Great Expectations for the World Forum of the Process Industries

Some 9 months before the start there are unmistakable signs that ACHEMA 2018 will be a crowd-puller. More than 2700 exhibitors from all around the globe have already booked a stand at this leading show for the process industries in Frankfurt am Main. From 11 to 15 June 2018 they will be showcasing their innovations for the chemical, pharmaceutical and food industries from laboratory to large-scale plant through to the packaging line. And there is no lack of topics: the energy turnaround, novel antibiotics, water treatment and innovative materials, to name but a few – chemistry and process engineering present solutions for practically all sectors. 

Given the immense interest of exhibitors, the organizers anticipate a corresponding rush of visitors. More than167,000 participants are needed to exceed the figure for the last event in 2015 which for one week made Frankfurt am Main the epicentre of the global process industries. Those who have not yet booked their space will have to hurry! An extra hall has already been rented to absorb the present excess demand, nevertheless there is every indication that ACHEMA 2018 will be fully booked. This particularly applies to pharmaceutical technology and automation where the demand for space has already exceeded supply. Moreover, the “classical” ACHEMA exhibition groups, such as pumps, process engineering and the laboratory sector, have also shown a keen interest. 

Hence, ACHEMA 2018 is once again set to live up to its reputation of being not only the market place of the present, but also the innovation exchange of the future. “Many challenges, be they energy efficiency, shorter product cycles or novel materials for applications spanning vehicles to power stations, impact this sector worldwide”, explains Dr. Thomas Scheuring, CEO of DECHEMA Ausstellungs-GmbH. “That makes the event far more than just a trade venue – ACHEMA is where global trends are launched.” Besides business transactions at the fair, discussions at the stands and in the lecture halls are the heart and soul of ACHEMA. 

If no market-ready solution exists, what better place to go for an exchange of ideas and experience than the Congress featuring some 800 lectures! As Prof. Kurt Wagemann, CEO of DECHEMA e.V. which organizes the Congress programme, comments: “The speakers are literally face-to-face with the technology in question. This creates an atmosphere for truly application-oriented discussions.” Whether it be the energy turnaround, digitization, availability of resources or novel concepts for biotechnological processes – the Congress programme already promises to provide a wealth of interesting insights for participants both from science and industry. 

Chemistry, process engineering and biotechnology are innovation drivers for other sectors, and this is reflected in the Focal Topics of ACHEMA 2018. “Biotech for Chemistry” illustrates the drive towards merging chemical and biotechnological processes as exemplified in the use of renewable resources as a substitute for oil or the development of novel active pharmaceutical ingredients. “Flexible Production” focuses on how technology and automation providers are reacting to the need for ever more specialized products in ever smaller batches and with ever shorter time-to-market; digitization and modular plants provide the basis for the increasing integration of the value chains. Finally, the Focal Topic “Chemical and Pharmaceutical Logistics” highlights the benefits of digitization which facilitates integrated solutions for the logistics chain – from parameter determination for personalized medicine through to end-to-end product traceability throughout the value chain.

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