The industry is growing and evolving, and so is your trade show.
During late winter 1981, the first annual Liquid Waste Hauler’s Equipment & Trade Show was held in Nashville, Tenn. The show was promoted to the 12,000-some readers of the recently launched Midwest Pumper. That very first show was a huge success – lauded by the couple hundred people who attended and a few dozen exhibitors.
The following year, the Liquid Waste Hauler’s Equipment & Trade Show would see its first name change. The change was subtle: we only added one word – “International.” Because, after all,
we didn’t want to shun our friends from Canada.
In 1984, COLE Publishing launched an additional title – Cleaner – aimed squarely at sewer and drain cleaning contractors. This meant the show had now become more than just a liquid waste event. It would take more than a decade, but in the mid-1990s the International Liquid Waste Hauler’s Show again changed its name. This time, we would fully encompass everything we stood for – The Pumper & Cleaner Environmental Expo International. May no man, woman, child, country or profession ever be excluded again! So we thought.
The event would continue to grow, eventually hundreds of attendees became thousands, and dozens of exhibitors became hundreds. The Expo hopped through several cities – Nashville, Biloxi, New Orleans, Dallas, Fort Worth and Louisville. We even tried a few western destinations and visited Las Vegas, Palm Springs, Phoenix and Long Beach.
Now, after more than 20 years, it is time to make another name change. We’re not just a show for “pumpers and cleaners” – we’ve grown and evolved into so much more, and so have you. The industry and profession has surpassed what many of us could have ever imagined way back in 1979, when Pumper was delivered to mailboxes across a few Midwestern states.
In 2015, the Pumper & Cleaner Environmental Expo International will become WWETT – the Water and Wastewater Equipment, Treatment & Transport show. A little better snapshot of what we have become and where we are heading. It’s a show for an entire industry of hard-working people who maintain the flow in our sewer and water infrastructure, properly treat and dispose of wastewater, keep water safe, and our environment healthy.
We haven’t forgotten our roots, we just planted them a little deeper – and thanks to you they’ll always have water. See you at WWETT 2015.
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