Hannover MESse Shanghai 2024
"Hannover MESse 2024 not only provides an impetus for industrial growth, but also a trade showcase for the technologies of the future," said Dr. Kirkler, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Hannover Messe Germany, at the closing press conference of Hannover Messe 2024: "Hannover MESse is an important engine for industrial development, where visitors can find profitable solutions for the future development of companies, including automation, artificial intelligence, hydrogen energy and other high-tech solutions. At the same time, it is also a showcase for future-oriented technologies, where companies showcase innovations that drive industrial competitiveness and sustainable development."
More than 130,000 visitors from 150 countries and regions had extensive exchanges with nearly 4,000 exhibiting companies on how to digitize the value chain and make it more resilient. Dr Kirkler said: "Although the scale of the Hannover MESse show this year was slightly lower than in previous editions, we still achieved our goal of a large number of visitors. Hannover MESSE is made up of different themes, some of which rotate every two years." The proportion of international visitors exceeded 40%. In addition to the host country Germany, the countries with the highest number of visitors included China, the Netherlands, South Korea, the United States and Japan.
Dr. Gunther Kegel, President of the Association of the German Electrical and Electronics Industry (ZVEI) and Chairman of the Hannover MESse Exhibitors' Advisory Board, said: "At a time when the economic environment is facing multiple difficulties and challenges, this year's Hannover MESse is a key morale boost. Companies from the electrical and digital sectors demonstrated innovative products, especially how AI can be used to open up entirely new options for climate protection, improving energy consumption and resource efficiency. As long as we take the right steps and stick to the path of electrification, digitization and automation, we can confidently tackle major societal challenges such as global warming. Hannover MESse once again enables companies to demonstrate their innovative capabilities, making an important contribution to further promoting Germany as a global industrial hub." "He concluded.
Thilo Brodtmann, General Manager of the German Machinery Manufacturing Federation (VDMA), adds: "Going beyond conventional thinking to develop solutions for digital and climate-neutral production - this is the goal of innovative machinery companies. At Hannover MESse, they demonstrated how factories can be controlled in a more intelligent way, how modern production methods can be used to achieve climate protection goals faster, and how autonomous systems can make production safer and more efficient on multiple levels. In addition, biology and its processes will also enter the field of production - the first steps have already been taken in this area. Hannover MESse remains the best platform for all companies to showcase innovative ideas and optimism, where manufacturers, customers, politicians and the media come together
No other platform can call on such a large number of people."
From the automation of entire production plants, the use of artificial intelligence to voice control of machines, the efficient use of hydrogen energy in industry, to the use of software to record and reduce carbon footprints, Hannover MESse offers a comprehensive picture of technological opportunities for industry today and tomorrow. New areas such as economic "biologisation" and carbon management are also attracting attention. The initiative to create a sovereign data space for small and medium-sized industrial enterprises under the "Make X" label is also gaining momentum.
This year, Hannover MESse also provided the ideal platform for start-ups seeking to enter the industrial sector. More than 300 young companies use the platform to connect with industry representatives. It is supported by the show's targeted business matching system and master classes. Dr Kirkler says the entrepreneurial offensive is already bearing fruit: "Exchanges between start-ups, investors and manufacturing companies are more intensive than in previous years, which encourages us to give this topic more space at Hannover MESSE 2025."
In a particularly unique way, Hannover MESse has been a mainstay of this year's economic policy agenda. "Hannover MESse gives politicians a real sense of technological progress," says Dr Kirkler. "The potential for technology on display here is huge. However, this potential can only be unlocked if the overall political framework is right."
For the more than 300 economic and political delegations visiting the fair, competitive energy costs, the expansion of digital infrastructure, fast approval processes, the reduction of unnecessary bureaucracy and the addition of qualified workers were at the top of the agenda. As Dr. Kirkler says, "Here, too, there is reason to be optimistic. The discussions showed that Europe has the will and the ability to fight to maintain its competitiveness."
This year's partner country, Norway, is a model of pan-European cooperation. On the second day of the fair, Federal Economy Minister Robert Habeck, together with Norwegian Energy Minister Terje Aslan, presented a roadmap for hydrogen energy cooperation. Germany and Norway plan to work closely together in order to import large quantities of hydrogen from Norway to Germany and to establish the necessary hydrogen infrastructure by 2030. At Hannover MESse, companies from Norway and Germany signed contracts for hydrogen transport and carbon dioxide storage, known as carbon capture and storage (CCS).
