Reporting back from GGS

ALL THE FUN OF THE FAIR

SHOW REPORT • THE SECOND GGS TRADE FAIR, WHICH TOOK PLACE IN LEIPZIG IN APRIL, PROVED THE NEED FOR SUCH A FORUM FOR BOTH ATTENDEES AND EXHIBITORS

NEARLY 1,500 PEOPLE attended the second Dangerous Goods & Hazardous Substances trade fair - Gefahrgut // Gefahrstoff (GGS) – which took place in the Leipziger Messe, Germany on 9 to 11 April. That was a significant increase on attendance at the first event in 2017, with exhibition space also increasing by 30 per cent to allow 65 companies to exhibit their solutions, products and services for the transport, storage and inplant logistics involving dangerous goods.

“A harmonious concept and the broad commitment by the entire industry made the fair a complete success and highlighted its growing importance. Exhibitors made excellent use of the expanded presentation possibilities of the larger exhibition hall 2,” says Markus Geisenberger, managing director of Leipziger Messe. “The growing interest of trade visitors clearly shows that cooperation between Leipziger Messe and representatives of associations and exhibitors is now bearing fruit and encouraging expansion.”

Matthias Kober, project director of GGS, explains why he thinks the event was such a success: “The trade fair addressed logistics decision-makers and specialist managers from the various areas of responsibility as well as security officers. It was, therefore, the right address for topics relating to transport and logistics services, load securing, storage, conveying and handling technology, packaging, waste and disposal, digitisation and networking, occupational safety, health protection and industry-related services.

“Even at the first event, we sensed that both exhibitors and trade visitors were very interested,” Kober continues. “For us, this confirmed that creating our own comprehensive platform for the special requirements of dangerous goods and hazardous materials logistics was the right approach.” BROAD ATTRACTION It was not just the local industry that was attracted to Leipzig for GGS. Exhibitors represented seven countries, with visitors arriving from more than 20 countries. In addition, GGS attracted the involvement of the European Association of Dangerous Goods Safety Advisers (EASA). “We were able to enlist the support of the association, which held its annual general meeting during the fair and also supported the international conference European Dangerous Goods Day on 10 and 11 April,” Kober adds.

The European Dangerous Goods Days, held for the first time, created a new information platform for experts that, with the slogan ‘Dangerous goods make the world go round’, brought together up-to-date expertise and offered excellent networking opportunities. Not only legal requirements and regulations were discussed, but also specific security issues. “Internationally renowned speakers gave presentations in English about the status quo, which broadened our horizons,” Kober says.

“It is already noticeable at the second event how the industry is merging into one big family. The fair is the only one of its kind in Europe and is very important for the daily work of our members,” says Guillaume Le Coz, secretary general of EASA, adding: “Dangerous goods and substances are present everywhere in our daily lives. Here in Leipzig, the topic receives the necessary attention and we will strive to support awareness and growth in Europe for the trade fair.”

EVENT HIGHLIGHTS Among all this, what were the highlights for Matthias Kober? “There were a lot! With its comprehensive conference programme, the trade fair addressed current topics in the industry in a variety of ways,” he says. “Alongside the European Dangerous Goods Days, the forum Hazardous Waste Disposal also made its premiere. In the open forum, trade visitors were able to attend short presentations and product demonstrations by exhibitors throughout the trade fair. Furthermore, the German Dangerous Goods Association (GGVD) organised three lecture blocks on current issues and the Leipzig

Dangerous Goods Day also offered valuable insights. The combination created by an interesting exhibition and a practice-oriented conference programme brought added value to the trade public and played a key role in many participants’ decision to visit the fair.

“The most fascinating parts were the live demonstrations,” Kober (right) continues. “Demonstrations included the performance of automated driving of electric forklifts. These automatically slow down as soon as their sensors detect a person in their action radius. At the competition ‘Transport of dangerous goods - Find the faults!’ every visitor could test their knowledge by identifying the faults with a lorry; faults could be found in load securing, with the loaded dangerous goods and in the accompanying documents.”

LOOKING AHEAD The GGS advisory board has decided that future events will take place in late autumn in even-numbered years, with the third GGS scheduled for 24 to 26 November 2020. This will allow presentations to focus on incoming regulation. “With the new trade fair date in autumn, the regular amendments to ADR and RID regulations can be discussed, and the associated demand for information can be fully met,” says Kober. “We will take the substantial positive feedback from participants as an incentive to further develop, and consistently expand the trade fair. We have already begun preparing for this trade fair, and our aim is to further increase its international appeal.” HCB www.ggs-tradefair.com