As soon as PAVE/X 2026 was announced, and we learned that it would be taking place in New Orleans, LA, during the week of Mardi Gras, a certain chill ran down our collective spines. I was immediately confronted by all the cultural imagery and alluring expectations that I've been fed over the last four decades about the tradition. However, during my week at the annual Pavement Experience, as the industry gathered to see what was new, all my personal preconceived notions about the colorful celebration were obliterated, and I found a new favorite city.
Brandon Noel
"Year three in New Orleans was a powerful reminder of what happens when this industry comes together with purpose," Jessica Lombardo, Director of Event Content and Programming, and one of the co-founders of PAVE/X, told me.
"The education was deeper, the conversations were stronger, and the momentum is undeniable. PAVE/X continues to grow, and we’re thankful for everyone who helped make New Orleans unforgettable. We can’t wait to see you in Savannah in 2027!"
With everyone bracing for CONEXPO just around the corner, there were more than a few people concerned about maintaining that momentum that followed the show into year two's stop in Chattanooga, TN. By day two, however, with expanded education and show floor hours, and two live contractor competitions in a Roller Rodeo (sponsored by HAMM) and a striper race and obstacle course (sponsored by Graco and 1-800 Stencils).
"Pave/X 2026 did not disappoint! With one hundred forty participating exhibitors and thousands of contractors in attendance from all over the nation, New Orleans brought more excitement than ever before," reported Amy Schwandt, chief revenue officer, and another co-founder of the show.
"Our addition of outdoor demonstration competitions was an amazing experience boasting camaraderie, fierce competitiveness and the ultimate challenge. The show floor was buzzing with excitement and the equipment giveaways were an incredible addition on the final day."
Highlights From The Show Room Floor
One of the more technical conversations I had was with Bill Ganger of Cimline about crack sealing standards, FAA advisory circulars, and whether emerging applications like J-Band and VRAM will make it into airport specifications.
Brandon Noel
For context, FAA Advisory Circular AC 150 includes Section P-602, which governs crack sealing on airfield pavements. That specification dictates what materials and methods are acceptable on runways. Contractors who understand it are immediately ahead of the game.
The takeaway was simple: airports are tightly controlled environments. You cannot just “try something new” on an active runway. It must go through formal approval. But the data supporting J-Band, V-RAM, and similar applications is strong. According to Ganger, it is not a question of if inclusion happens, but when.
If these preservation techniques can reliably extend pavement life by fifteen years or more, that has serious implications for federally funded twenty-year runway cycles. For contractors who understand specifications and can speak that language confidently, it is competitive advantage.
But who is systematically teaching contractors how to read ASTM data sheets? How to interpret elongation values? How to understand melting points versus application temperatures? Most contractors buy crack seal based on price or habit. Few fully understand the differences between road-grade and parking lot-grade materials, or how elongation percentages directly affect performance in turning traffic.
Brandon Noel
Even fewer companies formally train operators using owner’s manuals, SDS documentation, and machine-specific procedures. And that is where liability lives.
The message was clear: crack filling is not one-size-fits-all. Road-grade material designed for 55 mph rolling traffic does not belong in an abrading parking lot. If contractors are going to elevate performance and protect themselves legally, education must become non-negotiable.
There is opportunity here for manufacturers, associations, and even media to step into that gap.
Pickleball Is Not “Just Paint”
Sports surfacing continues to explode, and my conversation with Sean Martin reinforced something I’ve heard repeatedly: this is not a side hustle you bolt onto your sealcoating crew.
A properly installed pickleball or tennis court is a system. It involves surface inspection, planarity correction, layered resurfacers, aggregate blends, multiple coating applications, and hand-applied striping. A standard court may involve four layers. Cushion systems can reach nine.
And that is just new construction.
Alessandra Crawford
Could a pavement contractor enter this space? Absolutely. The skill set transfers. But the mindset must change. This is detail-driven, multi-day work. It is not three parking lots before lunch.
The encouraging part: there are good-better-best system tiers. Contractors can scale offerings to customer budgets. And the residential demand is real. Courts costing $30,000 to $50,000 are going into backyards across America.
Nothing about this "fad" seems to be showing any signs of slowing down. That makes it a bonafide revenue stream that every contractor should, at the very least, be having conversations about at this point.
Clean Streets = Cleaner Water
Street sweeping rarely gets the spotlight, but the Clean Streets = Cleaner Water initiative is trying to change that.
"This project focuses on aligning street sweeping with best practices in stormwater management," said Joe Hendrickson, Group Vice President of Sales and Marketing for Alamo Companies including Schwarze Sweepers.
"There's been a disconnect with many areas not understanding the value of sweeping and how it contributes to the MS4 goals and to the reduction of pollutants. It's really cool to see all these entities coming together with a passion to understand more and bring awareness into the stormwater management community so we can help, and make the world is a better place as a result."
Brandon Noel
The initiative aligns sweeping practices with MS4 stormwater compliance goals. Municipalities over 100,000 residents are federally mandated to manage stormwater runoff. Sweeping can significantly reduce pollutant loads before they ever enter drainage systems.
What struck me most was the coalition itself. Major manufacturers including Schwarze, Elgin, Tymco, and Stewart-Amos, alongside organizations like NMSA and 1-800-Sweeper, are collaborating rather than competing.
That kind of alignment signals a big shift in the sweeping industry, and, perhaps, of more of this type of cooperation going forward in the development of future standards, data driven engineering and design, as well as, larger industry-wide contributions. Most importantly for this new coalition, though, is that if municipalities can meet MS4 goals more cost-effectively through optimized sweeping, that creates long-term, sustainable demand.
Construction Angels And The Cost of Complacency
Perhaps the most sobering conversation I had during the whole week was at the LeeBoy booth with Kristi Ronyak, CEO and founder of Construction Angels.
Brandon Noel
Construction Angels provides immediate financial assistance to families who lose a loved one on a jobsite. One of the biggest things that stood out to me from our conversation was the fact that, on average, 3.5 construction workers are killed each day in the United States. In the last two years, a greater majority of the cases they assisted involved roadway workers struck by vehicles.
We talk often about productivity, margins, and growth. But work zone safety is not abstract. Cameras, enforcement, better signage, and education are not taxes, though, on the political front, they are often construed as such. From Ronyak and the Construction Angels' perspective, they are accountability.
"Some contractors have police officers in their work zone with the lights going on and everything to [protect] their workers. But they could save that cost if they just invested one time in a work zone camera and [options] that they can move. I mean, it's not just from one job site, you know? Some of these companies are dealing with multiple job sites all over."
Leeboy sold a specially branded Construction Angels 6150 model paver to Kenny Floyd of Seminole Asphalt, supporting the charity's efforts to uplift families who've recently suffered a loss.
Where Automation And Iteration Combine
I first met the team behind 10Lines two years ago, when they were still in the early days of contractor testing their machines in real-world scenarios here in the United States. Their striping robot was already impressive then, but they've absolutely taken it to the next level.
Brandon Noel
Rather than resting on their growing success, they've continued to iterate and improve the design and features based on the feedback they've received from the early-adopters who've seen the machine work in the field day-in and day-out.
Some of the upgrades they've made include the deployment of an all-new remote control that is primarily used for safety and positioning for the on-site human user. They've also added specially designed, multi-spray nozzles that can now hold two colors (original model was limited to a single color at a time), and adjust its parallel line width while preventing overspray and bleed.
But 10Lines doesn't leave behind the early-adopting contractors in the same way that often happens with new tech products. Their striping robot is built to be completely modular. That means that if a single function or part of the robot breaks down it can be replaced, but, more importantly, if future add-on features are released (like the dual color system), they can be added retroactively to an existing unit rather than having to buy a completely new platform.
Also, you can now try their striping layout software for FREE: 10Lines.app/register
The Big Picture In The Big Easy
Did you know that Mardi Gras isn't just Fat Tuesday? Maybe you did, but I didn't. I didn't know that it was a multi-week celebration. I didn't know that it was more than one parade, and that sometimes there are more than a single parade in the same day! Bourbon Street? I never even set foot there. Didn't have to. The parades wind their way down through the city from the outer neighborhoods where the local residents live, and then into the more touristy parts where it ends.
I waited too long to hitch an Uber to the PAVE/X after party, and by the time I tried to get there, the parade had split the city in half. When I set out on foot from the riverfront on my two mile journey, I had no idea what I was in for.
Brandon Noel
Somewhere past the World War Two museum, I made a wrong turn down a side street and realized that I was walking broad-side into the parade route. I stopped, pulled out my phone, and did the thing that visitors do. I took some video. When I put it away and turned to continue on my trek, with another 1.1 miles to go, what unfolded was nothing short of a life changing experience.
While I'm sure there is plenty of truth to the type of Mardi Gras that pop culture present us with, none of that was present here. I was walking through a multi-racial, multi-generational, multi-political, multi-spectrum vision of what I think America can be when it's at its best.
I didn't expect to see young families with their little children running around, chasing floats, and impromptu dance parties in the street when a large gap between them opened up. I didn't expect to see grandparents manning tailgate tables, handing out food to anyone walking by, between laughing and more dancing.
This was a family. This was a community. Celebrating itself. And here I was in the middle of it. An interloper, a stranger, and a wide-eyed observer. But to finally reach the party, and join up with the other PAVE/X revelers, I had to BECOME a part of the parade. Well, at least, for a moment.
My last obstacle, and the enduring element of my experience this year at the trade show, was realizing that I had to do, as I watched many locals do, and cross the parade between the oncoming acts of jazz quartets, dancing go-go dads, and high school marching bands. Even if only for a moment, I was in the Mardi Gras parade.
So, if I can leave you with one message, loud and clear: Don't miss next year!
