Suitcases packed, chocolates in tow — our U.S. team hit the road this summer for a whirlwind tour of EHS conferences, expos, and safety fairs in Texas and Louisiana. From San Antonio’s convention halls to Port Arthur’s contractor awards, it felt a little like a summer road trip (just with more lanyards and fewer beach stops).

Here’s the lowdown of where we went, who we met, and what we overheard along the way.

June: A double kick-off at Texas’ EHS conferences

First week of June, and we didn’t just dip our toes in — we jumped right in with two events at once:

• TCEQ Environmental Trade Fair & Conference, San Antonio
• TCC EHS Seminar & Industry Tradeshow, Galveston

Between the two, it was all about great conversations — plenty with long-time customers exploring new modules, plus new faces curious about what TenForce could bring to their sites.

What we heard buzzing around the halls:

• Companies are moving faster than ever to shed assets.
• OSHA’s heat stress ruling is coming and already sparking discussions.
• Emergency response teams want more from technology, like live location tracking with weather overlays for sharper incident response.

Oh, and swag? The crown goes to Creole seasoning (unexpected, delicious, and making a regular appearance in our sales team’s dinners ever since).

Special shout-out to our booth neighbors in Galveston, Smash My Trash. Totally different line of work, but they kept the laughs coming. Every road trip (and long day on the tradeshow floor) needs good neighbors!

June: Flipping the Tradeshow format in Louisiana

End of June, we crossed state lines into Louisiana for the Louisiana Chemical Association Reverse Tradeshow, a key EHS networking event in Louisiana. And this event flipped the script: instead of waiting for attendees to come by, we got to walk right up and pitch to the companies we wanted.

No booth to decorate — just direct conversations with exactly the right people. A nice pit stop on our summer circuit.

August: Houston-area EHS fairs with BIC and GTBR

By August, we were back in Texas for the final leg:

• BIC PRIME Expo, Pasadena – a major Houston-area EHS expo
• GTBR Contractor Safety Awards, Port Arthur – one of the longest-running EHS safety award events in Texas

At BIC PRIME, conversations leaned toward scaling TenForce across multiple sites; proof that once companies start, they want more!

Then, in Port Arthur, Dylan joined the 34th Annual GTBR Contractor Safety Awards. Short and sweet, this event celebrated the safest contractors in the region.

September: Closing out the season in style

Our US team closed out the summer the Texas way! With smoke in the air, BBQ on the plate, and good company at the Pasadena Rodeo Cook-Off. In the Steel Toe Saloon, the brisket was slow smoked, the music kept toes tapping, and friends caught up over cold drinks. The only debate louder than the bands? Which BBQ team had the best ribs.

It’s the chemical industry’s go-to spot for mixing business with fun, and this year’s bigger tent didn’t disappoint. Great BBQ, great company, and that unmistakable Pasadena rodeo energy — we couldn’t have asked for a better way to round out the season.

Trends we’re taking with us

After miles of travel and more than a few empty chocolate boxes, here are the themes we kept hearing:

• Digital permits are on everyone’s mind. Most companies are standardizing permits first, then moving to digitization.
• Heat stress is top of mind as OSHA tightens the rules.
• Sustainability + efficiency are driving companies to invest in EHSQ systems like TenForce.

Didn’t catch us this summer?

We’ll be back on the road soon, but until then, you can replay our recent BIC Alliance webinar: How Integrated EHS Software Replaces Spreadsheets to Improve Safety. It’s not quite as fun as meeting in person (and there are no chocolates, sorry), but it’s still a great way to see what TenForce can do (and what our U.S. team is all about).

See you at the next stop!