The recent staging of A+A – the Leading International Trade Fair for Safety, Security and Health at Work – closed in Düsseldorf, Germany to record results: 2,121 exhibitors from 63 nations showcased their innovations on 839,600 square feet of exhibit space in ten halls to over 73,000 trade visitors. Every second visitor came from outside Germany. With these figures, A+A confirmed its status as the largest and most important event for safety and health at work sector.
The 36th International Congress for Occupational Safety and Health was held concurrently.
Success factor sustainability: Basis for good work
Sustainability was an important theme at A+A 2019 at new events during the trade shows as well as at the congress with topics such as “ Sustainable textile production” and “Fairness in global supply chains”, which will be further expanded in the future. “I was impressed how our motto “People Matter” really came to life in practice at A+A over the past four days,” commented Wolfram Diener, Managing Director of Messe Düsseldorf. “Anyone who has not found any solutions for the current and upcoming changes in our working world here in Düsseldorf this week will have a hard time finding them anywhere else.”
The future of work
The ranges presented by exhibitors and the extensive ancillary program with seven special shows and expert conferences covered all aspects of a complete prevention culture – from corporate health management to personal protection and workplace design. This included innovations for the digitalization of the workplace since the industry is increasingly using new technical possibilities. On display were digital exhibits, especially along the “Highlight Route on the Future of Work” and in the new START-UP Zone. Concepts for practical uses of collaborating robotics (Cobots) and exo-skeletons were showcased as well as smart solutions for personal protection such as special Apps for hazardous substance management, interactive workwear and Virtual Reality training applications.
Broad international reach reflects global need for good work
Healthy employees are a global goal – this was underlined by the stable proportion of international visitors who came to A+A from 137 countries this year. The equally high share of international exhibitors also reflected the worldwide interest in safety and health at the workplace. About 70% of the 2,121 A+A exhibitors – from start-up to global players – came from abroad: from Australia, China, Russia, Thailand and India, from all over Europe and South Africa, Brazil and the U.S.
A special feature at A+A 2019 was the successful North American Pavilion, organized by Messe Düsseldorf North America, with 18 companies presenting their technologies. Overall, 79 U.S. and Canadian companies participated in A+A 2019.
Boom for personal protective equipment continues
One segment benefitting from the globally rising awareness of occupational safety and health is the field of Personal Protective Equipment – the traditionally largest segment at A+A with over 1,100 exhibitors this year. According to a current study by market research company macrom on the German PPE market, the volume of the German PPE market rose from EUR 1.92 billion in 2016 to EUR 2.23 billion in 2018. "The PPE market continues to benefit from companies' increasing willingness to better protect and educate their employees. Accordingly, PPE manufacturers and suppliers are increasingly positioning themselves as strategic consulting partners with holistic solutions ,” stated Birgit Horn, Director of A+A 2019. Other factors favoring PPE sales are the rising numbers of older workers, for whom the market offers more and more solutions, the implementation of modern assistance systems in production, the growing interest in social and ecological manufacturing conditions as well as the development of disposal concepts for protective equipment.
Visitors from all over the world at the A+A Congress
With some 5,200 visitors the 36th Congress for Occupational Safety and Occupational Medicine, organized by Basi, (the German Federal Association of Occupational Safety and Health), recorded a positive increase in attendance. “We are delighted about the increasing exchange with international visitors, for example from Pakistan, Myanmar and Bangladesh, but also from Eastern Europe. We discussed globally applying OSH rules with them,” said Bruno Zwingmann, Managing Director of Basi.
The well attended events addressed topics such as a new procedure for measuring musculoskeletal stress and current technology developments assisting people with disabilities in their working life. Fashion designer Guido Maria Kretschmer shared his experiences in work design in the panel discussion on “Good Work Worldwide”. The congress ended with the first Prevention Slam by Basi with students in the field of occupational safety with the title “Good Work for me means…”
The next A+A will be held from October 26 – 29, 2021 at the fairgrounds in Düsseldorf, Germany. For further information on visiting or exhibiting at A+A 2021, contact Messe Düsseldorf North America; Telephone: (312) 781-5180; E-mail: info@mdna.com; Visit www.aplusa-online.com and www.mdna.com; Follow us on twitter at http://twitter.com/mdnachicago
For hotel and travel information, contact TTI Travel, Inc. at (866) 674-3476; Fax: (212) 674-3477; E-mail: info@ttitravel.net; www.traveltradeint.com
Exhibitor statements:
Dr. Stephan Hussy, Managing Director at German Statutory Accident Insurance (DGUV)
“The joint stand of the statutory accident insurance in Hall 10 again proved a sought–after point of contact for conversations and exchange of information. Our “Consultation Hours Safety and Health” session met with great response and the new format of our knowledge quiz went down well. Another highlight was the media workshops we offered for the first time as part of A+A’s “kommitmensch” film and media festival. Although visitors have an immense amount of work at the trade fair they took a lot of time to get involved: they learnt something new and had fun doing it. This avid interest is probably also an indication that companies should in future rely more on film based communication. Every day visitors could see how versatile, exciting and original OSH films are today at our trade fair cinema and – last but not least – at the award ceremony of the film and media festival. We would like to take the opportunity to thank A+A again for becoming a partner of our “kommitmensch” campaign at the media festival! For me A+A has been and will always be the leading trade fair – also on an international scale – for all things safety and health at work. And it is always open to innovations – which makes it a valuable partner for us.”
Klaus Bornack, General Manager at Bornack GmbH & Co. KG
“A+A has also confirmed its leading position in 2019. At our stand we again had many excellent expert conversations with customers about their current safety issues. This is the ideal combination of digital visualization and product information with personal face-to-face communication only found at trade fairs!”
Stefan Brück, CEO UVEX SAFETY GROUP GmbH & Co. KG
“For the uvex safety group, A+A 2019 was once again a very successful event. We were very satisfied with the quantity and quality of the visitors and see the role of A+A as the world's most important trade fair for the industry confirmed. We have noticed that the trade fair has become more international and that the number of international visitors has increased significantly. The combination of trade fair and congress has once again proved its worth and is certainly a successful format for the future.”
Helmut Schmid, General of Universal Robots (Germany) GmbH and General Manager for Western Europe and Scandinavia
“As a producer of collaborative robots we are considered as something of an exotic player at A+A – nonetheless, the trade fair is an ideal platform for us to attract attention among new target groups. Our approach of increasing security at work by automating monotonous jobs and designing more ergonomic workplaces met with considerable public interest. We succeeded in generating many quality (and above all) new leads and can therefore look back on a very successful trade fair.”
Dr. Jochen Ihring, spokesman of the Managing Board at the Dauphin HumanDesign Group
”The Dauphin HumanDesign Group has taken part in A+A for 14 years. This year our visitors again sought in–depth consultation on concrete issues and current projects. With our expertise and our comprehensive ranges we managed to make compelling offers in the industrial and office segments. The ‘Bosse dialogue cube’ went down especially well with our visitors. With our focal themes “Ergonomics and Acoustics in an Industrial Environment” we were right on target in terms of satisfying their information needs. We perceived the visitor frequency and quality as good. We are planning to take part in the next A+A.”
Sebastian Rothe, head of Business Unit Home Security, Power of Attorney, Export Overseas at ABUS August Bremicker Söhne KG
“Once again the ABUS company was able to present itself with an impressive exhibition stand at the leading international trade fair for safety, security and health at work - A+A 2019. In line with this year’s trade fair motto ‘People Matter’ and the ABUS slogan ‘Be LoTo-Ready’ we not only exhibited innovative products and concepts but also presented expert lectures on the six “diamonds” of the professional Lockout Tagout system to a broad audience. At the same time, many trade fair visitors were able to experience the fun possibility of a lock-out procedure on the LoTo simulator 'Emma'. The outstanding feedback from loyal existing customers and many new friends confirmed that ABUS offers the right and customer-specific solutions for a safe lockout tagout during maintenance.”
