Water Well Journal
Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/451364
waterwelljournal.com "It's always rewarding when you see your efforts pay off, and this year's Expo seems to suggest they have for NGWA. We invested hundreds of staff hours, as well as the insights of expert outside authorities in making incremen- tal improvements in the Expo. From the feedback, they were well received. We can and will do more. That's my per- sonal commitment on behalf of the en- tire NGWA team—staff and volunteer leadership." The sense from many was the groundwater market is beginning to re- bound and climb in a positive direction following a sluggish economy in 2013. John McCalip, superintendent for Pa- cific Coast Well Drilling Inc. in Temple- ton, California, accompanied his boss at the Expo. McCalip has been drilling since 2002 and been with Pacific Coast for more than two years. The two of them were looking at purchasing a re- verse circulation drill rig at the Expo. Geoprobe Systems, a manufacturer of compact direct push, rotary, and sonic drilling machines and equipment based in Salina, Kansas, received a high level of interest from professionals in Canada. It worked out Geoprobe Systems had its Canadian distributor at the Expo to respond to the interest. "We're very fortunate we have lots of good, base customers who attend this show," says Todd Courbot, sales for Geoprobe Systems. "We also had good foot traffic which means new contacts, and you're always looking for new con- tacts as well as new business. But for us, it's being here for our customers and supporting the Association. "Equipment trumps anything you can throw out here for us. We made a decision last year (2013) to increase our display space because we knew we would have more equipment to release and show after our Open House in April (2014). This just caps off our year based upon our Open House releases of the 3230DT, the new 8150 sonic, and a lot of new features on these machines." The Expo's Opening Session and Awards Presentations was highlighted by W. Richard Laton, Ph.D., PG, CHG, CPG, receiving NGWA's top award— the Ross L. Oliver Award for outstand- ing contributions to the groundwater industry. Laton, a professor at California State University-Fullerton, Santa Ana, California, also received the Keith E. Anderson Award, presented by the NGWA Scientists and Engineers Division in recognition of outstanding contributions to the Association. Laton recalled the humble beginning to his career, working on a drill rig for seven years to gain invaluable experi- ence. He also looked back fondly on his mentors who helped him throughout his career. A Breakdown of Attendance at the 2014 NGWA Groundwater Expo and Annual Meeting ● 5245 attendees ● 309 exhibiting companies ● 41 first-time exhibiting companies (10 more than in 2013) ● 2337 water well system contractors ● 1480 manufacturers ● 729 suppliers ● 480 scientists and engineers ● 71,600 square feet of exhibit space ● $44,070 raised at the National Ground Water Research and Educational Foundation Annual Fundraising Auction ● $492,383 raised at the last 13 Annual Fundraising Auctions ● 114% increase in downloads of the Expo app from 2013 ● 1533 exhibitor profile views on the Expo app To see more photos from the Expo, visit www.GroundwaterExpo.com. View Sessions from the Expo Online Would you like to review a session again? Did you miss a particular speaker? Available online in the NGWA Event and Education Recordings Archive, you can download and listen to the offerings you were not able to attend in person as well as those you wish to hear again at https://ngwa.confex.com/ngwa/archives .cgi. EXPO from page 31 Fred Molz III, Ph.D., reflects on being named the recipient of the M. King Hubbert Award at the Opening Session and Awards Presentations. The Attendee Welcome Reception sponsored by Franklin Electric was filled with attendees unwinding after the first day of the Expo. 32 February 2015 WWJ