editor's comment, The

Electrical Apparatus, Nov 2004 by Barks, Horace B

'Happy Hour' celebrates a trade show's recovery

We applaud the Electrical Manufacturing Expo for starting the opening of its recent Indianapolis show at 4 P.M., instead of the typical morning time.

Four P.M.? That's Happy Hour time. And that's exactly what the Expo sponsors had in mind, and, as our staff reports (see page 16), the new opening hours received high marks from exhibitors.

In the last several years, the Electrical Manufacturing Expo has had to cope with difficult changing times. Three years ago, its Cincinnati show couldn't have been scheduled at a worse time, a month after the 9/11 terrorist attacks, but sponsors, exhibitors, and attendees persevered, and, as our article headline in the December 2001 EA stated: "Recession and terrorism be damned, optimism prevailed at EIC/EMCW EXPO," and the show went on.

Of course, a few exhibitors canceled, attendance was below expectations, and exhibits suffered. But to their credit, the show's sponsors didn't quit and in the subsequent years have brought EME (to be held jointly next year with the Electrical Insulation Conference) not only back, but nearing the rankings of major trade shows in the electromechanical industry. Next year's show, by the way, will also be held in Indianapolis, on Oct. 24-26.

Watch next month for the EMBR

Next month, we will mail our annual directory, the ElectroMechanical Bench Reference-the EMBR-with the December issue of Electrical Apparatus. With more than 150 pages of products, manufacturers, distributors, brand names, special services, rebuilders, trade associations, and training facilities, the EMBR, published annually since the 1970's, has corne to be one of the most widely accepted references in the industry. Join the thousands of readers who watch for it each December and keep it handy.

Horace B. Barks