Another successful year for SPS IPC Drives

The statistics from Europe’s leading automation exhibition spoke for themselves again in 2016: over 63,000 professional attendees and 1,601 exhibitors took advantage of the international business platform SPS IPC Drives provides. Visitors from all over the world had the chance to obtain information on myriad products, solutions, innovations, and trends in electrical automation technology.

As in the past, the strong focus on business that has become one of the hallmarks of SPS IPC Drives was clearly evident among the booths at its 27^th edition. The event further solidified its international standing by featuring 523 companies from 44 countries besides Germany.

Expertise in forward-thinking technologies
At SPS IPC Drives 2016, the Industrie 4.0 Area and an array of exhibition booths highlighted concepts and examples of specific applications in related fields of automation and data exchange. Industrie 4.0 offerings were also a main reason why the forums held by industry associations VDMA and ZVEI were so popular among this year’s attendees. Here, participants had the opportunity to discuss state-of-the-art technology and ways to implement it in practice.

Key figures at a glance:

Exhibitors: 1,601 (2015: 1,668)

Exhibition space: 122,200m² (2015: 122,800m²)

Visitors: 63,291 (2015: 64,386)

First testimonials from SPS IPC Drives 2016
“As hoped for, SPS IPC Drives met all the expectations of the VDMA represented companies and led to great success. It is here where you meet the right contact people of this business, the people operating the machines, the ones responsible for the production in the factory itself,” said Peter Früauf, Deputy Managing Director, VDMA Electrical Automation.

“I especially noticed, that at many fair booths we saw a strong cooperation between 'shop floor' and 'office floor'. At SPS IPC, The Industrial Internet of Things, presented itself with specific market-oriented solutions,” said Gunther Koschnick, Managing Director Automation Division, ZVEI – German Electrical and Electronic Manufacturers’ Association.

“SPS IPC Drives was very well visited this year. We are really satisfied with the response received. Once again SPS shows its radiance and internationality. Here, The Industrial Internet of Things becomes very accessible and leads to precise customer projects,” said Dr. Steffen Haack, Member of the Executive Board Responsible for Industrial Applications and Sale, Bosch Rexroth .

“We are here for the first time and we are really impressed by the scale of the exhibition and the quality of the audience. We met guys from all over the world, from Korea to Mexico, and India to Brazil. From one location you can cover most of the world,” said Andrey Nikishin, Future Technologies Projects Director, Kaspersky Lab UK.

“SPS IPC Drives is the leading trade fair in this sector. It represents the highlight of the year. Everyone attends the show to exhibit their newest innovations. For this specific fair date we coordinate all these innovations. The visitors attending are highly qualified and know exactly what they are looking for,” said Jan Treede, General Manager, Industrial Automation, Kollmorgen Europe.

“At SPS IPC Drives 2016 there was a big focus on innovating topics about future development. Visitors were looking for some sort of guidance as well as new perspectives on what is to come. SPS offers the ideal platform for such discussions. Here one is aware that SPS does not limit itself to the exchange of technical data but has much more to offer,” said Heinz Eisenbeiss, Head of SIMATEC Marketing, Siemens Division Digital Factory.