Mackay sits roughly in the middle of Queensland's eastern coast, about 970 kilometres north of Brisbane. Most people outside the mining industry have never heard of it. Inside the industry, it's well understood as the service and supply hub for the Bowen Basin — the coal province that stretches roughly 400 kilometres inland and represents one of the largest coal-producing regions in the world. Every major surface and underground coal operation in that basin has maintenance, logistics, and procurement links that run through Mackay.

QME — the Queensland Mining and Engineering Exhibition — has been held in Mackay for over thirty years, organised by Prime Creative Media. The 2026 edition runs July 21 to 23 at the Mackay Showgrounds, and by the time registration opened, 90 percent of exhibition space was already sold. That uptake rate says something about how consistently the event delivers value to exhibitors who've attended before.

What Drives the Demand

The Bowen Basin produces metallurgical coal — the type used in steelmaking — that Australia exports primarily to Japan, South Korea, India, and China. Unlike thermal coal, metallurgical coal doesn't face the same near-term demand cliff as energy transition accelerates. Steel is still made the same way it has been for decades, and the infrastructure build-outs happening across Asia require enormous volumes of it. That sustained demand keeps the Bowen Basin mines running at high activity, which keeps their equipment fleets busy and their suppliers employed.

QME attendance reflects that. The 5,000-plus visitors who come each edition include mine site managers, maintenance engineers, procurement officers, fleet supervisors, and the contractors who work alongside them. These aren't peripheral industry people — they're the ones making day-to-day operational decisions about what equipment to specify, what parts to stock, and which suppliers to call when something breaks at 2am on a Sunday.

The 2026 Edition

With 90 percent of floor space booked ahead of opening, the 2026 show is shaping up as one of the largest in its history. Confirmed exhibitors span the mining equipment spectrum: Hitachi Construction Machinery (launching the LANDCROS rebrand alongside their EX5600-7P excavator), Liebherr, Epiroc, Hastings Deering, Brooks/XCMG, Vermeer, Fulton Hogan, and Flexco Australia, alongside a dense cluster of specialist service and component companies. Live demonstrations are built into the show format — both on indoor stands and across an expanded outdoor area where larger equipment can operate in representative conditions.

The Queensland Resources Council is an official association partner for 2026, with QRC chief executive Janette Hewson contributing to the conference program. The Bowen Basin Mining Club is co-located for the Queensland Mining Awards, which runs on the second evening of the show. Both partnerships reinforce QME's role as a genuine industry gathering rather than a purely commercial exhibition.

Quick Reference

The Leadership Series and Conference

QME's free-to-attend conference program covers the topics that actually occupy the working week of Queensland mining professionals: workforce development, safety practice, productivity in high-cost operating environments, and the future trajectory of the coal, metals, and minerals mix. Sessions are not academic — they're practitioner-focused, drawing on operational examples from mines in the region. Hitachi Construction Machinery sponsors the leadership series in 2026, anchoring it with their own product presentation around the LANDCROS technology suite.

The combination of exhibition floor, outdoor live demonstrations, conference sessions, and industry awards in a three-day window is what makes QME function differently from larger national shows. Attendees don't come to browse — they come to do specific things, meet specific people, and make decisions they've been deferring until they can compare options in person. For suppliers of mining attachments, hydraulic equipment, and earthmoving tools, that purposeful buyer mindset justifies the time and logistics of getting to Mackay. A regional show with 5,000 focused visitors beats a national show with 20,000 casual ones in terms of conversion rates almost every time.