Precast Inc. - September/October 2008 - (Page 41) LEFT: TOM WHEELAN, THEN-CHAIRMAN OF THE BOARD FOR ACPA, AND DAN BARBOUR, THEN-CHAIRMAN OF THE BOARD FOR NPCA, INK A PARTNERSHIP AGREEMENT JULY 20, 2007, IN OMAHA, NEB., TO COLLABORATE ON THE LAUNCH OF THE PRECAST SHOW, A NEW TRADE SHOW DEVOTED SPECIFICALLY TO THE PRECAST CONCRETE INDUSTRY. included discussions of the trade show format. Board chairs from those years – Joan Blecha, Dan Barbour and Philip Burkhart – all had a hand in bringing The Precast Show to fruition, Gable said. “We’ve had strong leadership from our Board of Directors in fleshing out the details and representing the interests of precasters who will attend the trade show,” Gable said. “We also organized a planning committee comprised of both exhibitors and producers, so we could hear a full range of discussion among all the participants and capture the best ideas.” To complete the planning for the new event, the Executive Committees of NPCA and ACPA met in Houston last spring to finalize major details for the show. “What we learned from all our research is that much of our trade show format was good, and several new things needed to be added.” Exhibitors who sell mainly to precasters will like the focus of the show and the size, said Barry Fleck, president of A.L. Patterson Inc, based in Fairless Hills, Pa. “What’s nice about this show is that it is so industry focused,” Fleck said. “In America, it’s the best venue to present your products.” The show will never be as large as the trade shows geared toward the entire concrete industry, but that’s actually one of its main benefits. Richard Isaacson, principal with iwi group LLC, based in Norcross, Ga., said that the largest shows are so massive that “some of your customers aren’t going to be able to find you. That’s the benefit of a smaller show. Everyone will be able to find you and you’ll be able to spend time with them. I’m excited about it,” Isaacson added. “I think it will give us a good opportunity to see our customers in a setting JOAN BLECHA that is conducive to selling. It’s quality, not necessarily quantity.” Larry Ebert, sales manager with Elk River YEAR DATE Machine Co., based in Elk 2009 Feb. 20-22 River, Minn., said that the lagging construction economy is making exhibitors think hard about their customers. “With a 2010 2011 2012 Feb. 19-21 Jan. 28-30 Jan. 27-29 “The Precast Show will provide our launching pad every year for Precast University, and we’ll add additional training courses at strategic locations in the United States and Canada throughout the year.” – TY GABLE, NPCA PRESIDENT tighter economy, people are going to expect more bang for their buck,” Ebert said. “It’s important to give them a return on their dollar.” New Precast University One thing that the planners wanted to put into strong focus in any new trade show format was an expanded role for educational opportunities. The result has been the development of Precast University, a new concept in education for plant employees that will be unveiled at The Precast Show. Precast University is technical course curriculum that starts with a series of fundamental “core classes” at the initial level, where plant employees receive instruction in the basic aspects of quality precast concrete production. Students can advance DAN BARBOUR PHILIP BURKHART Future Dates for The Precast Show LOCATION Houston Phoenix Charlotte Orlando HEADQUARTERS HOTEL Hilton Americas-Houston Sheraton Phoenix Westin Charlotte Rosen’s Shingle Creek Resort SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2008 | 41 WWW.PRECAST.ORG http://www.precast.org
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