As an expected 120,000 visitors began packing into the Las Vegas Convention Center, this year’s CONEXPO-CON/AGG exhibition kicked off with a universal question in mind: Will the current economic recovery stick? Photo By Tom Sawyer Construction industry attendees expressed hope that the recession is fading. Photo Courtesy Of Tony Illia Caterpillar’s new truck model was unveiled at the opening of the 2011 CONEXPO in Las Vegas “All the focus is on CONEXPO as investors look to see whether the pending recovery on the U.S. construction equipment is real,” said Credit Suisse analyst Jamie Cook in an investor note. Machinery manufacturers
With estimates of at least 110,000 buildings damaged or destroyed and 20,000 fatalities in the March 11 earthquake and tsunami, rebuilding Japan will be a long and expensive undertaking, dwarfing the financial impact of the 1995 Kobe quake disaster. The World Bank estimates dam- age at up to $235 billion, 4% of Japan’s gross domestic product (GDP), compared with $100 billion for Kobe, or 2% of GDP. Private insurers could pay up to $33 billion to cover the destruction, compared with $783 million for Kobe, according to the bank. Photo: Kit Miyamoto/Miyamoto International U.S. engineer Miyamoto surveys coastal damage. Related
Cleaning up and rebuilding in Japan may be delayed due to a lack of manufacturing capacity of heavy machinery and related components needed to do the job. Exporting construction-related goods from Japan to other parts of the globe could also prove challenging, say suppliers. Photo: Courtesy of Komatsu Production of large wheel loaders like this one are on hold at Komatsu's Ibaraki factory. In particular, heavy-equipment producers, such as Caterpillar Inc., Komatsu Ltd. and Hitachi Ltd. report that the March 11 earthquake and resulting tsunami have hit facilities used to source components and assemble whole goods. Companies have made donations
Eight months into his role as lead executive of the world’s largest producer of construction and mining equipment, Doug Oberhelman was meeting with an ENR Top 400 Contractor when an ENR reporter arrived for an interview. Oberhelman said to McCandless, “Have you ever seen one of these [media interviews] before?” McCandless replied that he hadn’t. “Well then, why don’t you stickaround and watch?” Before long, Steve McCandless, senior vice president of Garney Construction, Kansas City, Mo., and a Caterpillar machinery buyer, became an impromptu part of ENR’s Feb. 10 interview at Caterpillar headquarters, located in Peoria, Ill. He had just
The triennial CONEXPO-CON/AGG exhibition is thought to be the largest construction event of the year and the largest trade show in the Western Hemisphere. This year’s show, scheduled for March 22-26 at the Las Vegas Convention Center, already is booking up its 2.2 million square feet. Last time the big show came to Vegas, in 2008, the industry and economy were in a much different place. Then, manufacturers couldn’t crank out the machines fast enough. The show set all-time records for attendance and exhibits, with more than 144,000 people perusing nearly 2.3 million sq ft. Soon after, investment bank Lehman
The triennial CONEXPO-CON/AGG exhibition is thought to be the largest construction event of the year and the largest trade show in the Western Hemisphere. This year’s show, scheduled for March 22-26 at the Las Vegas Convention Center, already is booking up its 2.2 million square feet. Last time the big show came to Vegas, in 2008, the industry and economy were in a much different place. Then, manufacturers couldn’t crank out the machines fast enough. The show set all-time records for attendance and exhibits, with more than 144,000 people perusing nearly 2.3 million sq ft. Soon after, investment bank Lehman
Big Brother is watching your tools. That’s the idea behind a new asset-management system from Snap-on Industrial. Photos courtesy of Snap-on Industrial In its place For its latest tool box, Snap-on installed four to six cameras that take high-speed snapshots of drawers as they are closed. A computer compares those images to stocked drawers and alerts asset managers of discrepancies. Born in the aerospace field, the company’s latest tool box is designed to help people in construction, especially those who work in high-risk areas that require tight security over “foreign-object damage” or “foreign-material exclusion”—such as nuclear powerplants—or those using large
Big Brother is watching your tools. That’s the idea behind a new asset-management system from Snap-on Industrial. Photo: Courtesy of Snap-on Industrial For its latest tool box, Snap-on installed four to six cameras that take high-speed snapshots of drawers as they are closed. A computer compares those images to stocked drawers and alerts asset managers of discrepancies. Photo: Courtesy of Snap-on Industrial Born in the aerospace field, the company’s latest tool box is designed to help people in construction, especially those who work in high-risk areas that require tight security over “foreign-object damage” or “foreign-material exclusion”—such as nuclear powerplants—or those
JLG Industries Inc. will display a new 150-ft-tall boom lift at CONEXPO-CON/AGG 2011, the biggest construction event of the year, held on March 22-26 in Las Vegas. The lift replaces an older model that was cumbersome to deploy on jobs needing high-reach access. Photo: Courtesy of JLG Despite its 150-ft height, JLG’s newest lift can retract to a compact size for highway transport. Only a weight permit is needed. Photo: Courtesy of JLG Model 1500SJ is the tallest self-propelled aerial work platform that can be trailered without several permits, says JLG, which is taking orders for delivery around the time
One person can make a difference in the industry and save lives. That’s what crane man Joe Collins learned when he cast a pivotal vote for construction safety.
