Compact Equipment’s Bauma Photo Travelog

When air traffic was brought to a halt at the London Heathrow Airport, and throughout Europe, many journalists heading to the world’s largest industry trade show in Munich, Germany, gave up hope and headed home. But not the CE media crew! Managing Editor Keith Gribbins  (pictured above) led Stavros, official CE Photographer and IT guru, and Janeen  McGilicutty, CE documentarian and biographer, into the black unknown of the Volcanic ash via an old crop-dusting bi-plane piloted by Captain Cid. While the calls were close and the time was fleeting, the CE crew landed safely in the back lot of the Bauma outdoor exhibit (narrowly missing the forest of cranes and construction machines) and hit the ground running.

Here are the latest photos from Day One at Bauma. Expect more tomorrow from the only American journalists at Bauma.

The JCB Dancing Diggers performed musical machine ballet at their outside booth all day long.

The elusive wheeled bobcat excavator, a machine breed we don’t get to see in America.

A few times a day at the Caterpillar indoor both, these amazing acrobatic performers would take the stage, jumping on trampolines, climbing walls and hanging from ropes.

At the Volvo outdoor both, huge excavators and wheel loaders put on a (dirt) moving show for attendees.

Bauma is truly an international show — even the Japanese are impressed with Perkins Engines.

Avanth makes euro-style, sit-on compact utility loaders. Gehl now reps these in America, but these green avants are the european versions.

Snapped this pic during a rare lull at the Cummins indoor booth.

A volcano might not have been the best image, considering the travel difficutly, but at trade shows, you go with what you got.

A bunch of guys leaping onto an extended Wacker Neuson compact telehandler — only germans are so brave (or crazy). DO NOT TRY THIS AT HOME!

An overview shot of the Hitachi outdoor booth at Bauma.

Spanish manufacturer Ausa displays rough terrain fork lifts and dedicated dumpers at its outdoor booth. These guys keep trying to infiltrate the american market — i actually visited their facilities in Spain a few years ago — and we hope to see more of them in the states