Many people seem to be counting this year's Gear Expo in Nashville as a resounding success. There were 180 American and international exhibitors occupying over 50,000 square feet of exhibit space in the Nashville Convention Center, with total attendance of 2,700. This figure is dramatically down from past shows but that doesn't seem to be an issue with the show organizers. According to Kurt Medert, vice president of AGMA;s Administrative Division, even though attendance was off from the 1997 show, the exhibitors were pleased with the quality of the people who did come to the show. "This was an excellent show for us," said Marty Woodhouse, vice president of sales for Star Cutter Company and chairman of AGMA's Gear Expo committee. "Our customer base was there and they came to buy. It was very active."

We've contacted many of the gear industry's leading suppliers to find out what they'll be showing at Gear Expo 99. Booth numbers are current as of July 31, 1999, but they are subject to change. A current list of exhibitors and booth information is available at the AGMA Web site at www.agma.org.

Thousands of gear industry professionals will converge October 24-27 in Nashville, TN, for Gear Expo 99, the industry's biennial collection of the latest in gear manufacturing technology. With nearly 50,000 square feet of exhibit space sold more than two months in advance of the show, this year's Gear Expo will offer visitors more opportunity for supplier comparison than ever before. As of July 20, 166 suppliers of equipment, tooling, services and precision gear products were scheduled to participate, with as many as 20 additional booths yet to be sold, according to AGMA vice president and Gear Expo show manager Kurt Medert. The largest previous Gear Expo was held in 1997 in Detroit, with 43,100 square feet of exhibit space and 161 exhibitors.