Trade Show Visitors Note New Load Cell as Straightpoint Targets Aggressive U.S. Growth

Load monitoring technology specialist Straightpoint has put a series of North American trade shows and conferences at the forefront of a five-year growth strategy to expand its U.S. business by 20-30% annually.

David Ayling, director of Straightpoint (left), and John Molidor, the general manager of the U.S. subsidiary at the recent Associated Wire Rope Fabricators’ (AWRF) Product Information Exhibition.

Straightpoint Inc., a subsidiary of the U.K. company, has spent the last few months showcasing force measurement, load monitoring and suspended weighing load cells at a series of trade shows and industry networking events with visitors taking particular interest in the new version of the Radiolink Plus wireless tension load cell.
The Associated Wire Rope Fabricators (AWRF) Product Information Exhibition (PIE) earlier this month (October) concluded a run of five trade events in six weeks, which included the Slingmax Conference & Major Products Information (SCAMPI), an open house at Mazzella, the Crane & Rigging Conference Canada and the Specialized Carriers & Rigging Association (SC&RA) Crane & Rigging Workshop. Straightpoint Inc. will also have a presence at other conferences and exhibitions before the end of the year including NACB’s annual Professional Development Conference in Las Vegas next month (November).
David Ayling, director of Straightpoint, said: “We’ve moved to a new U.S. premises in Camarillo, California and welcomed three new staff. It is important that we support this growth by giving existing and potential customers a brand they can identify with, which is a slow but meaningful process involving an ongoing presence at the right trade shows and events. It is no secret that we want to expand further and have additional facilities, starting with one in the Houston area. We have the products to achieve that growth.”

Straightpoint Inc. has spent recent months showcasing force measurement, load monitoring and suspended weighing load cells.

Straightpoint’s new Radiolink Plus wireless tension load cell includes a new chassis and circuitry in a more streamlined shape, making it even more robust and practical than before. The design achieves IP67 protection even with the battery cover missing, which is ideal for use in marine and offshore conditions. Additionally, the battery section now boasts reverse polarity protection, shielding the product from damage if the batteries are inserted the wrong way.
Ayling is frank about his vision for the company to become synonymous with the safe and accurate measuring of loads in the U.S. and across the world and, to this end, he reiterated the importance of maintaining a presence at the industry’s leading and most well-respected trade events.
Working in close collaboration with Straightpoint Inc. general manager John Molidor the pair plot their trade show strategy in line with a set of criteria and Ayling revealed they look favorably on the co-location of a product exhibition with a conference or educational sessions.
“We find conferences attract the right kind of audience,” he explained. “Attendees tend to be people with open minds who want to educate themselves. If they show a willingness to learn it often means that they are more engaged in the industry than simply choosing product based on price. We prefer smaller, niche exhibitions with educational seminars available onsite.”
Ayling has another set of criteria that he uses retrospectively to judge a trade show. For example, if he picks up a new distributor for Straightpoint equipment and spends time with four or five existing distributors, that is typically enough to mark it down as a worthwhile investment of the company’s time and money.
Based on this, he singled out the SC&RA Crane & Rigging Workshop for special praise: “It was our first SC&RA event as an exhibitor and we were impressed on a number of levels. It gave us a real sense of the size of the organization and how important it could become to achieving our growth targets for Straightpoint Inc.”
Ayling added: “It was very well attended but everything worked like clockwork. From the exhibition area to functions and events in the evenings, we were given the tools to interact with key people in an environment conducive to networking and introducing our products and services to a receptive, interested audience. We definitely plan to be at the 2015 Crane & Rigging Workshop in Denver next September.”