Vendors Must Think Globally, Exhibit Locally

Jun 27, 2007 2:23 PM

Technical conferences are recognized as one of the best platforms for exchanging new ideas and for keeping current on what is happening in a specific field of interest. Concurrent with the different scientific tracks, there is usually an exhibition that allows the major players in the field to showcase their technology and, most importantly, the latest in their arsenal of tools and products. For a busy engineer seeking parts, a quick tour of the exhibits could replace endless hours of searching on the Internet.

Last month I attended PCIM Europe 2007 in beautiful Nuremburg, Germany. Apart from the large number of good papers that were presented over a three-day period, I was very impressed by the number of the power-industry companies from all over the world that participated in the exhibition attached to the conference. The most prominent exhibitors were semiconductor companies with a vast array of new and improved products. Other companies in the exhibition with products ranging from heatsinks to specialized passive components to transducers and test equipment also made a good and visible showing.

This very impressive and concentrated power-industry presence allowed thousands of engineers, purchasing managers and technologists to make contacts with the exhibitors, which would later be followed by further interactions regarding their specific needs. Ultimately, these intense interactions will lead to millions of dollars of sales for the exhibitors and state-of-the-art new designs for the vibrant power industry.

Earlier this year, I attended a conference in Shanghai, where a similar scenario unfolded. The only difference between these two events was that the number of participants in the Shanghai exhibition was several times larger than in Nuremburg. This got me thinking about my experience with conferences held here in the United States — the world’s hot spot in technology. Except for a small number of very well-known conferences, the kind of earnest participation of the manufacturing community and the engineering and scientific communities that occurs elsewhere is somewhat lacking in this country.

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