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HANNOVER MESSE 2008 (21 – 25 April)
– Central themes: energy efficiency and climate protection
– New in 2008: Power Plant Technology and Mobile Robots
– Focus on new recruits to industry: TectoYou
Shortly before it opens, HANNOVER MESSE 2008 is looking in great shape. The world’s leading technology event has strengthened its showing in the two key areas of automation and energy technology with a new trade fair for power plant technology and the special display Mobile Robots & Autonomous Systems. The central themes of HANNOVER MESSE 2008 are energy efficiency and climate protection – very much the hot topics of the day. “HANNOVER MESSE will add fresh impetus to the ongoing debate about energy, climate change and security of supply”, says Sepp D. Heckmann, Chairman of the Board of Deutsche Messe. “It is a key driver of new technologies and leads the way when it comes to innovations for industry.” Nearly 5,100 companies from more than 60 countries will be presenting the important trends and themes from all sectors of industry from 21 to 25 April. This year’s HANNOVER MESSE comprises a total of ten leading international trade fairs. Apart from automation and energy, other core areas of interest include industrial subcontracting and new technologies with strong future potential. The official Partner Country for HANNOVER MESSE 2008 is Japan. The special youth-oriented presentation TectoYou underlines industry’s commitment to recruitment.
“As far as the numbers go, we are in excellent shape”, says Board Chairman Heckmann. With some 170,000 square meters of display space HANNOVER MESSE is noticeably larger than in 2006, when we had a comparable line-up of events (2006: 148,279). “But impressive statistics aren’t everything”, continues Heckmann. “What makes HANNOVER MESSE 2008 so outstanding are its quality of presentation, its interesting content and its uncanny ability to reflect issues of current concern.”
Another important factor for the success of such an event is the general level of industry optimism. And here HANNOVER MESSE is well placed to deliver a boost to business right across the industry spectrum. In Hannover visitors can see industrial processes and new technologies with cross-industry applications – and what is more, see them within the context of the end-to-end processing chain. The signals coming from manufacturing industry are encouraging. According to Dr. Reinhard Hüppe, for example, executive secretary of the Automation Trade Association affiliated to central electrical industry federation ZVEI: “Automation and energy technology from Germany are in demand worldwide. This can be seen from the high export quota of over 70 per cent. So the industry will be in an optimistic mood when it presents its work to an international audience at HANNOVER MESSE 2008, the world’s biggest marketplace for industrial technology.”
A dominant theme at the show in 2008 will be energy and measures to combat climate change. In recent years HANNOVER MESSE has evolved into a major hub for international energy technologies. What makes Hannover so special here is its coverage of the entire energy mix of the future, with regenerative and conventional forms of energy being accorded equal status. So there will be presentations of renewables such as biomass, solar, wind and geothermal energy, alongside hydrogen/fuel cells and topics such as contracting, efficient mobility solutions and combined heat and power generation (CHP). Exhibiting companies will be showing more efficient technologies for the transmission, distribution, conversion and storage of energy. Major energy suppliers E.ON, EnBW and Evonik will also have stands at the show.
Coverage of energy-related themes in Hannover has hitherto consisted of the two trade fairs Energy and Pipeline Technology. With the debut of Power Plant Technology this year, a third international flagship trade fair now joins that line-up. The focus here is on the design, construction, operation and maintenance of power stations. Meanwhile the 2008 WORLD ENERGY DIALOGUE will also be addressing the theme “The future of power plants and grids”. The HANNOVER MESSE Energy Summit is taking place this year in Hall 27 for the first time, placing it right at the heart of the action. The two-day conference will be chaired by climate change expert Professor Dr. Klaus Töpfer and Stephan Kohler, executive secretary of the German Energy Agency (dena).
The theme of energy efficiency runs right through HANNOVER MESSE 2008. A particular feature is the “Energy Efficiency Tunnel” in Hall 6, the fruit of a joint initiative by HANNOVER MESSE, VDMA and ZVEI. Using practical examples, this exhibit shows how saving energy in industry not only helps the environment, but also confers competitive advantages. Visitors to the interactive Tunnel will be able to see how up to 90 per cent of the lifecycle costs of individual components such as electric motors can be avoided, and how savings of up to 70 per cent can be achieved with modern technology in ancillary equipment and installations such as pumps, fans, compressed air and refrigeration plant.
With the three flagship trade fairs that make up the major show section “Industrial Automation” – INTERKAMA+ (automation for the process industry), Factory Automation (production automation) and Industrial Building Automation – HANNOVER MESSE is the world’s biggest trade fair platform for automation-related technology. Key themes for 2008 include wireless automation, IT solutions for industry, asset management and industrial robots. A new addition to this year’s range of automation offerings is the special presentation “Mobile Robots and Autonomous Systems”.
Mobile robots have applications in many different areas, and are increasingly playing a role in industrial production. Driverless transport systems are evolving into intelligent subsystems, which not only direct the flow of materials before and after production, but in future will increasingly be integrated into the production process itself. According to forecasts by the International Federation of Robotics, worldwide demand for service robots in the manufacturing and service industries, public administration and private households is set to rise to around 9.1 million units by the year 2010. The new presentation “Mobile Robots & Autonomous Systems” shares Hall 25 with the RoboCup German Open, which is now being hosted by HANNOVER MESSE for the second time.
When it comes to cutting-edge industrial technologies such as robots in every shape and form – humanoids, micro-robots or large industrial robots – as well as the latest in medical technology, navigation systems, energy and environmental technologies, Japan is one of the leading industrial nations. Japan is the official Partner Country at HANNOVER MESSE 2008. The high-tech nation will be presenting state-of-the-art products and processes under the motto “Cooperation through Innovation”, and the displays by some 150 participating exhibitors will cover 3,500 square meters of floor space. The main Japanese stand is located in Hall 2.
HANNOVER MESSE is the premier platform for international technology transfer. The main powerhouse for the exchange of information between the worlds of scientific research and business is the trade fair Research & Technology. Hall 2 will become a showcase for pioneering research findings and technologies for the innovative industrial production processes and products that will shape the markets of tomorrow. Topics to look out for at the Innovations Market for Research and Development are the business of technology transfer between space exploration and industry (ESA SpaceTransfer08) and a series of exciting projects for developing high-performance new materials, co-funded by the EU under the “ExtreMat” program. Another trade fair where high technology and the capacity for innovation are at a premium is MicroTechnology. This event offers systematic solutions based around the central theme of miniaturization. A further topic area of special interest this year is the use of lasers for cutting micromaterials.
Forming an indispensable part of the value-adding chain in all areas of technology are industrial subcontracting and services. At the international gathering of this key industry, component suppliers and service providers will be profiling themselves as innovative partners for their customers, and making a significant contribution to the creation of value and the generation of competitive advantages in the dynamic review of industry that is HANNOVER MESSE. Suppliers will be presenting competing materials and processes right across the range of applications – from car making, mechanical and plant engineering and electrical engineering to the production of capital goods and general manufacturing. Highlighted themes for 2008 are industrial materials and systems supply.
Throughout the modern processing chain digital systems and components are playing an increasingly important role in the control of product development, production planning and the production process, quality assurance, logistics and service support. Digital Factory in Hall 17 will document the complete set of IT solutions for every stage of the product life-cycle – from initial product idea to after-sales support. The exciting new special display “RapidX” documents in realistic sequence the digital development of a product and the real-life process of turning development data into prototypes, production tooling and products.
With Tectoyou industry is tackling the challenge of inspiring and motivating young people to undertake training and courses of study in the engineering professions. The purpose of this recruitment drive at HANNOVER MESSE is to offer schoolchildren and student freshmen guidance in their career choices, and to give them a clear idea of the many different career options available to them in the world of technology. Only in Hannover do schoolchildren and young students have an opportunity to meet such a large number of potential employers from so many different sectors of industry.
Tectoyou is a joint initiative of HANNOVER MESSE and the national business promotion campaign “Germany – Land of Ideas”. The patron of the event is the Federal Minister for Education and Research, Dr. Annette Schavan. This year leading German industry federations BDI, VDI, VDE, VDMA and ZVEI, together with companies such as Siemens, Harting, Rittal, Phoenix Contact, Sick, Weidmüller and Endress & Hauser will be transforming Hall 26 into a marketplace for youth, technology and the future.
