The World of Concrete (WOC) 2020 conference opens Monday, February 3, at the Las Vegas Convention Center in Las Vegas, Nevada, seeking to provide attendees with a firm foundation for all concrete and masonry business.
According to event organizers, WOC is the commercial construction industry’s first, largest, and most important annual international event for global concrete and masonry professionals, with a stated mission of providing all the products, resources, and valuable information needed for attendees to strengthen their business. The event includes both an education program and exhibit hall.
With over 60,000 attendees expected, the conference offers numerous networking and educational opportunities. These range from technical training sessions on the latest construction and worksite techniques to professional development workshops focused on business and management.
Attendees represent all segments of the construction industry. According to WOC, this includes commercial contractors; concrete pumpers; construction managers; dealers/distributors; decorative concrete contractors; designers and specifiers; general contractors; block/segmental unit products; masonry contractors; architects; engineers; block producers; ready mix producers; rental equipment centers; repair contractors; residential contractors; specialty concrete contractors; precast; pipe and block producers; precast/prestressed producers; and more.
Event seminars begin on Monday, while exhibitions and training workshops launch on Tuesday. All events conclude by Friday.
Education Highlights
The educational program includes everything from interactive workshops and specialized seminars to hands-on, skill-building sessions, with a goal of equipping personnel, project leaders, supervisors and owners with the latest knowledge in all facets of concrete and masonry.
WOC offers 90-minute and three-hour seminar sessions, along with four-hour certification seminars. In all, there are 170+ sessions (60+ new sessions) from 110+ industry speakers for this year’s show, with experts covering topics such as latest technologies; technical applications; strategies for more efficient operations; and trends to increase profits.
The three-hour seminars include tracks on concrete fundamentals, concrete polishing, concrete production, concrete repair, and business and project management. Meanwhile, 90-minute tracks encompass subjects such as general business; business leadership and management; financial management and profitability; advanced technical; concrete 101; concrete floors and slabs; decorative concrete; engineering; masonry; and safety and risk management.
One session of interest for coatings contractors could be “Waterproofing: The Next Generation of Solutions.” That presentation takes place on Tuesday from 1:00 p.m. until 3:30 p.m. and is presented by Sika Corp., with a focus on product and application areas like elastomeric joint sealants; liquid-applied traffic coatings; liquid-applied below-grade waterproofing; and air barrier and roofing applications.
Also on Tuesday, Peter Craig (concrete floor consultant for Concrete Constructives) and Scott Tarr (president of North S.Tarr Concrete Consultants) will present a 90-minute seminar from 8:30 a.m. until 10:00 a.m. entitled “Moisture in Concrete Floor Slabs: Benefits and Challenges.” Attendees will learn why excess water in concrete is necessary; how to deal with a curled slab and prevent reverse curl; how to measure moisture levels in concrete slabs; and how to prevent moisture from becoming a problem for floor covering and coating installations.
And on Thursday, from 1:00 p.m. until 5:00 p.m., there’s an interactive workshop and live demonstration on acid staining. This is presented by Federico Jasso, chief operating officer of Mexico’s Servicios Proconsa, SA de CV. The complete list of educational, training, and workshop sessions can be accessed from WOC’s website.
Exhibit Hall Floor
WOC, which held its first show in February 1975, also features a trade show — which is slated to include more than 1,500 suppliers from all spectrums of the concrete industry. According to WOC, 50% of attendees are authorized to make or approve purchases for their company, while 37% recommend or determine what products are to be purchased.
The Exhibit Hall will be open from 9:30 a.m. until 5:00 p.m. from Tuesday through Thursday, and from 9:00 a.m. until 12:00 p.m. on Friday. This year’s show floor features more than 700,000 net square feet (65,032.1 m2) of exhibit space.
The 2020 event incorporates special product and action areas on the trade show floor, including interactive workshops, live demonstrations, and industry training programs. Specialty areas include material handling (Central Hall); masonry (Central Hall); repair and demolition (South Hall); concrete surfaces and decorative (South Hall); precast (North Hall); concrete masonry (North Hall); and concrete reinforcement (North Hall). There’s also an outdoor action area, where exhibitors are allowed to demonstrate their products and equipment under real-world conditions.
CoatingsPro Magazine staff can be visited each day at booth S11546 in the South Hall, and members of the editorial team will be posting on-site photos and videos on the official CoatingsPro social media accounts. The full list of exhibitors, along with a site floor plan, can be accessed at the event website.
For more information, contact: World of Concrete, (972) 536-6376, www.worldofconcrete.com