Over the course of the trade show week, I averaged almost 17,000 steps per day. Indeed, the 2026 CONEXPO/CON-AGG exhibition was absolutely massive, but I took advantage of their (slow and infrequent) lot shuttles. In most cases, it would have been faster to walk, but I made the rookie error of wearing dress shoes on day one. That mistake aside, this show is so large that I’d say very few people could have visited every exhibitor.
Overall, the show was great, and it’s clear that mobile hydraulic machinery is transitioning to electrification, albeit more slowly than one might think. I did see some trends and made some observations, so here are the top five things I learned at the 2026 CONEXPO trade show:
- Electrification of hydraulics is moving away from analog electronics and into digital electronics. The proliferation of Controller Area Networks (CAN) is increasingly popular, and the future is digital. Each node in the system, whether a valve controller or a pressure transducer, will now be its own microcomputer that accepts programming signals and also outputs whatever data is asked of it. We no longer need a centralized CPU to handle every input and output. Whether Bluetooth or CAN, these systems skip traditional analog outputs such as 4-20 mA, reducing wiring to and from each individual valve, pump, or sensor.
- Robots are everywhere, and now they’re hydraulic. Various OEMs offered both remote-controlled and autonomous hydraulic robots, with brush mowers appearing to be a popular option for many. I also saw robotic drilling, material handling, forklifts, and ditch-digging machines. Hydac, in particular, displayed their robotic mini-excavator prototype, which used a combination of linear and angle sensors to allow full automation.
- Hydraulic cylinders are still king. Everywhere I went, manufacturers offered technologies that replaced wheel-drive systems or various versions of electrically driven hydraulic pumps. However, despite technological advancements, electric linear actuators remain bulky, slow, and underpowered. Sure, they operate independently of a centralized hydraulic pump, but a hydraulic (or air) cylinder is about as perfect a linear actuator as can be.
- Wires will soon be a thing of the past. I realized this when I was discussing the Bluetooth pressure transducers one exhibitor offered. They offer live, accurate pressure readings, and the free app logs data such as peak pressure, average pressure, and the number of cycles, all powered by a watch battery with a three-month lifespan. Why supply even a digital servo valve with four CAN wires when it can be powered by advanced lithium batteries and controlled wirelessly?
- Hydraulic machinery is going nowhere, perhaps ever. Despite all the electric technology at the show, the vast majority of the machines were traditional hydraulics operated by electric valves. The all-electric machines were few and far between, and mostly offered by startups with less experience in the mobile machinery realm. Despite me poking my nose into as many undercarriages and open panels as I could, there was an overwhelming presence of hydraulic valve manifolds, electroproportional sectional valves, and a surprising number of lever valves.
Sure, most machines now eschew traditional panels of switchgear and pressure gauges in favor of digital displays and HMI panels, but the machines are otherwise fundamentally hydraulic. I found that most manufacturers displayed their advanced technology from a “look at what we can do” perspective, but when I dug deeper, many admitted none of their customers are currently using it.
Despite missing the event during the 2020 COVID year and just being too busy to attend in 2023, I will definitely be back in three years for the 2029 show. There is so much to see, and technology is moving too quickly for me to miss another show. Do you think it’s too early for me to book a daybed at the Circa Stadium Swim?
