The show next year will feature a separate hall for members of two German manufacturing associations.
OPI reported on the announcement, made at a press conference at Paperworld 2014 last month, with a hall “dedicated to German brand manufacturers” from two German trade associations to be part of the show every other year from next year onwards, with the 2015 show to take place in Frankfurt from 31 January to 3 February 2015.
Messe Frankfurt announced at the press conference that it had “reached an agreement” with PBS Industrieverband and Altenaer Kreis – two German trade associations – for their combined 60 members to exhibit “in a separate hall” at Paperworld 2015. The move has come as a result of the organisers looking to “attract more German exhibitors” after “something of an exodus” this year, with German companies previously “strong supporters” of the event.
The associations, who had formed a “working group”, had apparently “spoken out in favour of taking part in Paerworld every two years”, with a “joint presentation” taking place in a separate exhibition hall, with the working group’s task being to “prepare a detailed plan” for Paperworld to continue annually, but to offer members of the two associations the chance to present their products in a separate environment on a biannual basis.
Horst-Werner Maier-Hunke, Chairman of PBS Industrieverband and Durable, stated at the conference that the decision to host the German-only hall on a biannual basis had been made due to the fact that “the product innovation cycle mean[s] it [is] only really worth exhibiting at Paperworld” every other year.
OPI noted that many attending the conference were “hoping for the announcement of an initiative addressing the challenges of the office sector”, and were “left disappointed” as there was no indication of “moves to attract a wider range of workplace product vendors or service providers”, with the announcement only serving to “appease German manufacturers”.
You can read our reports from each day at Remanexpo@Paperworld 2014 by searching for the event on our homepage, and a report from the event will be featured in issue 255 of The Recycler, which will mail next month.