With industry backlogs still strong and overextended fleets always aging, the industry’s triennial equipment trade show blows into town just as some construction professionals are looking to buy some heavy iron.

It was a busy year at the annual World of Concrete trade show, held in Las Vegas Feb. 4 to 7. An estimated 54,000 attendees came through the show floor over the week, seeing exhibits from 1,310 companies. 

Seeing parallels to a fatal crane accident in Texas in 2012, crane specialist Terry McGettigan believes the Seattle crane collapse will be shown to have similar causes.

The LTM 1230-5.1 is a 230-metric-ton-class all-terrain crane with a 72-meter telescoping main boom.

The Aquajet 410V is a remote-controlled hydrodemolition robot designed for sites with limited access.

Construction in the U.S. and Europe is showing signs of recovery, while China and other emerging markets are slowing down.

The investigation into a September crane collapse in Mecca, Saudi Arabia, has reportedly resulted in five indictments, including officials at lead contractor Saudi Binladen Group.