AutoMechanika Asia 2003 to be held in KL
The AutoMechanika trade fair originally started in Frankfurt, Germany, in 1971 and has since grown to be a global event with 12 separate venues on four continents. In China alone, there are two separate events with India also having one. The third event – AutoMechanika Asia – has been held in Singapore in 1998 and 2000 and will move to Kuala Lumpur for the 2003 edition.
While Singapore is often recognized as a central location for conferences and exhibitions, the small market and business environment there is not so suited for an event that is related to the automotive industry. This was the explanation given by Michel-Alexander Morlat, Vice-President for Brand AutoMechanika, concerning the change of venue.
Mr Morlat said that it was not due to costs either because it actually costs more to have the event in Malaysia, but the potential as far greater for exhibitors as there is a growing automotive industry here.
“We feel that a Malaysian venue for our event offers more opportunities for exhibitors to establish relationships with the automakers. There are manufacturers here and there is a large components industry too so our event is ideal for them to make contact,” he said.
The fact that there is an automotive industry in Malaysia and with AFTA becoming a reality makes AutoMechanika Asia an important event for the industry and for this reason, the organizers have broadened the product categories to cover virtually every aspect of the business from R&D and design to manufacturing to maintenance/after-sales and even recycling.
With nine categories, AutoMechanika Asia 2003, to be held between November 12 – 15 2003, will have more floor area than the two previous events. The total exhibition space will be over some 7,300 sq. metres on two levels of the Putra World Trade Centre.
At least 200 exhibitors will be participating and these will include global leaders as well as Malaysian companies. The organizer also expect some 6,000 visitors from all over the region as well as beyond. Mr Morlat said that even though there are separate events in India and China, they are focused more on the huge domestic industries of those two countries whereas AutoMechanika Asia is an ‘Asian event’.
There will also be the AutoMechanika Academy which is the venue for the seminars and conferences held in conjunction with the event. These will have three main themes – business opportunities in ASEAN, car distribution trends, and environment regulations.
Sachs will also display a Model Workshop which is intended as an ongoing commitment to address the growing challenges facing independent workshops. This display will feature state-of-the-art equipment and have ‘live’ demonstrations of repairs.
The Innovation Awards will also be introduced for the first time at an AutoMechanika event in Asia and it is recognized as one of the foremost awards in the international automobile industry. It is awarded to the most outstanding technical development and product innovation in the automotive field.
“The Innovation Awards allow local and regional automotive players to demonstrate their ingenuity, innovative capabilities and cutting-edge technologies,” said Mr Morlat.
There will be awards for three main product groups – original equipment, spare parts and garage/petrol station equipment. Judging will be based on innovativeness, quality, user benefits, ease of operation and environmental compatibility. All exhibitors qualify for participation but must register before the event, on August 29 2003.
Past winners of the Innovation Awards (at the AutoMechanika Frankfurt 2002) include Bosch for its ‘Brake by Wire’ system developed in collaboration with DaimlerChrysler, Audi for its Pocket Diagnosis System, and VW for its internal television.
