The 2013 Pumper & Cleaner Environmental Expo is just around the corner. Last year was my first trip to the Expo, and it was a great experience. It was my first opportunity to meet many of you and to see a lot of equipment up close – and it was an educational experience to say the least.

The massive show floor packed full of vacuum trucks, trailer jetters and every other piece of equipment someone in this industry might need was impressive, and Education Day was an incredible learning opportunity. Still, I think it was you, the attendees and professionals in this industry, with whom I was most impressed. The wealth of knowledge floating around the show floor can’t be replicated anywhere, and again this year, Indianapolis will be the center of the sewer and drain cleaning industry over the last four days in February. Nowhere else can you meet as many of your peers and gain as much valuable insight for your business as you can at the Expo.

If you’re not attending because you’re not currently in the market for any new equipment, reconsider. While the Expo, the industry’s largest trade show, offers every tool and piece of equipment imaginable, as well as the opportunity to meet with manufacturers and have all your questions answered, there’s a lot more to it than walking from one booth to the next. In fact, it’s what happens between booth visits, in the hallways, at lunch and in the classroom that makes the Expo such a rich resource for career and business development. The opportunities to network, meet your peers and glean ideas for improving your business are limitless.

This year, for the first time, attendees will have the opportunity to see live equipment demonstrations outside the Indiana Convention Center. On Wednesday, Feb. 27, representatives from Hammelmann, Terydon, GapVax, NozzTeq and Perma-Liner will be demonstrating some of their products live for anyone who would like to attend. It’s a great opportunity to watch new equipment in action to see for yourself how it works and if it’s right for you.

If you’re attending the Expo, please be sure to stop by the COLE Publishing editors’ booth just outside the main entrance to the show floor. We’d like to meet you and hear your story. You can also get a press release and photo to send to your local newspaper, so everyone in your service area will know you’re doing what it takes to stay on top of the latest technology. 

There are plenty of reasons to attend the Expo, and we hope to see you there. If you can’t attend, keep an eye on our websites, Twitter and Facebook pages for photos, blogs and other updates on all the happenings.