DETROIT – Organizers of the 146th National Guard Association of the United States (NGAUS) NGAUS Convention & Expo, held earlier this week at the Huntington Square Convention Center in Detroit, had reason to celebrate. Of the 330 total exhibitors, 138 were new, or about 42 percent. Those exhibitors included not only companies from the industry, “but also exhibitors that we thought attendees would like to see on the show floor,” said Jim Simms, CW5 (retired), conference coordinator.
New entrants include companies such as Bluedrop USA, which provides state-of-the-art virtual and augmented reality technologies for training purposes, and Compliant Technologies, which develops non-lethal solutions for law enforcement, corrections, security, and healthcare professionals to respond to dangerous situations.
Simms said advance preparation was key to attracting so many new exhibitors. “NGAUS begins reaching out to our corporate partners and other military industry leaders a year before the conference,” he said. “We accomplish this through correspondence and by contacting our trade show sales company about other similar conferences and vendors they attend.”
An artificial intelligence tool on the event app called NGAUS AI Navigator was very useful, according to attendees. Developed by show organizer Tradeshow Logic, Navigator allows attendees to ask questions about conferences and trade shows, including booths and event logistics.
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Highlights were a video address from President Joe Biden and a live speech from former President and 2024 Republican nominee Donald Trump. (Vice President Kamala Harris also received an invite.)
Since 1992, the association has hosted at least one candidate for the nation’s highest office from a major U.S. political party in every presidential election year.
“NAGUS has featured many different speakers in the past, including elected officials, senior military leaders and industry leaders,” Sims said. “Each speaker brings perspectives on a variety of topics for our National Guard officers to advance their military careers.”
Also on stage were GoDaddy founder Bob Parsons, who told the audience his Marine career made him a better businessman, as well as Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, Rep. John James, R-Mich., and Sen. Gary Peters, D-Mich.
Contact Jim Simms at james.simms@ngaus.org
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