Wow. Although Hydra-Tech Pumps has exhibited at the ConExpo / ConAGG show before, this was my first time and the word wow doesn’t even begin to convey the size and scope of this show held every 3 years in Las Vegas. Labeled as the “biggest trade show in the Western Hemishpere” this show earned its reputation. In my 22 years of trade shows, ConExpo is easily twice as big as the next largest show I have attended. The stats: more than 2800 exhibitors whose displays took up more than 2.8 million square feet of exhibit space to show their products to 128,000 total attendees, including 26,000 international visitors from 150 countries. Twenty percent of the visitor came from other countries – the Hydra-Tech Pumps booth saw a steady stream of visitors from Australia, South America, Southeast Asia, Europe, Africa, the Middle East as well as Canada, Mexico and the US.
In our booth, Hydra-Tech Pumps displayed a 16 horsepower Kohler diesel power unit and a 13 horsepower “special” power unit with a Yamaha engine and galvanized frame. We had a 6” Sand / Slurry pump, an S6V sewage pump, an S4T-2 an S4TLPAL, and a stainless steel S3T. Sand / slurry pumping seems to be the hot need right now – it seems as though every other conversation at the show was about pumping sand or grit, dredging, or running a CSL pump in some similar application.
As with any trade show there are so many different aspects to appreciate. We enjoyed meeting many new prospects both local and far flung. Having current customers, distributors, dealers, competitors and vendors come through the booth is always fun. We had the chance to explore the IFPE section of the show to see what new hydraulic technologies can help us build better power units and controls. And I can’t speak for my colleagues, but walking around the indoor and outdoor exhibits took me back to being a kid playing with Tonka trucks in a pile of dirt in my parent’s back yard. Excavators, trucks, cranes, pavers, wood chippers and every piece of equipment used in any aspect of construction and agriculture imaginable. The next ConExpo / ConAGG show March 10-14 in 2020 and I can’t wait to go.
Written By: Jeff Whittaker
In 2017 we celebrate 40 years in business and already, in the blink of an eye, January is in the rear view mirror and we’re halfway through February. Any of those New Year’s resolutions holding up? Both personally and professionally, January represents that fresh start that allows you to reset and refocus on the coming 12 months. It’s funny though how your work can get in the way of, well, your work. Sometimes the day to day busy of taking calls, helping customers, preparing quotes and getting orders out the door while necessary can keep us from the things we should be doing.
We are halfway through our very trade show-centric 1st quarter, with 4 shows in 10 weeks to start the year. The amount of time that goes into all of the details related to exhibiting at a show is significant. Forgetting about the work done in the 8-12 months before the show, we pack the equipment for the trade show, make the pick-up date, fly to a city, unpack and set up the booth at the show, man the show, break down the booth, ship it home, fly home, catch up on the week you missed, get the stuff back from the show and start all over for the next one. The upside is getting the chance to visit with customers and prospects and get feedback (the good and the bad) on our equipment from existing customers. We also look for feedback from prospects on our equipment as well as what they currently use instead of Hydra-Tech equipment. Oh, and St Louis and Indianapolis are lovely this time of year, so there’s that upside too.
Once the dust clears on the trade shows in early March after ConExpo, we’ll catch our breath and begin to plan travel and training for the rest of the year, evaluate potential shows through the end of 2017 and begin working on those we’re committed to in 2018.
When Ken Reim, the founder of Hydra-Tech pumps needed a product that wasn’t available to him to solve a problem for the Peace Corps in Sierra Leone, Africa in 1977, he designed and developed the HT8G and S2, the first power units and pumps sold by Hydra-Tech. This was the story with many other products Hydra-Tech has come to be known for in its time in the pump and power market.
In 2017 Hydra-Tech will celebrate 40 years in business and the concept of custom designed and purpose built pumps and power units continues today. Sure Hydra-Tech sells a lot of its “bread and butter” products week in and week out. At the same time, we have never shied away from the calls that start out with “I don’t know if you guys can do this or not” or “I have an idea for something I need – do you think you can build it?”
The amazing thing about Ken is that he is as passionate about these calls today as he was during the first five years Hydra-Tech was in business. He likes that challenge that comes with making something new that we haven’t built before. Might be a hydraulic power unit to run a piece of equipment that we don’t manufacture. This year we built and shipped as many as 10 custom power units to run something other than a Hydra-Tech pump and have a couple more we are working to get out the door in the coming weeks.
Customization of our pumps and power units is always an option – we are wrapping up the development of a menu of options for both types of product and they will be up on the website soon. We had a new customer from a marine diving / salvage business contact us about a week ago with a request for an item that we have never built or offered – an idea to solve a problem he has. We are working right now to take his idea from a sketch on a blank piece of paper through design and fabrication to a finished product. As a smaller organization, this is one of the many benefits we can offer our customers over some of the big boys, who would rather sell what they have and not what they don’t have. Do you have an idea related to pump and power that we can help you with?
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As we approach the end of 2016 everyone thinks about their New Year’s Resolutions. I’m going to lose weight. I’m going to go back to school. I’m going to be a better person. We all kick around the usual promises and hopefully make one or two stick. As a company we go through some of the same thought processes as it relates to our business and our customers, but on a year-round basis. 2016 has been a challenging year with oil and gas down, domestic mining suffering, and of course all of the fun leading up to (and following) our election in November. Many of our customers have suffered and we have suffered with them.
In 2017 Hydra-Tech Pumps will celebrate 40 years in business since Ken’s filled the first order in 1977 for some pumps and power units for the Peace Corps. Despite the challenges in 2016 we worked throughout the year on a number of things that will ultimately benefit our customers. This perpetual review of everything we do covers the mundane daily administrative tasks all of the way up to which trade shows we participate in and where our sales travel should take us. It is never easy and ever evolving – one particular subject this year was addressed, debated and discussed, and ultimately improved 4 different times between February and this week until we think we got it fine-tuned to where we want it – again with the benefit of the customer in mind during the entire process.
We constantly look at collateral to insure that it is accurate for our customers. Our website was completely redesigned and launched in April with new enhancements like our chat feature. There have been constant improvements made to the new website since its launch as well. Our spec sheets have been reviewed and updated this year. We re-run pump tests to insure that our pump curves are accurate and have begun working with an outside source to certify our curves. In 2017 we will have a brand new catalog available.
So as far as New Year’s Resolutions go, here’s what you can expect from Hydra-Tech Pumps in 2017. We will continue to work hard to earn and keep your business by trying to continually improve as a company to try and exceed your customer service expectations. We will celebrate 40 years of existence. We might not lose weight. Happy New Year to you and Cheers to a happy, healthy, and successful 2017!
Ah December, the most wonderful time of the year (at least according to a song I’ve heard). At home you have the frantic lead up to the holidays, the shopping, the traffic and people, the work to get everything done, the arrival of family or the travel to see family and the holidays themselves. At work you have the full court press to finish a strong calendar year, sales and expense budget forecasts for the coming year, and the pressure of a holiday party (don’t drink too much). If you live north of the Mason-Dixon line, throw in the exciting possibility of foul weather. Finally, as of January 1st you have to remember to write the year as 2017 – how many weeks until that happens without thinking about it?
2017 starts off with a run of trade shows for Hydra-Tech – we hope that might see you at one of them.
From Tuesday January 17th through Friday January 20th we will be exhibiting in Booth C6802 (Central Hall) at the World of Concrete show. The event is held inside and outside of the Las Vegas Convention Center. You can find more information at https://worldofconcrete.com. In 2015 this was ranked as the 21st biggest trade show by square feet of the top 250.
In February Hydra-Tech Pumps we will exhibit at the WWETT Show at the Indiana Convention Center in Indianapolis. WWETTT stands for Water & Wastewater Equipment, Treatment & Transport. You can find us at Booth #4105. Learn more or register to attend the show at https://wwettshow.com.
In March comes the big boy of trade shows ConExpo – Con/Agg – this show is every 3 years and always in Las Vegas – to give you an idea on just how big this indoor / outdoor event is, it fills the entire Las Vegas Convention Center (all halls and parking lots) – in 2014 it covered 2.35 MILLION net square feet and 2017 will be even bigger. Hydra-Tech Pumps will be in booth #90925 – for additional information on the show or to register go to http://www.conexpoconagg.com.
So enjoy the holidays, celebrate the New Year and if you can, come visit us at one of these shows in 2017!
While not tasty like Chocolate Peanut Butter candy, viewed by millions like the Corporation for Public Broadcasting or listed on the New York Stock Exchange like “CPB”, The Campbell’s Soup Company, the “CPB” all pump choosers and users should know about is the Contractor’s Pump Bureau.
Around since 1938, the CPB, now part of the Association of Equipment Manufacturer’s (AEM), provides practical, technical and market information available to any person interested in making the most appropriate pump selection when faced with moving a fluid from point A to B.
The mission statement of the CPB:
The Contractors’ Pump Bureau promotes matters of mutual interest to pump users, manufacturers and major parts and component suppliers.
More specifically, the CPB’s work product includes agreed upon standards for pump equipment operational safety, explicit methods for noise level testing of pumping systems, a Pump Selection Guidebook and exacting guidelines for the consistent and accurate representation of pump performance curves.
In addition, the members meet twice per year to discuss regulations, trends and other factors which impact all participating companies. The body of members go beyond pump companies and include other manufacturers that supply ancillary equipment like controls and engines to a long list of reputable pump companies. With insights coming from varied inputs, including the politically in tune AEM, the informational exchange serves to broaden the knowledge base of all parties.
As the CPB nears its 80th year of existence, plans are in the works to spread the news and grow the membership. CPB member representation at the upcoming ConExpo 2017 will be strong, and the active member companies plan to fly the CPB logo in their respective booths while taking the opportunity to invite any and all interested parties to attend two informational sessions at the show being held at the Las Vegas Convention Center from March 7-10, 2017.
For a full list of members, and to inquire about joining both AEM and CPB, follow the link below.
https://www.aem.org/groups/product-specific/contractors-pump-bureau-cpb/
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Faced with either cost overruns or lost opportunities due to the inability of a vacuum truck to handle tank pump outs from long distances while at the same time dealing with stringy solids, a Tennessee company went looking for a better way.
In more and more instances, tanks are getting filled up and clogged up with stringy materials which are difficult to pump and sometimes not pump-able at all if the equipment being used can’t pull enough vacuum.
Faced with this reality, sanitary pumpers either had to turn their backs on some potentially profitable work, or haul often unreliable trash pumps long distances over uneven terrain in order to be able to set up and pump out remote tanks. While these trash pumps could be effective, that was not always the case. The sometimes performance coupled with the weight and maneuverability and suction hose failure problems of these pumps, meant breaking even or even losing money on some jobs that just did not go right.
After calling the manufacturer, Hydra-Tech Pumps and being connected with a local representative from a distributor in Chattanooga, TN, the end user was able to demo a submersible trash pump, S3TRDI powered by an HT13G hydraulic power unit.
This hydraulically driven pumping system solved all of the handling and performance issues and saved time to boot. Because the pump is light weight and can be set up with hydraulic hoses extending up to 150’ from the power source, it was easy for one person to get the pump down to and in to the tank to be pumped. Then, because the pump is self-priming when dropped in the pumpage, the only other hose required is the hose on the discharge side of the system. With all the hoses in place, the user fired up the power unit, activated the hydraulics and observes as the S3TRDI not only handled the solids, it also pumped out the tank at a rate of roughly 300 gallons per minute.
The demo went so well that the end user immediately purchased the demo package and continues to be happy with his investment.