Heavy Duty Aftermarket Week (HDAW), North America’s largest gathering of the independent heavy duty aftermarket industry, hosted an enthusiastic crowd in its first year at the Gaylord Texan Resort & Convention Center, January 27-30, in Grapevine, Texas. With a 4% increase in attendees over last year’s event in Las Vegas, the new Texas location laid the groundwork for HDAW, commanding the road ahead for the ever-evolving future of the heavy duty aftermarket industry.
Over four days, more than 2,400 attendees had the opportunity to participate in more than 1,500 newly-formatted One-on-One Meetings and receive in-depth product sales training from 31 companies. The new venue offered the industry its largest HDAW show space to date, with 143,000 square feet and 76 incremental exhibiting companies. A sold-out Product Expo, that accommodated 87 new exhibiting companies, showcased high-quality products and the industry’s newest technologies.
“Over the past year, the heavy duty aftermarket industry experienced rapid changes and continuous introductions to new technology disruptors. There has never been a more important time to gather the community under one roof for exclusive purchasing deals, peer-to-peer networking, education and product launches,” said Sean Ryan, president and treasurer at Point Spring & Driveshaft Co. and HDAW’20 distributor chair. “Our move to Texas promoted a focused and cohesive show environment, where attending professionals could conduct business without distraction from outside crowds.”
“We could not be more thrilled with our record-breaking turnout at HDAW’20. Every corner of the expanded Gaylord Texan show floor showcased incredible resources and innovative technologies shaping our industry and highlighted the abundant talent of heavy duty aftermarket professionals,” commented Tim Bauer, vice president of Eaton Aftermarket North America and HDAW’20 distributor chair. “We would like to thank everyone that joined us to gain the insights and tools they need to grow and transform their businesses. HDAW’21 is poised to be even bigger, and we cannot wait to reunite the industry for more next year!”
