A reeeally BIG SHOW!

MINExpo, touted as one of the premier expositions of mining equipment and services in the world, certainly lived up to its billing last month as more than 41,000 delegates from around the globe gathered in Las Vegas for three days of equipment displays and technical seminars.

With more than 1200 exhibitors spread over 600,000 square feet of floor space, delegates were presented with a full range of new products and some of the largest pieces of mining equipment on the planet.

In fact, some of the equipment was so large that it took exhibitors more than two months to ship and assemble the machines at the Las Vegas site and probably an equal amount of time to tear them down and ship them to their new owners.

We say “new owners” because almost every piece of large equipment at the convention was heading to a mine somewhere in the world after the show. Much to many exhibitors’ delight, “Sold” signs were everywhere!

In addition to these crowd-stopping ‘monster machines,’ the show also featured a full array of other attractions ranging from small hand tools to the latest in automation and robotics; safety and communications equipment; engines and parts; materials handling and processing equipment and services.

And, as shown in the adjacent photo, more than 20 technical sessions also caught the attention of this year’s delegates. Industry leaders addressed a number of issues affecting the mining industry including future markets, metals commodities, surface and underground mining, materials handling and processing, and one of the more popular and concerning topics… the future of the workforce.

All in all, MINExpo 2008 was a huge success and organizers are anticipating that the next show in 2012 will be even bigger because there’s already a waiting list for exhibit space.

That, in itself, is a sure sign that mining is here to stay.