We recently held our own trade show and exhibition at the fantastic London Velodrome and I spent the day in these iconic surroundings talking to our customers, showing them new R32 products and generally chewing the fat over the industry in general.
This was our first venture into exhibitions and overall, we were delighted with the attendance as we understand how difficult it can be to take time away from the tools to get to what seems to be an increasing number of trade shows.
I also felt there was a real buzz about the place but maybe that was just me having too much caffeine!
So where do you go for your information? And how do you choose which shows you must attend and which you simply don’t have time for?
If you don’t manage to get to any of the trade shows aimed directly at you, where do you find out information on new products, tools, skills and advice that could help you sustain and grow your business?
Ben Bartle-Ross Technical Trainer
Our MEET2017 event took place on the second day of PHEX at Alexandra Palace, so we already knew that we were making competing demands on some of our heating engineer partners but we did have a couple of customers who managed to make it to both shows.
Coming up over the next few months, you could choose from
- Vision London Olympia 6-7 June
- Facilities Show ExCel London 20-22 June
- PHEX Manchester 4-5 October
- HVAC2017 NEC 10-12 October (Part of UK Construction Week)
- PHEX Chelsea 15-16 November
- HVAC Show ExCel London 23-25 January 2018
And that’s before you look at regional shows, Chamber of Commerce events, and even the numerous training courses that manufacturers such as Mitsubishi Electric put on.
Most of the trade shows I’ve been to over the past few years though seem to struggle to get people through the doors. Is everyone simply too busy getting on with the daily workload? Or have the days of major exhibitions had their day?
And if you don’t manage to get to any of the trade shows aimed directly at you, where do you find out information on new products, tools, skills and advice that could help you sustain and grow your business?
Do let me know? I’d love some feedback on how you keep up to date with what you need to help you in your day-to-day activities.
Ben Bartle-Ross is a Technical Trainer at Mitsubishi Electric and also writes this column for ACR Journal magazine.
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