Despite poor weather on the opening day, the Atlantic Heavy
Equipment Show (AHES) drew a record 11,660 attendees
to Moncton’s Coliseum Agrena Complex on April 3-4,
2008. The AHES coincided with the three day spring meetings of
the Canadian Woodlands Forum and consequently drew a signifi cant
forestry audience. In previous years, most of the equipment displays
at the AHES have been primarily geared to the forestry business, al-
though, given the current challenges in the forestry sector, an increas-
ing percentage of the show’s fl oor space was devoted to equipment for
construction applications. New Brunswick Premier Shawn Graham
himself recognised this trend in his welcome to show attendees; “The
AHES is the place to be for those involved in the road building, con-
struction and forestry industries in Atlantic Canada”, although later on
in the same welcome Graham hedged his bets by reversing the order
of mention to “construction, forestry or roadbuilding.”
A new highlight of the show was the backhoe rodeo held in the
show’s outdoor exhibition area where experienced operators completed timed skill testing trials on tractor backhoes made available by
their manufacturers. Operators had a maximum of three minutes to
complete a skill test on each machine, with times added together to
complete individual scores.
The Atlantic Heavy Equipment Show began in 1986 as an offshoot
to the annual general meeting of the Atlantic Land Improvement Con-
tractors Association (ALICA), with the affiliation continuing to the
present in recognition of ALICA’s primary objective to promote and
assist the resource industries of the Atlantic region.
The show itself provided some interesting insights into the
current fortunes of two natural resource industries with much in
common. Products from the forestry and aggregate industries are used
in virtually every aspect of modern life, both are high in terms of potential environmental impact if not properly managed and, in both
cases, public misconception about the nature of the industry and its
impacts abound. The similarities end there, at least at this point in
their respective economic cycles. For those in the forestry business, it
is no news that these are hardly stellar times, with forecasts for 2008
showing some stabilising after a sharp downturn. Meanwhile, things
remain buoyant in construction virtually across Canada, particularly in
the western provinces.
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| A big wheel at the Atlantic Heavy Equipment Show. |
A Liebherr L550 2 plus 2 wheel loader on display at the Atlantic Heavy Equipment Show.
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Participants in the Atlantic Heavy Equipment Show’s new backhoe rodeo had a maximum of three minutes to complete a skill test on each machine.
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The Strongco Equipment booth proved to be a popular spot at the Atlantic Heavy Equipment Show.
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The loader arm and bucket attachment design on a Volvo L70F wheel loader receives close scrutiny at the Atlantic Heavy Equipment Show.
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The Komatsu WA 500 wheel loader can be fitted with a 5.5m3 spade nose bucket, reportedly the biggest bucket in its class.
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