Vendors use record number of spaces at anniversary Construction Expo in Augusta
Every available indoor booth was filled and thousands of additional square feet of outdoor booth space was sold for the 25th Anniversary Construction Expo of Maine, which took place April 13 and 14 at the Augusta Civic Center. Acknowledged as the Pine Tree State's biggest construction show, the event has been produced every year since 1981 by Maine Chapter 276 of the National Association of Women in Construction.
"We couldn't fit another booth inside. We sold 175, and the last one was simply a 6-foot table we were able to squeeze in a corner of the lobby," said Joyce Newman, executive director of the show committee.
"And we had to expand the outside display area by about 6,000 square feet to accommodate the vendors. Their outdoor exhibits covered more than two acres this year," said Newman, secretary of Chapter 276, a five-time chapter president, and one of the original founders of the show.
Some 2,700 visitors attended the show, held during Women In Construction Week, as proclaimed by Maine Gov. John Baldacci.
Among the visitors to the show this year were special guests from the national organization, NAWIC President Nancy Eaton, NAWIC Executive Vice President Dede Hughes and NAWIC Regional 14 Director Catherine MacDonald. A member of the Southern Maine Chapter, MacDonald represents chapters in Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, most of New York state, and Toronto, Ontario. Also on hand were Chapter 276 officers including Marion Thomas, president; Anna Demers, vice president; and Jeanne Letourneau, treasurer.
Continuing a trend of recent years, the show has expanded to include, in addition to large numbers of construction equipment for contractors, significant amounts of maintenance equipment used for the upkeep of roads and other infrastructure by state and municipal officials.
Exhibits were presented by equipment dealers, rental houses and truck dealers, and included excavators, loaders, material handling equipment, crushers and screeners, sweepers, snowplows, power hand tools, surveying equipment, pressure washers, tires, brakes, springs, and equipment hydraulics.
Also on display were building products, among them: precast concrete items, concrete forms, structural and reinforcing steel, concrete repair products, cement and ready mix concrete, compost, and erosion control products. In addition, vendors exhibited products used in the construction of buildings, for example, ladders, scaffold, cranes, and rigging products.
Other displays featured waste oil furnaces, surveying equipment, office trailers, leaching systems, water distribution products, radio communications, cell phones, construction and street signs, and pressure washers.
There were also booths showcasing such services as excavating and grading, general contracting, asphalt paving, drilling and blasting, landscaping and hydroseeding, installing and repairing brakes, supplying cranes and rigging, delivering fuels, supplying personnel, providing insurance and bonding, consulting engineering, and equipment financing.
In addition to private companies, a number of public agencies and construction associations set up displays, among them, labor unions, Maine Department of Labor, Maine Department of Transportation, Maine Turnpike Authority, National Association of Women in Construction, Associated Builders and Contractors, Associated Constructors of Maine, and Maine Better Transportation Association.
Another offering of the annual show was a program of 19 seminars on a variety of topics ranging from technical topics, health issues and personnel training, to tips on doing business as a minority contractor.
As sales of display booths have accelerated in recent years, so has the number of sponsors for Women In Construction banners that are suspended above the perimeter of the Civic Center's auditorium. Last year, 13 companies sponsored the banners, which cost $250 for a three-year display. This year, that number grew to 22. The proceeds from the sale of these, as most of the revenues from the sale of booth spaces, are applied to the chapter's scholarship program.
The Maine Chapter has one of the most generous scholarship programs in NAWIC. Every year, several young men and women are awarded sustaining scholarships to help them complete their one- to four-year post-secondary construction-related courses. Awards are also given to people making a career change or returning to the work force.
This year, seven recipients were selected to receive scholarships worth $2,000 to $4,000, for a total of $20,000. The winners were to be announced at an upcoming monthly meeting of the chapter. Scholarships awarded by this organization in the 25 years of the program's existence amount to $231,000.