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For more information visit: www.KBIS.com, follow KBIS on Facebook at
www.facebook.com/KitchenBathIndustryShow and on Twitter at @KBIS2015.
NAHB'S 2014 INTERNATIONAL BUILDERS' SHOW:
SEES FIRST UPTICK IN FIVE YEARS
Builders, remodelers and suppliers packed the aisles at Design &
Construction Week at the Las Vegas Convention Center offering an
unparalleled exhibition and education program for all facets of the
residential construction industry.
IBS exhibitors filled 440,000 square feet of exhibit space with
everything from millwork to marketing services, a significant leap from
last year's total of 355,000 square feet. In all, Design & Construction
Week offered attendees more than 650,000 square feet of exhibit
space.
How was the show? "Fantastic," said exhibitor Joe Dote of KP Building
Products in Holly Springs, La. "The way it was laid out, the leads, the
crowds - everything was fantastic."
"Fantastic," agreed Frank Thompson, of Sweetwater Builders in
Cranberry Township, Pa. "I had one guy tell me he needs twice as much
space next year for his booth. I even had someone say there were too
many people in the aisles - but that is such a good thing."
"It's the energy," said Jake Whittaker of Delaware Siding Company in
Bear, Del. "It's just a world of difference from the last several years. You
could just tell when you walked in the hall."
"It's great to see the economy coming back, the exhibitors coming
back and the members building again," said Randy Strauss, chair of the
NAHB Convention & Meetings Committee, who gave the IBS report to
a jubilant Board of Directors on the show's last day.
Strauss reported that plans are already under way to incorporate more
residential construction suppliers and their trade shows into next year's
Design & Construction Week, which is set for Jan. 20-22, 2015, again in
Las Vegas. "This thing is getting better and better."
While most home builders continue to see their markets brighten, IBS
euphoria was tempered by the remaining headwinds preventing a full
recovery. Tight credit conditions, building supply price increases and
the limited availability of buildable lots are three obstacles, and one
builder from South Dakota warned of a fourth.
"We saw a lot of good people leave the industry during the downturn,"
and it's getting harder to find skilled labor to fill needed construction
jobs," said Dwight Bickett of Bickett's Construction in Rapid City.
"We're becoming a complete industry of older people and young kids,"
with skilled middle managers and trade partners harder to find, he said.
To learn more visit: www.nahb.org.
Design & Construction Week
TM
will take place January 20-22, 2015,
in the Las Vegas Convention Center, Las Vegas, NV, collocating again
with the International Builders' Show, Kitchen & Bath Show and VISION
2015. Visit: www.DesignandConstructionWeek.com.
DESIGN CONSTRUCTION WEEK
TM
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