Increased optimism

The Köln-Messe organisation concluded on balance that the general atmosphere at the fair, which lasted from 4 to 6 March, was characterised by more optimism and a growing feeling of confidence. One noteworthy feature was the growth of attendance figures by almost four per cent on last year’s results: 90 300 trade visitors from 123 states came to Cologne, 40 600 of them from abroad. Last year saw the registration of 87 000 visitors, and 96 000 in 2000.
The number of suppliers rose slightly from 3 834 to 3 880. The largest contingent came from China/Hong Kong, with 596 exhibitors and an exhibition space up by 20 per cent to 5 700 m2. This resulted in China outstripping the next-placed countries in the league table of foreign exhibitors, which were Taiwan (443 plus twelve represented firms) and Italy (387 plus 41 represented firms). A total of 979 German exhibitors came to Cologne. Altogether there was a considerably higher proportion of foreign participants, on both the exhibitor and visitor sides.
The entire exhibition area of 286 000 m2 was taken up by suppliers’ presentations of their ranges of products and services within the World Tools Centre, the Security Systems, Locks and Fittings area, and DIY’TEC.
Increasingly evident in the exchange between industry and commerce, alongside the presentation of new products, were expanded service offers such as advisory programmes and customer service. As a condensed overview of new products the Innovation Forum was well frequented, as were the Service Centres, Speaker’s Corner and the DIY store tour excursion on the Tuesday of the event.
World Tools Centre
The suppliers in the World Tools Centre announced strong interest from all over the world. An above-average amount of interest from overseas, the Far East and the Benelux countries mean that there are expectations of a positive reflection in export business.
The considerable spectrum of both new and improved products featuring added end-user benefits, working comfort and quality attracted the attention of trade visitors. The innovations from the World Tools Centre frequently ventured into new dimensions on the performance front: increasingly sophisticated system solutions and quality design with ergonomic orientation to the fore.
Security systems
The exhibitors in the Security Systems, Locks and Fittings section were also satisfied with the professionalism of those who came to their stands and the high proportion of international visitors. The east European region is…