World of Concrete approved to come back to Las Vegas

The Nevada Department of Business and Industry has formally approved opening a large trade show, the World of Concrete, in Las Vegas in June.

The show, normally scheduled in January or February, brings thousands of people to Southern Nevada. Its 2019 event drew more than 60,000 people.

This year’s World of Concrete is scheduled June 8-10. Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority President and CEO Steve Hill has pointed to the show, last held in 2020, as one of the first major returning events to the city after a yearlong shutdown from the coronavirus pandemic.

The show — an indoor-outdoor convention — will be housed at the Las Vegas Convention Center’s new West Hall and the nearby North Hall.

“We are thrilled to return to the show floor and confident in our evidenced ability to execute a safe event under Informa AllSecure with strong commercial outcomes for our customers,” Jackie James, group director for World of Concrete, said in a release.

“The Nevada Department of Business and Industry has taken a dutiful and cautious approach to reopening, and we are honored to be one of the first large-scale events to set the industry standard for safe and successful economic recovery,” James said. “Our experienced team is excited to lead this charge.”

World of Concrete offers educational seminars for the concrete and masonry industries. It also offers competitions for industry professionals.

Registration for the show won’t occur until later this month, so it is premature to try to determine how many would attend this year’s event. The international show may also be challenged to register many overseas conventioneers this year.

The show will be one of the first major events to be staged in the new $987.1 million West Hall, which is nearing completion. It also is expected to be one of the first shows at which conventioneers would use the $52.5 million underground people-mover developed by Elon Musk’s The Boring Co.

Kevin Thornton, vice president of operations at Informa Markets, the show’s organizer, said the economic impact would be substantial for Las Vegas.

“Conventions bring an estimated $11 billion annually to Las Vegas, and those like World of Concrete create thousands of jobs supporting local hotels, restaurants, retailers, and entertainment, among others,” he said in a release.

Contact Richard N. Velotta at rvelotta@reviewjournal.com or 702-477-3893. Follow @RickVelotta on Twitter.