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The last couple
of years have been pretty rocky for most Americans: concern
for the economy, the emergence of terrorism as a sincere threat
to our security and way of life, a gathering recognition that
we can no longer ignore the impact our activities have on
the environment or that the affected environment has nothing
to do with us and the quality of our lives. And if these weren't
enough of a challenge, we in the construction industry have
been told that things will likely get worse before they get
better.
Somehow these pillars
of negativism never quite made it to the Las Vegas Convention
Center this past March to put a damper on ConExpo Con/Agg.
What showed up instead was a pack of lean-and-hungry exhibitors,
sleeves rolled up ready to do business, met by an equally
animated bunch of construction folks spring-loaded to the
"let's get on with it" position. The result–predicted
by no one I knew–was nothing short of fabulous.
The huge attendance
and massive amount of exhibit space tell a story, but
not the story. While the hundreds of exhibitors and
contractors I spoke with during the show had different experiences
to share about their business in the recent past, the majority
were on the upbeat side, and when it came to their views of
the future, with few exceptions the picture they painted was
positive. "Why," I wondered after my experience
at a number of other conferences and trade shows in the recent
past, "why should there be such a marked difference in
attitude?"
I won't try
to snow you with the idea that I know the answer, but I'd
like to suggest some thoughts: (1) Since ConExpo comes only
once every three years, there's a lot of pent-up enthusiasm
for the event; (2) the people who come do so in the expectation
that what they see and hear will give them an edge over their
competition; and (3) the exhibitors know that their level
of success over the next several years will depend greatly
on how well they're able to project their own visions
of the future. To a certain extent it is this shared sense
of destiny that acts as a catalyst, so what were the messages
attendees took back home?
Message 1:
Technology. If there was one overriding message, it
was that technology had not only arrived but moved to center
stage. Any lingering doubt that the day of the lever and steering
wheel was gone was snuffed by exhibitions such as that of
the transfer of an egg from one dish to another in the bucket
of a full-size excavator. This was accomplished by an operator
twiddling a pair of side-stick controls while nodding in time
to stereo music in the air-conditioned isolation of his glass-enclosed
workstation.
In keeping with
years of tradition, Las Vegas can lay claim to having the
world's best laser shows … only this time they weren't
out on the strip, they were right there at the convention
center. And to take the Las Vegas theme a step further, marriage
was in the air between these magic light machines and their
soul mates, the global positioning systems that, until recently,
have preferred the country-club atmosphere of aviation to
the earthier climes of construction. Blade and bucket control
systems are here and here to stay. The only question I see
is how rapidly robotics will come into the field.
No matter where
you looked, you found electronics moving into the heart of
systems that in years past had been the province of muscle
and hard-won experience. Now the role of strength has been
transferred to the machine, and while productivity is still
a matter of skill and experience, the learning curve is much
steeper and less dependent on a costly trial-and-error apprenticeship.
Message 2:
Service. Customer service has always been a hallmark
of American business, but in the rush to achieve (or preserve)
market share that took place in the latter half of the 1990s,
"deals" seemed to take the upper hand. For a bit,
the notion of customer loyalty was looked upon by some as
quaint–until business flattened out at the end of the
decade. Now customer service lies at the heart of nearly every
producer's strategy, and what a blessing this is. To gain
a deeper appreciation for this profound shift and its implications
to the industry, you will want to read Paul Hull's article,
"After the Sale," but it was clear from the moment
the doors to the show opened, the customer is back in the
driver's seat.
Message 3:
Dealing With Change. The bulk of the exhibition space
not devoted to the display of hardware was concerned with
information on how to deal with the changing nature of the
business. Training, education, safety, security, communications,
business intelligence, regulatory knowledge and requirements–all
of these (and many other issues) took up more floor space
than ever before. This shift in emphasis is symptomatic of
a dynamic upheaval in the construction industry occurring
for a number of years but only now becoming recognized. Take
safety, for example, where there's been a growing disparity
between construction practices and society's expectations.
Because of government inaction in the face of mounting economic
consequences, manufacturers and service providers are stepping
forth to confront the issue.
The Focus Is
on Productivity
The bottom-line
message of this year's ConExpo is that productivity is
the result of not just equipment or systems or knowledge,
but an amalgamation of them all. The show to me was the absolute
validation of Grading & Excavation Contractor's
avowed purpose and cover-to-cover editorial approach. If we
are not in touch with technology, if we do not focus detailed
attention on change, and if we do not pay absolute attention
to customer service, our business will not thrive … and
the same is true of yours.
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John an Email
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