Organisers, Xmark Media report on the success of this year's event and announce the dates for 2013

With twelve new exhibitors at last month's Vacuum Expo 2012, Coventry, the sheer breadth of technology and range of equipment on show proved be a big draw for visitors. The third Vacuum Expo event was the biggest and best event in the series to date. Reports from the show floor indicated that not only had the organisers increased visitor numbers, the visitors were there to do business. Many exhibitors said they had an excellent event with increased prospect numbers and plenty of high quality discussions taking place on their stands. Post show analysis has confirmed this visitor growth to be 30%.

Oerlikon Leybold Vacuum had a novel attraction - the dismantling and re-assembly of the largest dry vacuum pump for industrial application ever seen at the exhibition. Marketing Manager Anna Newitt enthused: "Vacuum Expo is one of the best shows we've ever done."

Vacuum Expo organiser Laurence Devereux commented on the event: "I'm convinced that exhibitions will always be popular when there is a strong, high quality technical programme run in parallel which is offered free to all attendees. This is the winning formula for a UK event. We are very grateful to the people who have contributed to the Vacuum Symposium and have worked tirelessly to put together the excellent scientific sessions. It is good for the UK to be the host to a meeting of this calibre."

The Vacuum Symposium has developed into a "must-attend" event. The well thought-out meetings attracted speakers and delegates from far and wide; Canada, Denmark, Norway, Japan, Switzerland and Germany. The 'Thin Films' meeting programme was led by Hayley Brown of Plasma Quest and the University of Surrey. It focused on metal oxides and optical thin films. Dr Glen West of the Surface Engineering Group at Manchester Metropolitan University said of the meeting "The thin films programme was perhaps the most interesting that I have seen at a technical session in recent years. The speakers were of a high quality, and provided a well-balanced mix of technical expertise and industrial experience."

The one-day "Vacuum and Plasmas for Industry" meeting drew a sizable audience. Niall Macgearailt from Intel, Ireland, opened the meeting with a talk on the "Plasma Process Control in the Semiconductor Industry." He described the challenges of volume production world-wide and keeping control of the plasma processes to keep the yield high and the production line moving. Niall commented after the meeting "The combination of the Vacuum Expo and technical sessions provide an excellent networking opportunity. The large number of UK and European based suppliers offering innovative products and solutions are extremely encouraging." Meeting organiser, Alan Webb of IOP Vacuum Group, commented on the quality of the meeting: "It is rare to have speakers from so many different industry sectors all speaking in the same programme. It is significant that in the world of vacuum that one industry can learn from the experience of another. We are grateful to all speakers and their companies and organisations for their contributions which made the day so very successful."

Pfeiffer Vacuum found the exhibition a great way to meet existing and potential customers. Paul Davies, Sales Manager, commented at the close of the show; "A significantly busier show than previously. We have met a wide selection of people on our stand from all industries and from all over the country - confirming Vacuum Expo as the #1 event for Vacuum Technology in the UK, possibly in Europe."

More details about Vacuum Expo can be viewed at www.vacuum-expo.com.

Dates for next year's show will be 16 & 17 October 2013, at Ricoh Arena Coventry.