InfraStructures - October 2005 - SWIFT Conference 2005

SWIFT Conference 2005

The annual SWIFT Conference was held in Toronto last September hosted by the Greater Toronto Airport Authority (GTAA). This event brings together engineers, management, operations and vendor personnel involved with airfield maintenance, repair and operation.

Having selected Toronto was a first for this event, which is usually based in Calgary. The SWIFT Conference is acknowledged to be the largest gathering for the industry on the continent. Also this year, the triennial equipment display portion was held with over a hundred varied pieces of specialty machinery available for examination.

The show tries to focus attention on new and emergent practices and technology to improve airport operations, from crash response to snow removal. A variety of vendors representing surface material to thawing agent manufacturers were also strongly represented. By far the largest focus was on winter maintenance practices, including the J.A. Larue and R.P.M. Tech snowblowers, Schmidt plows and spreaders, and Eco-Solutions De-icing products, as well as on emergency vehicle such as the Oshkosh Striker.

Numerous lectures, industry forums and guest speakers were held at the Toronto Delta Chelsea Hotel and Conference Centre in conjunction with the equipment display.

The event, co-ordinated by Eagle Airfield Ltd. of Campbellford, Ontario was very well attended and organized. Daily attendance for the conference was estimated at 450 per day, reaching a peak on Tuesday of over 600 for the opening of the equipment show.

Report: Rob Holden, HESS