Session Sneak Peek! From Reactive to Proactive: Why Maintenance Matters for Every Contractor At CONEXPO-CON/AGG 2026

When it comes to running a construction business, few things hinder performance like unplanned downtime. Too many shops continue to rely on reactive solutions but waiting until equipment fails is not sustainable in today’s market.  

As schedules become more complex, maintenance has become one of the defining factors in whether projects stay on time. 

The Future of Maintenance: Insights from Tech Leaders in Equipment Solutions, the opening session at the hands-on Shop Talks & Walks Workshop, is a must-see for contractors who want to do more with their time. The session will be carried out by three industry leaders demonstrating firsthand experiences tackling downtime in their respective companies.  

We caught up with the speakers to discuss what attendees can expect from their session. 

PROACTIVE MAINTENANCE SAVES TIME AND MONEY

Every contractor knows the feeling of panic when a machine shuts down. Employees halt operations, schedules get mixed up and costs inevitably rise creating unnecessary stress. The speakers want to change that mindset at CONEXPO-CON/AGG. They will walk attendees through the practical steps needed to build proactive maintenance routines without making life more complicated.  

For Austin Conti, CEO and Co-Founder at Tenna, the first step is knowing your equipment. “You can’t be proactive about equipment that you can’t consistently see or measure,” he explains, adding that requires inventory, equipment pairing and using captured data to compare what we think is happening versus what’s actually happening. Once you have this visibility, “proactive maintenance becomes a workflow instead of a fire drill.” 

Luke Powers, the CEO and Co-Founder at Gearflow, saw up close what can happen when fleets fall behind. “I felt firsthand how a well-maintained fleet powers expansion and growth, and a poorly maintained fleet leads to losses.” To him, the goal is simple: maintenance should be predictable and well-coordinated; teams should not have to put out fires every day. He believes the future lies in digital systems to help crews anticipate problems.  

“The future of maintenance digitizes the process from end to end to unlock unprecedented maintenance team productivity,” Luke shares. This shift gives workers more control and reduces the exhaustion that comes from chasing issues instead of preventing them.   

HOW CERTAINTY CAN REDUCE DOWNTIME

Another topic the session tackles is the massive impact of response time for services. For many contractors, the delay between realizing you need a technician and actually getting one is where productivity takes the biggest hit. 

Austin believes in three categories working together to deliver the biggest real-world gains: real-time telematics and automation utilization signals, predictive analysis layered with fleet history and financials, and mobile-first inspections and work orders.   

Before founding Heave, CEO Alex Kraft spent 17 years working inside a dealership and witnessed how slow service can create unhappy customers. He explains, “When equipment is not working, customers are losing money. Downed equipment is not planned and creates a domino effect.”  

Alex built his company to give contractors quick access to technicians during the repair because “customers crave certainty and reliability,” and same day and next day service options provide both. 

One of the bigger takeaways for contractors attending this session is the changing service model. You do not have to wait to be helped anymore. You do not need to accept a slow response time for service. On-demand service is becoming the acceptable standard in the industry because there is no room for delay.  

Contractors will hear how quick response tools are becoming the new norm and how they can apply these tools in their own workplace. These options make a sizable difference, and they no longer need to accept slow service as part of the business. 

TECH THAT SIMPLIFIES MAINTENANCE 

One of the biggest themes in this session is that technology should make maintenance easier. Not every contractor wants a complex fleet platform, but every contractor wants fewer mishaps. 

The session will explain how mobile tools and AI supported systems eliminate guesswork, keeping teams informed with fewer issues. Traditional workplaces rely on spreadsheets, emails and guessing games, which are slow and inefficient  

Austin believes every contractor should standardize and enforce a daily pre-start/post-use inspection that’s fast enough to actually happen. The key is simplicity: a consistent checklist, mobile capture, photo evidence and automatic routing to maintenance when something is wrong. “When done right, daily inspections become your cheapest predictive maintenance tool,” he says.    

“We think communication should be seamless for fleet teams,” Luke explains. To him, maintenance should be effortless. It should feel the same as when you order an Uber and get a message when the driver is two minutes out. 

He believes that these improvements free up real time for contractors. “Teams are saving hours every week, which reduces burnout and drives significant productivity gains.” Those hours are put back into the job rather than using them to track down information. 

Alex hopes attendees leave with the confidence to change old habits. “Contractors have been conditioned to accept the way things are. Not anymore.” He wants contractors to rethink their approach as a key takeaway.   

“The most important piece of maintenance technology contractors will invest in this year is not a machine, but the digital workflow that keeps every machine running,” Luke shares.  

Gain additional insights in person at the session, The Future of Maintenance: Insights from Tech Leaders in Equipment Solutions. Register for CONEXPO-CON/AGG 2026 today. Add the Shop Talks & Walks Workshop for a full day of maintenance training from seven leading manufacturers. Seats are limited, so don’t wait!