The FormNext, Frankfurt, Germany.

The Formnext, in Frankfurt, Germany, organized by Mesago, is the leading industry platform for the additive manufacturing and industrial 3D printing segments. This is an annual event, held every year in the month of November. This year the fair is planned for the 10th till the 13th of Nov 2020. In view of the CoVid 19 pandemic, this fair like all others still has not been able to put out a clear yes or no, to the very important question of whether or not a physical event will be held. The website says that a final decision in this regard will be taken latest by the 9th of Sept 2020. The fair organizers, like all other stakeholders, do recognize the fact that the holding of the exhibition is very important, for the German and the world economy, as well as for the trade show and event industry. This just might be the fair that kickstarts the event calendar this year, and makes it easier for the other fairs to make a show. As of now, the organizers have promised to refund the entire participation fee, if the fair needs to be called off. However, if a participant is unable to reach because of travel restrictions, either by Germany or by the participants country, then that is a different situation altogether. Interestingly, the fair this year, just like a lot of other fairs that are scheduled to be held this year, has been named the C-Edition, in view of the corona thing!

The fair presents the full spectrum of additive manufacturing, showcases the entire process chains and process integration in additive manufacturing, and promises to be the knowledge platform that provides in-depth interaction with the AM community. There are also going to be conferences and ongoing training options designed to provide fresh ideas. Basically this is the place to be at, where experts from a wide range of industry sectors such as automotive, aerospace, medical technology, and many more will come together, like every year, to discover innovative production technologies for themselves.

Like every year, we at Studio One Designs Pvt. Ltd., would love and hope to be there. Unfortunately, given the situation that exists, that is a promise that we can not make. We are as yet, pretty unsure about our presence at the fair, which, incidentally, has a very minuscule participation from India. But we are proud of the fact that we have had the opportunity to serve the biggest Indian company in this segment. Just like all the other stake holders, we too look forward to getting our feet back on the fair grounds, and see smiling faces of our proud workers and the happy clients. 

The Heimtextil, Frankfurt, Germany

Just like most other fairs held in Germany, the Heimtextil in Frankfurt, is by far the biggest fair in its category, anywhere in the world. This fair, held once every year in January, is the biggest international trade show for the home furnishings and contract textiles. Next year in 2021, it is planned to be held from the 12th till the 15th of January. And hopefully, it will be a physical event rather than an online version of the fair.

Heimtextil is the fair opener for the year, and is the go to fair for retailers, wholesalers, designers, furniture and bedding stores, interior designers, architects and other decision makers, from around the globe. In the Heimtextil Trend space, one can find the new trends of the year. The fair, very masterfully combines the big names of the industry with the numerous new comers and start ups, who are able to establish a foothold in the world market, even as the visitors are able to interact with their old vendors and get in touch with new exhibitors every year.

However, this year, with the CoVid pandemic playing havoc globally, forcing more and more fairs to move into the digital space, the Heimtextil hopes to bring in a change by going the physical way as always. But there will be changes, with regard to health safety concerns. So they seem to have formulated a concept to ensure optimum hygiene, practice distancing norms, and generally make sure that the fair does not result in a boost to the spread of the virus. You can read about the detailed plan here. Hopefully, there may be a vaccine in place by the time the fair opens, and that will also help to make things better. It is now high time that business got back to normal, and the sooner the efforts are made in this direction, the better it will be for the world economy. Opening up of fairs, just might be the first welcome step in this direction. Lets all hope for the best!

The Frankfurter Buchmesse, Germany.

The Frankfurter Buchmesse, in Frankfurt, Germany, has been organized by the Frankfurter Buchmesse GmbH since 1949, when 205 German exhibitors put together the first post war book fair. Today, it is the largest book fair in the world, an international trade mark, a model for cultural events, and the leading venue for printed and digital content. As per the facts and figures published on the official website of the fair, it attracted 7,450 exhibitors, 302,267 visitors and saw over 4,000 events and had about 10,000 journalists covering all of it. Those numbers are truly mind numbing and help one to comprehend the enormity and the importance of the show. More numbers, about the visitors, exhibitors and their countries and regions of origin are shown below. These numbers and the graphic below have been taken from the official website of the fair, just like all the other numbers mentioned here.

Probably, in view of the corona virus, and also probably also because it really is the call of these times and of the future, this year in 2020, the book fair is a special edition. Because of the travel restrictions worldwide, and the social distancing norms that need to be followed, organizing physical fairs, where the exhibitors as well as the visitors have to be physically present, to be able to conduct business, has become difficult this year. This has resulted in organizers moving to the digital space, and more and more fairs and trade shows this year are being held virtually, where all the stake holders plant themselves in front of their computer screens, and conduct business meetings from the comfort of their homes. Whether this model will stand the test of time or not, only time will tell. But for the moment this is all that can be done.

It is in this regard that the Frankfurter Buchmesse, hopes to change things. The special edition this year, is to be held both physically as well as digitally. The physical version will be called the Bookfest city, and the virtual version will be called the Bookfest digital.The Bookfest city will have events on all five days of the fair, with the individual events being held all over the city of Frankfurt. The Bookfest digital on the other hand, will offer a unique celebration of literature and culture on the Saturday of the fair, and will be broadcast live all over the world. The fair this year promises to be one event that will be remembered for a long time to come, not only for the wonderful time that it is bound to deliver, but also for the new amalgamation of the new and the old style of fairs, that it is attempting to manage.

Lets hope for the best!