Cleanzine: your weekly cleaning and hygiene industry newsletter 18th April 2024 Issue no. 1110

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Attendance rises at CMS Berlin to 15,500 trade visitors from 60 countries

More trade visitors from Germany and abroad, highly satisfied exhibitors and an optimistic outlook for the industry's future: these were the dominant aspects of CMS 2011 Berlin - Cleaning.Management.Services.

From 20th to 23rd September, 354 exhibitors (2009: 350) from 20 countries provided a comprehensive overview of their products, systems and work methods which represented the entire range of cleaning systems and cleaning agents.

During the four days of the fair around 15,500 trade visitors from more than 60 countries (2009: 14,300/50 countries) found out about the industry's innovations, among them delegations from Austria, Belgium, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Russia, Sweden, Switzerland, Spain, Turkey, the UK, Ukraine and countries from overseas (America and Asia).

Compared with CMS 2009 trade visitor numbers at this year's event rose by more than 8%. Exhibitors and trade visitors unanimously praised the presence of industry decision-makers as well as the comprehensive range of innovations on show. The displays covered an area of 24,700 square metres inside the halls and on the outdoor display site. The buoyant mood among industry representatives was mirrored in their views of the economic situation. For more than 90% the economic outlook ranges from satisfactory to very good.

"With its wide range of innovations the industry showed itself to be well equipped to meet the challenges of the market," says Raimund Hosch, Chief Executive Officer of Messe Berlin GmbH. "Unquestionably factors such as sustainability, under ecological and social aspects, as well as good design are becoming increasingly important, more so than gaining a competitive advantage. The presence of senior executives and a repeated increase in trade visitor numbers showed that CMS is unbeatable in terms of the meeting opportunities it offers, and as such it is an industry must."

Nearly all the manufacturers of cleaning agents went with this year's trend at CMS and presented numerous new, sustainable versions of their tried and tested products as well as eco-approved innovations, most of which do not use environmentally harmful substances. Cleaning agent innovations included a method which, by means of an electrochemical process, produces a disinfectant made up entirely of tap water and a small quantity of table salt. Measuring only the size of a plate, the device can be powered using a car battery or solar energy. Manufacturers of sanitary tissues are focusing increasingly on sustainable products made from recycled materials, at the same time dispensing with bleaching agents. Thus a groundbreaking method was shown which recycles the pulp in drinks cartons and separates aluminium and polyethylene parts mechanically without any chemical processes. The resultant eco-friendly paper product is even safe for foods.

Sustainability also tops the priority list of designers of cleaning machines and equipment, whose systems use less and less energy while their performance continues to improve. Progress in modular design concepts is reducing manufacturing costs and opening up avenues for new applications. Another aspect of equipment and machine development is making them even easier to operate. The latest software and hardware make it possible to configure systems for individual users and cleaning applications. Other trends include even more compact and robust cleaning equipment and machines.

CMS 2011 was organised by Messe Berlin GmbH. The following professional organisations are sponsors of this bi-annual event: the National Guild Association of the Building Cleaning Trade (BIV), Bonn, the VDMA Cleaning Systems Trade Association, Frankfurt, and the Industrial Association for Hygiene and Surface Protection (IHO), Frankfurt.

"As the organisation sponsoring CMS we are only satisfied if exhibitors and visitors have attended in large numbers and if they too are satisfied," reveals Dieter Kuhnert, President and National Guild Master of BIV. "We can already say that not only have both aims been fulfilled, but also that our many impressions and meetings allow us to draw a very satisfactory and positive conclusion to CMS 2011."

Markus Asch, Chairman of VDMA is equally delighted with the event, saying: "CMS gained significantly again in terms of professionalism and quality. A reflection of this was the widespread positive feedback received in recent days from trade visitors and exhibitors. The high numbers attending the various events at the CMS Forum showed that this industry fair is an outstanding platform for an in-depth exchange of experiences and views."

Josef Haentjes, Division Chairman and member of the Board of IHO, goes further, saying: "CMS 2011 was an outstanding trade fair. Audiences were of an even higher quality and compared with two years ago there were more decision-makers. We are on the right track with CMS, which is one of the world's leading industry events. We look forward to 2013. Hotel rooms have already been booked."

Questioned about the main objectives of their participation, exhibitors mentioned promoting their company and its image, maintaining existing business relations and establishing new contacts with specific customer groups, i.e. members of the building cleaning trade, buyers and retailers. For the most part these aims were met.

Although signing contracts was not their primary goal, more than one-third of exhibitors achieved sales before the fair ended. Overall, close to 80% of exhibitors said they were satisfied with business at the fair. Expectations of follow-up business mirrored this view. For 85% of exhibitors the prospects ranged from "satisfactory" to "very good". More than 93% of exhibitors said that overall they were satisfied with their participation in the fair. Nearly all of them said they would recommend CMS to other companies and at the time of the survey already announced they would take part in the next event.

Trade visitors mainly represented the following sectors: services, the trade, industry, wholesales and exports. There was a noteworthy presence of trade visitors in a decision-making capacity, two-thirds of whom were senior management executives, authorised signatories and heads of department. The same number of trade visitors also had a significant influence on their companies' purchasing and procurement decisions.

Trade visitors also praised the good opportunities for meetings, which they stated would result in talks after the fair or in follow-up business, as well as the wide range of innovative products and services at the fair (96%). An impressive 90% of trade visitors would recommend visiting CMS to their colleagues or business associates; 95% said they would attend the next CMS and more than 98% said they were generally satisfied with their visit to this year's CMS.

Visitors to CMS 2011 showed keen interest in the demonstration areas exhibiting glass/facade cleaning and aerial work platforms on the outdoor display site. The special show demonstrating maintenance of green areas and the necessary machinery and equipment was also well frequented. The programme of papers at the CMS Forum provided industry representatives with the latest background information on key topics such as 'Sustainability', 'Hygiene and Health' and 'Building Management in Eastern Europe'.

CMS 2013 Berlin will take place on the Berlin Exhibition Grounds from 24th to 27th September 2013.

www.cms-berlin.com
www.messe-berlin.de

29th September 2011