TCI EXPO, TCIA’s annual conference and trade show, will be held in person this fall, November 4-6, in Indianapolis, Indiana. In lieu of a full product profile this month, we’re giving you a peak at the product-debut platform, the TCI Magazine Unboxing Ring, that will be in the TCI Magazine booth on the show floor.
While you’re creating your schedule for TCI EXPO 2021, be sure to pencil yourself into the front row of the TCI Magazine Unboxing Ring. This is the new-product demonstration area that will feature seven new or recently released products from various exhibitors on the trade-show floor. Over the course of three days, each of these hand-held products will be “unboxed” and reviewed, usually by a third-party end user not affiliated with the manufacturer brand. This keeps everything from turning into a commercial, so you and your fellow attendees can form your own opinions about the products.
As an example, one of the newer products you’ll get to see up close is the Petzl Eject friction saver. Yeah, it might catch the eye of more gear heads than cordage aficionados, but stop by anyway and take a look – just so you can see for yourself what all the fuss is about. Even if you just marvel at the engineering, you’ll probably gain a little bit of appreciation for this device.
So, the reviewer will open the packaging and give their first impression as they remove the Eject. Is it heavy? Light? Well made? The reviewer will walk you through their brain as they examine the device for maybe the first time. Then they will read through the instructions (ahead of time, so we don’t have to watch their lips move) and install it on the demo-area truss. As they do so, you’ll get to see if it looks simple or complex, and to mentally run your system through it to spark your imagination.
Then the reviewer will saddle up and put it through the rigors of an indoor tree-climbing simulation at a dizzying elevation, possibly as high as 15 feet off the ground. How will the Eject perform? Most attendees will be completely amazed at how smooth the pulley action is in lowering a climber. But that’s for you to decide. Stick around and get your questions answered, as well as personalized instruction on the Eject and all the other new products that will be featured in the TCI Magazine Unboxing Ring over the three days of TCI EXPO.
The TCI Magazine Unboxing Ring will be open from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Thursday and Friday, and from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday. Be sure to check the on-site program for a schedule of featured products.
Tchukki Andersen, CTSP and Board Certified Master Arborist (BCMA), is staff arborist for the Tree Care Industry Association. Andersen also manages and oversees the product-selection process for the Unboxing Ring.
