PUTTING ON THE BITS

After a few questions, they left but the sales representatives were unruffled.

"It’s all part of the business," one said.

At another booth, one for air filters, they were giving a demonstration of what the unit was capable of. Asked what was the market response to their products, the Mel Mac official said things had picked up as people were seeing the virtues of breathing clean air.

At Trinidad Aggregate Products, company representative Nicole Pouchet was giving an insight into their clay roof tiles while CEO Trevor Townsend looked on.

You wanted it, BITS had it.

The consensus among the local and regional business people who took part in the 2005 Building and Interiors Trade Show (BITS), which was held at the Centre of Excellence in Macoya last week, was that BITS had become part of the local business landscape.

Managing Director of Premier Events Caribbean, Brian Stollmeyer, in an interview, said he was very pleased with both the participation of businesses in this year’s BITS and the number of persons who visited the show.

Stollmeyer, whose company has been responsible for organising the show since its inception in 2002, said it was always very challenging to organise BITS, noting that the annual estimated cost stands at about $2 million. The cost of renting floor space at BITS ranged from $11,000 to $15,000.

"All of these efforts are worth every red cent because the number of participating businesses and visitors has been growing since 2002 by respective averages of 25 percent annually," he said.

Stollmeyer added that he was very pleased to see that the number of regional companies participating this year had grown from 2004 and this augurs well for the continued development of business opportunities in TT.

He also saw it as an opportunity for local entrepreneurs to expand their networks through partnerships with regional businesses.

One local business which has already taken the lead in this regard is Phoenix Resources, which was responsible for introducing the US-based Quikrete Group of Companies to the local market The company uses a high grade of concrete for industrial and domestic purposes which is exported to Puerto Rico and Canada.

Company manager, Alfred Awai, said he returned to TT some three years ago from the US and saw BITS as an important avenue through which Quikrete could enter the local market.

Awai noted that given the high-level of construction activity taking place in TT today, and especially in the energy sector, Quikrete entered the market at the right time.

Waterex water coolers from Trinidad Ceramic Ltd were also drawing a crowd.

Company sales representative Mark Jagessar indicated that these $8,000 water coolers have been on the market for the last six months and are being widely used in several of the nation’s commercial banks.

Jagessar explained that what sets Waterex above many of the conventional water coolers on the market is the fact that it produces water directly from the air via a reverse osmosis process. Jagessar said this significantly reduces the inconvenience of "buying water refills, storing used and unused water bottles and troublesome piping."

He added that Waterex, because of its reverse osmosis process, significantly reduces the risk of water-borne diseases, noting that the water it produces can be compared to "crystal-like dew found only on the mountain-tops." For those persons who own large agricultural estates, have a passion for landscaping or the great outdoors, the FT Farfan booth was the place to be. The RTV-900 All-Terrain Vehicle sitting outside at the front of the booth was proof enough that BITS was working.

One company representative described BITS as one of the best trade shows in the country today and said they got a lot of "serious inquiries" about their products and saw opportunities for new business during the first two days of the trade show.

Given the increasing emphasis on personal safety and security these days, local security firms have also found BITS to provide the perfect platform for them to showcase their products and seek out new clients.

At the Secure It Security Solutions booth, BITS visitors were able to examine a wide variety of bulletproof and bomb-resistant types of glass which company officials said are very much in demand — both commercially and domestically.

Their products can be found in a lot of commercial banks and exclusive residential buildings such as the apartment and condominium complexes in the Westmoorings area.

Doors Solutions spokeswoman, Judy Gokhool, was also high in praise for BITS, noting it gave numerous opportunities for the company to showcase its automatic doors, locks, flashlights and motor vehicle lights, which it manufactures. Door Solutions is responsible for the automatic doors installed on several public buildings in TT such as the Piarco International Airport and the National Library in Port-of-Spain. Several of the flashlights which the company produces also have a myriad of commercial applications, including the directing of aircraft on the ground at Piarco and Crown Point International Airports

With BITS 2005 now history, Stollmeyer said plans are already being developed for the staging of BITS 2006 at the Centre of Excellence from October 6 to 8, 2006. Stollmeyer added that he had every confidence that next year’s BITS would build upon the successes of this year’s show.