The third and final (for a while) Las Vegas edition of Design & Construction Week lumbered into Sin City Jan. 19-22, jamming a quartet of major industry shows under one roof: the National Kitchen & Bath Association’s Kitchen & Bath Industry Show; the National Association of Home Builders’ International Builders’ Show; plus the International Window Coverings Expo and the International Surface Event.
The mega-happening enticed an estimated 110,000 attendees to view the wares from more than 2,500 exhibitors spread out over 1.2 million sq. ft. of exhibit hall space.
The KBIS segment of the event included 531 exhibitors, while estimates put KBIS 2016 attendance up more than 10% compared to last year’s tally. Observers said this indicated “continued positive growth” for the kitchen and bath industry.
“The NKBA is proud to support Design and Construction Week as the kitchen and bath industry’s vibrant business forum,” said NKBA CEO Bill Darcy. “The outstanding programming, top-notch learning opportunities, and the enthusiastic support of all our exhibitors at KBIS contribute to the event’s success and help us to fulfill our association mission to educate, inform, collaborate and inspire.”
One of the many highlights of Design & Construction Week was the 16th annual Crystal Vision Awards Breakfast, put on by the folks at the Storehouse of World Vision, a humanitarian organization dedicated to tackling the causes of poverty worldwide. The keynoter was John B. Norris, managing director and founder of Oakworth Capital Bank, who said the good news in today’s economy is we’re creating jobs: “We’re not creating high-paying jobs, [but] we’re creating jobs.”
The recipient of this year’s Crystal Vision Partnership Award was Moen. President David Lingafelter accepted the trophy on behalf of his company. The Lifetime Achievement Award went to Bob Atkins, former president of Grohe USA. Atkins has worked with the Storehouse of World Vision for more than 20 years and is one of the founders of the annual Crystal Vision Award event. Meanwhile, the group’s 2016 Crystal Vision Award went to ProVia, a supplier of doors, windows and manufactured stone.
Design & Construction Week doesn’t return to Las Vegas until 2019. Next year’s event will be held Jan. 10-12 in Orlando, Fla. Check out www.kbis.com for information on that show, or bookmark www.designandconstructionweek.com for updates and the latest information on the whole event.
