World of Concrete Hits 9-Year High

World of Concrete 2018 exceeded expectations across the board, and concluded the 43rd edition as the largest World of Concrete in 9 years. This signature event for the concrete & masonry industries drew 58,222 registered professionals, and featured more than 1,567 companies (including 302 brand new companies) exhibiting across more than 747,411 net square feet of exhibit space.

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World of Concrete established the Bob Weatherton Award to honor his contributions to the concrete industry. The award includes a $2,500 scholarship and a $200 gift card which was presented at the CIM National Board Meeting at WOC 2018. This year’s recipient of the Weatherton Award was Damien Bonis, who attends California State University - Chico. His presentation was “A Concrete Advantage: How the CIM Program Fosters Unique Research and Internship Opportunities.”

Concrete Industry Management (CIM) is a business program that has been developed specifically for the concrete industry to provide students with a four-year Bachelor of Science degree in Concrete Industry Management. The program gives students entering the concrete work force industry experience early in their careers.

In addition, CIM held its 13th annual unreserved silent and live auctions at World of Concrete. The silent and live auctions raised gross revenues of just over $1.1 million,setting a record for funds raised at WOC, and bringing a total of over $7 million to the CIM program in the past 13 years.  Despite a brief government shutdown, International Delegation Leaders and Delegates from across the globe made it to WOC 2018 to do business at this premier global event, including a large delegation from India organized by the American Embassy in New Delhi. Mr. Sanjay Mathur, CEO of UltraTech Cement Ltd. and Mr. Ramesh Joshi, Sr. VP, visited the event along with others from the delegation. WOC once again partnered with the U.S. Commercial Service to support U.S. exhibitors interested in expanding their international sales and to recruit international attendees to the show. Jackie James, Group Director, World of Concrete, said: “This has been an incredible year – the success of World of Concrete 2018 helps solidify WOC as the only annual event for concrete & masonry professionals. Having our largest event in 9 years proves that the construction sector is going strong worldwide. Participants, both domestic and international, experienced the very best the industry has to offer in terms of suppliers, products, services and education, and we look forward to an even larger event at WOC 2019.” Kevin Archibald, Show Manager, World of Concrete, said: “WOC 2018 was an enormous success. Our team, along with our service providers, produced a fantastic show. We saw great attendee numbers, exceptional exhibits, and a very solid rebook rate of 566,000 net sq. ft. of exhibit space, rebooking 76% of the total 2018 square footage onsite for next year’s show.”

The International Buyer Program at World of Concrete featured Construction Market and Industry Specialists from the U.S. Commercial Service. A special Export Achievement Certificate was presented to Verti-Crete LLC (precast concrete wall systems mfg.) by the U.S. Commercial Service for their contribution and recent success in international trade at WOC. Modelco, from Algeria, and Verti-Crete signed a long-term contract (customer/supplier), with a strategic partnership vision for the Algerian market. The Export Achievement Certificate (EAC) was created in 2001 to recognize small and medium-sized U.S. enterprises that have successfully entered the international marketplace for the first time or that have successfully entered a new market. Mike Sharp and Brent Baker from Verti-Crete accepted the award.