthen and expand tomorrow’s industry workforce, and we are dedicated to helping our members, exhibitors and industry segments attract and retain talent.”
The student groups will rotate at learning stations onsite, including simulators for a unique view of skilled trade professions. The organized visit is a pivotal moment to listen to industry professionals share experiences of how they got involved in the trades and what they love about what they do.
It’s not too late to go to ICUEE Demo Expo in Louisville, but registration is required to attend.
“Trade shows are all about the experience that you can’t get online,” Rozum added. “It’s more than sitting in the seat of different models of equipment to demo the features – it’s having a conversation with the people who made it and know what makes it tick.”