The gigantic marathon of a construction trade show, the World of Concrete, has sadly come and gone already, but the winners of the annual contest for the show’s Most Innovative Products has just been announced!
Every year, Hanley Wood administers the awards and this year’s contest featured 8 different categories: Business Tools & Technology, Concrete Construction Equipment, Materials for Concrete Construction, Surfaces & Decorative Equipment & Materials, Production and Delivery Equipment, Slab Tools/Equipment and Materials, General Construction Tools & Equipment, Repair/Demolition Materials, Tools & Equipment.
Most of the categories listed above contained 3 winners: Expert’s choice, chosen by a panel of industry experts; Editor’s Choice, chosen by the editors of Concrete Construction, and Industry’s Choice, chosen by World of Concrete attendees.
The winners of each category are listed below. I’ll highlight a few of the items that I was personally able to see at the show this year, but for more details on all of the winners, check out the Most Innovative Products website by clicking or tapping here.
General Construction Tools & Equipment
Expert’s Choice: Milwaukee Tool, The MX FUEL™ Equipment System
Late last year, Milwaukee announced their new innovative line of battery powered light equipment called MX Fuel. We’re talking a 14” cut off saw, a full size breaker, a handheld core drill, and a few others!
Editor’s Choice: Honeywell Safety and Productivity Solutions, Honeywell VeriShield™ Smart Hearing Solution
Industry Choice: Makinex Construction Products, Portable 23kw 480V Generator
Repair/Demolition Materials, Tools & Equipment
Expert’s Choice: CustomTech A Division of Custom Building Products, TechLevel™ WSF Fiber Reinforced Self-Leveling Underlayment
Editor’s Choice: Robert Bosch Tool Corporation, X-LOCK 18V EC Brushless Connected-Ready 4-1/2 In. Angle Grinder with No-Lock-On Paddle Switch
Bosch has changed the accessory changing game before with the Starlock system for oscillating multi-tools, but they have most recently launched a new type of blade change mechanism for grinders, called X-Lock. It was previewed at the 20019 World of Concrete, but it’s available now and many 3rd party companies are also developing accessories to fit the new technology. You can see how it works below:
Industry Choice: Hilti, Cordless Breaker TE 500-A36
Hilti’s big news from the World of Concrete was the announcement of what they’re calling the “World’s First Cordless Breaker.” It uses Hilti’s 36V battery platform and unleashes 5.58 foot-pounds of impact energy with impacts reaching 3300 per minute. Active Vibration Reduction incorporated within the design of the tool also reduces user fatigue.
Business Tools & Technology
Expert’s Choice: Kryton International Inc., Maturix Smart Concrete Sensors
Editor’s Choice: ExakTime Innovations, Learning Management System
Industry Choice: Wagner Meters, Rapid RH L6 Concrete Moisture Test
Concrete Construction Equipment
Expert’s Choice: Wacker Neuson, ACBe Battery-Powered Backpack Vibrator
Editor’s Choice: Allen, 2424 VLP - Versatile Light Paver
Industry Choice: Warrior Equipment, Samson WE-3543 Barbarian RC
Materials for Concrete Construction
Expert’s Choice: Hengelhoef Concrete Joints, E-slide watertight joint
Editor’s Choice: Euclid Chemical, Eucon Baracade WPT
Industry Choice: Alchemco, TechCrete 2500 Waterproofing Agent
Surfaces & Decorative Equipment & Materials
Expert’s Choice: The Concrete Protector, Hydropolish
Editor’s Choice: Rust-Oleum, Concrete Saver® Hard Surface Primer
Industry Choice: Specialty Products, Inc., LPG Electronically-driven concrete raising cart
Production and Delivery Equipment
Industry’s Choice: Pathfinder Systems, TIGER's Wireless Rack Crawler
Slab Tools/Equipment and Materials
Expert’s Choice: Marion Brush Mfg. Co., The Bullfrog Trac II M-Series
Editor’s Choice: Dragon Screed, DS-34 Telehandler Screed
Industry Choice: Ligchine, SpiderScreed
Shane is the creator of Construction Junkie and an active construction project manager. In his career, he has managed interior remodel projects, site development, construction safety, governmental project compliance, and facility maintenance. He has a strong passion for construction technology and safety, as well as sharing the knowledge or insights he has gained throughout his career.