Big Show, Big Changes

A large, high-quality crowd marks interlift 2023’s successful final fair in Augsburg.

Nearly 19,000 vertical-transportation (VT) experts from more than 110 countries attended interlift 2023 in Augsburg, Germany, on October 17-20, marking the event’s final undertaking in the Bavarian city before moving to its new home of Nuremberg, Germany, in 2025. It had been only a year and a half since interlift 2022, which was delayed six months due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but the two fairs couldn’t have been more different. Interlift 2022, justifiably, was a smaller fair, with pockets of regular attendees and exhibitors unable to be present because of ongoing travel restrictions or pandemic-induced financial constraints. Those of us in attendance then, your author included, were just happy to be there at all, and to feel some sense of normalcy as we looked forward to more prosperous times. Those times were found in interlift 2023, which was on par with the largest of pre-COVID era fairs. A truly global crowd, new and innovative products, long-time and first-time exhibitors, international speakers and boisterous receptions marked the comeback. The interlift energy of old was in full force, and it was contagious.

“Interlift 2022 was necessary, but it was not quite the same,” acknowledged interlift organizers, AFAG’s managing directors Henning and Thilo Könicke, during the fair’s opening ceremony. “This year, with interlift 2023, we are again the ‘world’ of elevators. We move the entire world, and we are a family. And we wish you all a warm welcome back to this place.”

Exhibits

Four busy days commenced with more than 500 exhibitors filling each of Messe Augsburg’s halls. The Chinese pavilion, absent in 2019 because of COVID-19 restrictions, was back with many companies in attendance. The Italian pavilions of ANICA and ANACAM were very busy, as usual, and this year, an Indian pavilion made its presence felt. There were so many notable booths throughout each hall presenting everything from the latest products in virtual reality (VR) and AI to ropes and motors that it was helpful to have several days to visit and revisit them.

Upon entering Hall 1, Montanari’s booth wowed with its “follow the butterfly” experience and its new Internet of Things solutions, among other new products. Orona’s sweeping booth stood as another beacon in Hall 1, where the company presented Orona Next, its platform of elevator products and services aimed at all market segments. Neighboring Ziehl-Abegg displayed its newest motors, ZA top and ZA top sm315.

In Hall 2, Ascendor featured its new aluminum shaft, and Alimak introduced its new rack-and-pinion elevator for harsh industrial environments, the SE 240L. The ELEVATOR WORLD team had the chance to meet with neighboring Wittur and its CEO Tom Stephenson, who personally took us around the busy Wittur booth explaining the new products on hand, including its Car Designer; Hydra 3000 Frame Glass; and low pit solution. We also met with Invertek Drive’s Owain Betts and Justin Walker, who shared with us the details of the Optidrive Elevator Core, the company’s new variable frequency drive. In Hall 3, the always-impressive Hydroware booth promoted the company’s new regenerative traction lift drives, along with its hydraulic selections. 

First-time exhibitors Eleport and Aritec met with current and potential customers to explain their offerings: Eleport’s Wise Elevator Designer (WELD) software and Aritec’s Aribelt. There were more companies experiencing the exhibitor side of the fair for the first time, and it was interesting to hear about the change of perspective found through the experience. This is but a small list of those companies with new and updated products and services on offer. Throughout the next issues of EW Europe, we will highlight many more of them.

As in years past, many booths offered everything from coffee and snacks to full meals, and were comfortable places for long conversations about the business at hand. This year, VR made its way into several booths, including VFA’s, which featured a popular virtual racing simulator. Robots delivered EW magazines, but they were also on offer in the Liftybot booth. Games and popular giveaways enticed attendees to elaborate booths, while classic cars on display from Retro Classics Bavaria were just plain fun to look at as you wove your way through the halls. Several companies had significant anniversaries in 2023 and took the opportunity to celebrate them with visitors. Biofal celebrated 50 years in business, while Liftinstituut celebrated 90; ELGO, 25; KLEEMANN, 40; and EW, 70. The atmosphere was festive in general, and this just added to it.

The VFA Forum

The VFA Forum spanned interlift’s four days and presented a variety of topics covering a global perspective. Kicking off Tuesday afternoon with a Small Business Special, the Forum saw four consecutive industry experts discuss various aspects of the topic. Wednesday afternoon’s panel discussion focused on the latest work by the World Elevator and Escalator Federation and was well attended, ending in a lively question-and-answer session. The rest of the week covered a broad swath of topics, including sustainability, digitalization, cybersecurity, market trends, innovations and codes. Several speakers also tackled the topic of skills shortages in the industry and ways to combat the persistent problem. Large audiences gathered to hear from and ask questions of the experts throughout the week.

Lift Experts’ Night

Many companies held small dinners and parties with their customers and friends during interlift 2023. Some did this on the show floor after the closing of the day, while others ventured to nearby restaurants for a relaxing, festive evening. The Lift Experts’ Night, always a favorite event, was held Wednesday night at the WWK Arena, the home stadium of FC Augsburg, and gave all exhibitors an opportunity to gather in one place and share dinner and cocktails. More than 500 dined together that night, eating excellent German fare, enjoying the strolling musicians, playing rowdy games of foosball and talking through the night. Wandering from table to table chatting with industry friends and acquaintances is always a nice way to spend an evening.

Outcomes and Final Thoughts

In his greeting at the opening of interlift 2023, ELA President Roberto Zappa said, “We are here to celebrate a moment of synthesis and to do a health check, to check the vitality of our industry. There is no better place to do that than here.” Throughout the course of the week, we got our answer about the health of the industry. It did indeed seem quite hearty, its prognosis a good one despite ongoing global challenges like the war in Ukraine and the one unfolding during that week between Israel and Hamas, along with the ongoing construction industry crisis in Western Europe and China. Strength and resilience, long hallmarks of the industry, prevailed, however, and surveyed exhibitors said they felt confident about the future. And an overwhelming majority came away with very positive reactions to the 2023 fair.

At the event’s closing press conference, Henning and Thilo Könicke indeed deemed interlift 2023 a great success, saying:

“We were very pleased with the high level of satisfaction among exhibitors and visitors, who were able to achieve good business deals. There is already great excitement in anticipation of 2025, and the great interest in the interlift 2025 is reflected not least in the high booking rate – even while the interlift 2023 is still running.” 

The goodbyes this time were not only to old and new friends but to the city of Augsburg, as well. The home of interlift since its beginning, Augsburg and all its charm will be missed. There is excitement around a new place, however, which will, in time, hold new adventures, experiences and memories for us all.

Auf Wiedersehen, Augsburg. On to Nuremberg.