Flashing Lights and NOLA Nights: PFE 2023

A trip to New Orleans is a sure bet if you are looking to have a good time. By all accounts, Police Fleet Expo 2023 was no exception! Near triple-digit temperatures and air so heavy that your glasses fogged up as soon as you went outside didn’t stop the many police officers, chiefs, fleet managers, and industry professionals who took advantage of the week’s events to catch up with each other, talk shop and learn about the latest products and technology available.

The week kicked off with the renowned DriveX event at NOLA Motorsports Park, just a short drive from downtown New Orleans where the convention was held. Hundreds of show attendees braved the extreme heat to take a turn behind the wheel of one of the latest sedans and SUV’s on site from Dodge Law, Ford Pro, and GM Envolve. There were a lot of Whelen products on the vehicles and our team was on hand answering questions and meeting with customers.

Whelen is known for being the leader in the markets we serve, but we’re also known for throwing a good party! Whelen Night at PFE drew more than 600 people this year and we’d venture to say every one of them had a good time. The air at The Sugar Mill in New Orleans was filled with music and laughter as everyone attending the show came together to relax, see old friends, and meet new ones. We need to give a shout-out to Trade Show & Event Manager, Dawn Kaplunic, along with Tiffany Turchetti and their team, who worked tirelessly to create the memorable evening.

By the time the conference exhibit hall opened on Wednesday, everyone was ready to see our booth! As the doors opened, the energy in the room grew and the show floor was quickly buzzing with activity. Our team engaged with attendees on our product wall, and Field Solutions Engineer Manager/Innovative Technology Liaison, Chris Watkins, was busy giving live demonstrations of our fleet management software on the large, interactive screens. “PFE was a big hit,” he said. “We had many conversations about Whelen Cloud Platform® (WCP®) and customers from all over the country were able to experience WCP on our live displays in the booth.” Attendees were very interested in the latest features and capabilities we’ve recently launched like responder-to-responder alerts, digital alerts to notify the motoring public, and geofence-controlled technology.

Also on display in our booth was RCR’s No. 2 Whelen Chevy Camaro, driven in the NASCAR® Xfinity Series by Sheldon Creed. The car featured a special paint scheme honoring the National Law Enforcement Officer Memorial Foundation (NLEOMF) and included the names of 556 officers killed in the line of duty that were added to the walls of the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial in Washington, D. C., in 2023. Watkins said conference attendees were happy to see the car. “We had a great response to our Xfinity race car honoring the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial. Many came to pay their respects.”

This car and paint scheme ran at the Charlotte Motor Speedway NASCAR Xfinity Series race on Saturday, May 27, 2023. This is the second year in a row that Whelen Engineering has partnered with NLEOMF and RCR to honor fallen officers with a dedicated paint scheme. This year, Creed also wore a special NLEOMF-themed fire suit for the race. Whelen has a long history of supporting NASCAR and we were honored to share this special car at PFE this year.

Thank you to all our customers, friends, sales team, co-workers, and others who made this year’s PFE a huge success. It is a true team effort at Whelen, and we are honored to help protect those who serve and protect others. We are already looking forward to Police Fleet Expo next year – just hoping it’ll be a little cooler in 2024!