productronica, which took place at the Munich trade fair site, had over 1,500 exhibitors from 44 countries that presented innovations from the fields of electronics production and development. The trade fair covered trends such as the Smart Factory and Smart Maintenance and also looked at how to attract more young professionals and specialists. In addition to “Accelerating Talents” – a platform for students and young professionals – visitors to special shows such as the “3D AOI Arena” and the “Smart Maintenance Pavilion” were given insights into the automation of electronics production.
According to Falk Senger, Managing Director of Messe München, world premieres from companies such as Fuji Europe or Posalux were not the only thing that made the trade fair a success. “We’re delighted to have increased the number of exhibitors and the exhibition space yet again this year. The trade show has once again proven that it is the most important trade fair for electronics production.”
Rainer Kurtz, Chairman of productronica’s Advisory Board and Chairman of Kurtz Holding, looked back on four successful days: “The large number of international visitors shows the esteem in which productronica is held in the various electronics production markets. Given the numerous promising discussions, we’re optimistic that the sector will achieve growth in the long term.”
Thilo Brückner, Managing Director of VDMA EMINT, also expressed his satisfaction: “productronica 2019 was a tremendous success once again for the member companies. Despite a subdued overall economic situation, the electronics manufacturing industry is expecting continuously rising sales revenue and reports of busy trade fair booths. The Hackathon@productronica was a great opportunity to successfully bring together young professionals and the mechanical engineering industry.”
As far as the visitors’ overall verdict is concerned, productronica fared even better this year. According to a survey carried out by the market research institute Gelszus, 98 percent rated the event as excellent to good. In addition, 97 percent of the visitors surveyed said that productronica had lived up to their expectations as regards innovations. This too is an increase from the previous event.
In total, 44,000 visitors from 96 countries came to Munich. In addition to Germany, the top countries for visitor numbers were (in this order): Italy, Austria, Switzerland, France, Russia, Great Britain and the Czech Republic.
New format – Accelerating Talents
In order to make students and young professionals more aware of the wide range of activities in the field of electronics production, productronica launched the “Accelerating Talents” format. This platform for young professionals included various segments such as a Career Center, Talent Gateway, Education Path and Talent Stage.
The highpoint was the 48-hour hackathon which was organized by Messe München together with the VDMA and the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration (IZM). The exhibitors Komax and Schleuniger took part in the first productronica hackathon as sponsors and supervisors. The personnel departments of the two companies along with Fuji Europe made full use of the recruiting opportunities during “Accelerating Talents”.
Premiere for productronica Fast Forward
After the success of “electronica Fast Forward” in 2016 and 2018, the platform for electronics startups featured at this year’s productronica for the first time. The innovations ranged from contactless pick-and-place machines to AI-supported gesture control. Around 40 young companies applied to take part. Ten of these startup companies were chosen to present their products at the show.
productronica and electronica are held in alternating years, making Munich the world’s most important meeting place for the electronics industry. The next electronica will take place from November 10 to 13, 2020, while the next productronica will be held from November 16 to 19, 2021.
