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World Of Concrete Show - What Happens In Vegas Stays In Vegas? |
January 30, 2006 |
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Posted by Joe Lewis at 10:20 AM | Comments (0) |
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What happens in Vegas doesn't always stay there. In fact, contrary to this marketing phrase used by most Las Vegas businesses today, most everything actually leaves Las Vegas at some point in time or another. That's true of the recent World of Concrete exhibit. Most all of the attendees and exhibitors have left and are back at work using the new ideas and solutions they found at the show.
2006 Exhibit Sets Record
According to recent announcements, the World of Concrete show held in Las Vegas on January 17-20, 2006 shattered all previous records for attendance, being up by 15% over the 2005 show. Over 80,000 attendees rolled into the show, held at the Las Vegas Convention Center, to see over 1,800 exhibitors. The exhibit space was phenomenal, over 800,000 square feet. This show is reported as the largest show in its 32 year history. Wow!
And the show promoters and producers didn't spare any expense. The exhibit was heavily promoted through the construction industry media and the record breaking celebration included the awarding of the 80,000th registered person a trip to the World of Concrete show in 2007, including air, hotel and more.
Show Review
The 33rd World of Concrete exhibit offered a wide variety of attractions and special events. Exhibits are not limited to indoor halls, such as at the Powder Bulk Solids show in the Chicago area every two years. The WOC show includes numerous outdoor exhibits and this year occupied an additional outdoor parking lot. On display outside includes concrete pumping trucks and many other large concrete construction exhibits.
And the WOC is not just about exhibits. The show also provides top quality seminars. This year 50% of the seminars were brand new topics. Along with this renowned educational program, the show floor provided numerous examples of users, customers, vendors and suppliers all working together to solve problems and address the challenges facing the concrete construction industry.
Here's what some of the attendees have to say:
"You can find absolutely everything you need in one spot"
"I am absolutely finding everything I need. In fact - I am finding more than I need."
And the exhibitors? Well, they seem pretty happy too. Our exhibit, though small (10 x 10), was well received by our visitors. The leads we received more than met our expectation. Not only did we have a good number, but the quality was great! People are ready to buy, came with something in mind and really appreciated the approach of helping them solve their problems. We are very glad we exhibited and this was our third year.
WOC Show New Product Introduction
We introduced our latest continuous level measurement solution for use in concrete plant inventory management solutions. This product, Flexar guided wave radar continuous level measurement system, was well received by our prospective customers. We plan to be back again in 2007 and probably for years to come. We serve the concrete batch plant segment of this industry and sell level indicators, inventory management systems and bin fluidization equipment (aerators) to our customers.
We thank everyone who attended this show and everyone that had the opportunity to give us a few minutes to discuss solutions that we can provide.
Joe Lewis
Vice President - Marketing & Sales
Monitor Technologies LLC
jlewis@monitortech.com
www.monitortech.com
www.flexar.info
AIChE 2006 Spring Meeting Focus On Powder & Bulk Solids |
January 24, 2006 |
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Posted by Joe Lewis at 01:30 PM | Comments (0) |
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The 2006 AIChE National Meeting this Spring is being held in Orlando, FL at the Disney Dolphin Hotel and Resort. The AIChE (American Institute of Checmical Engineers) will include the "Fifth World Congress of Particle Technology" and is said to be offering over 80 sessions on particle technology. This is something that may be of interest to any process engineers that face challenges in this area. This meeting and conference is said to offer opportunities to network face-to-face with other individuals facing similar challenges and opportunities.
Background
The AIChE was founded in 1908 and is a professional association specifically dedicated to chemical engineers. It is reported that there are currently over 40,000 chemical engineer members from more than 90 countries. The AIChE states their vision "is to provide value as the global leader of the chemical engineering profession, serve as the lifetime center for professional and personal growth and security of chemical engineers, and lead as the foremost catalyst in applying chemical engineering expertise in meeting societal needs." Currently there are 110 local sections, 18 divisions, 23 national committees and 174 student chapters.
Particle Technology
The World Congress on Particle Technology is staging their congress along with this AIChE meeting. The WCPT holds their congress every four years and it has been previously located in Japan, Germany, the UK and Australia. This Spring it is being held in Orlando, FL and may offer a good opportunity for those really interested in particle technology to attend and be a part of the proceedings. Research leaders will be presenting on how they approach their work and develop solutions in their topical area. Topics include "3-D Imaging of Particulates and Multi-Phase Flow Systems", "Particle and Bulk Solids Handling Technology", "Storage and Feeding of Bulk Solids" and others.
AIChE National Meeting
The AIChE national meeting will include conferences focused on areas or industries. This year these conferences include subjects like "Particle and Bulk Powder Characterization", "Particle Design: Formation and Processing", "Particulate Handling/Processing and Granular Systems" and "Fluidization and Multiphase Flow/Separations".
If you're involved with particle processing you might want to check this AIChE National Meeting out a little closer.
Joe Lewis
Vice President
Monitor Technologies LLC
jlewis@monitortech.com
"Infrastructure" Pays Overdue Respect to the Engineered Environment |
January 22, 2006 |
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Posted by Don Dunnington at 04:27 PM | Comments (0) |
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With "Infrastructure: A Field Guide to the Industrial Landscape," Brian Hayes brings to public attention the essential underpinnings of the modern world. Like the air we breathe, and the water we drink, the technological structures Hayes documents in "Infrastructure" are easily taken for granted. Yet without these engineered structures and transports, civil life as we know it could not be sustained.
This guide to the industrial wilds takes us to places often set in remote locales, surrounded by chain link fences. We go inside plants filled with mysterious machines that few non-engineers could comprehend without an expert guide to show where to look and explain what we’re seeing. Hayes helps us see the beauty and art in the common and unglamorous, such as the sludge digesters in Deer Island, MA. You can see this and 48 other sample photos, plus read excerpts from the chapters, at http://industrial-landscape.com/.
Hayes spent 12 years crossing America, photographing and gathering the stories of our industrial landscape. The book contains more than 700 photos, taken from afar--from the air and from the roadside--and close up and inside the structures and machines built to work so well that we seldom give them a thought. Hayes compliments his pictures with a narrative that helps the reader appreciate both the industrial history and the engineering behind the visual revelations his camera sets before us.
Hayes received support for his project from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, which helps fund efforts to promote public understanding of technology. A senior writer for American Scientist, Hayes talks about his book in an interview at American Scientist Online. In the interview, he says he grew up in the era of Sputnik and expected to become a scientist or engineer. But "somewhere along the way," he says, "I neglected to collect a university education, or even a high school diploma. Lacking those credentials, I found it a good deal easier to get a job as a writer…" After a brief period working as a news writer, he joined Scientific American, "a splendid place to learn both science and writing," he says.
Hayes takes us on a grand tour of our dams, mines, power plants, refineries, waterworks, highways, railways, electrical grids, waste and recycling facilities, shipping, aviation, bridges, tunnels and communication systems. It’s great introduction for the uninitiated into the engineered world, and for the engineers who build and maintain them, it’s a long overdue acknowledgment of the works they create and sustain.
Infrastructure:
A Field Guide to the Industrial Landscape
By Brian Hayes
W.W. Norton & Company, Inc., 536 pages, $49.95 ($32.97 on Amazon)
Don Dunnington
How Important is a Good Website? |
January 09, 2006 |
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Posted by Joe Lewis at 10:54 AM | Comments (0) |
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Market research tells us that process engineers, purchasing professionals and many others increasingly turn to the Internet as the number one way of finding information about products, technology and other industry information.
In a previous blog post dated August 24, 2005 (click here, then scroll down) I discussed the various aspects of searching the Internet and also provided a white paper designed specifically to help those that have the arduous task of searching for information on the world wide web. But sometimes you don't need to search, you have a website address and it's easy to go the supplier site and get the information you want. Isn't it?
Charateristics of a Good Supplier Website
What makes a good supplier website? Well everyone I speak with tell me the following characteristics are present at any good website.
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The site easy to navigate. You can intuitively find your way around the site with ease.
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The menu structure contains the type of information you need. It focuses on products, applications and solutions.
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The site contains a high level of technical data, even if some of this data is protected in a section dedicated for bonafide users.
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Information about the company focuses on the people who serve their customers.
The site contains a variety of ways to make contact. The supplier is quick to respond. Use of tools like an online chat is available.
You find the depth of information you need, immediately. Interaction with the supplier is quick and easy.
Unfortunately, not all equipment and systems manufacturers understand the importance that quick, convenient and complete access to vital information is to process engineers, plant managers, maintenance techs and purchasing personnel. I'd like to cite a couple of examples of what I think are good websites. One is the Hyperphysics website I cited in an earlier blog post. It's a wealth of technical information and it's all easy to find.
One powder and bulk solids equipment website I like is K-Tron's. It is simple to understand, easy to navigate and provides some great technical information and data on solutions. Another great website is IBM's "Express Portfolio" website. Not only does it provide a guided tour through their offering by either Industry or Solution, but it uses some of the best and neatest web technology. Take a peak at this stie.... it's pretty cool and very informative. It's also an award winning site.
Now for the brief ad: At Monitor Technologies we strive to meet your immediate and long term needs with information that you need........ fast and complete. Take a look at our website and let us know what you think. Also, take a look at the Flash website for latest continuous level measurement product, the Flexar guided wave radar continuous level measurement system at Flexar. Do we meet all your needs? What else could we do to serve you? Let me know
Here's what one of our website users had to say recently: "I have visited Monitor's website a few times in the last few days and have to say that it's one of the most informative solids handling equipment sites I've visited. It's easy to navigate, but more importantly, it provides an extremely high level of technical detail in a straightforward, well-organized way. I wish more supplier sites were like it!"
Joe Lewis Vice President - Marketing & Sales
Monitor Technologies LLC jlewis@monitortech.com
Why Do I Do This Web Site? |
January 05, 2006 |
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Posted by Joseph Taylor at 01:16 AM | Comments (0) |
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The holidays are over and I am back in the office. This break must have been really good because I have forgotten how to do the little things, where to save a file, what to update next on the site, you know that sort of stuff. Things that no one else but you notice.
I took two weeks off, a long time for me. One of the things I like most about taking a holiday, besides the obvious fun with friends and family, is to gather my thoughts about where I have been and what I want to do next. Also, to figure out, of all the things humming around me, what's important and what needs my time.
One thought that crosses my mind is "Why am I doing this web site, Powder and Bulk Dot Com". We are going into our 8th year now, over 300 newsletters published, 1,000 articles in the News Center, over 2,500 posts on the Help Forum, it just keeps adding up. I think to myself, "Does this do any good for anyone?".
Well I got my answer today in an email from a man named Jack Lee from China. Jack is a M&D Manager for a company, Tian Jin Jie Li Xing M&E Co., Ltd. I tried looking up his company on Google, but the there was no web site for the company, just a listing in another directory, a Chinese company directory. From the listing and the photo, Jack is involved with process instrumentation. (See Jack's smiling face above)
Jack writes to me in his email, "Thanks for your updated newsletter everyday. Happy new year!"
Ah, Jack is why I spend so much time and effort on Powder and Bulk Dot Com. He loves the weekly newsletter, he most likely spends time on the web site and Jack could even be a member of the Help Forum. Well I hope so, because I will spend 30-40 mins trying to find his forum profile, and add a mini-version of his photo to his profile for everyone to see!
Eight years and a simple email breezes through my email box, brightening my day. Thanks Jack Lee and for that matter, thanks to all the "Jack Lee's" out there who visit and use our web site.
Happy New Year to you too!
Joe Taylor
Powder and Bulk Dot Com
