Sepp D Heckmann

Organiser of the triennial intralogistics trade show CeMAT has moved the show from its northern hemisphere autumn slot to spring.

CeMAT 2008 will be held from May 27 to May 31, 2008, and its organiser says the move will be permanent.

Sepp D Heckmann, chairman of the managing board of organiser Deutsche Messe AG, said the move was in response to feedback from exhibitors at CeMAT 2005.

A spokesperson for Deutsche Messe AG said of the 1,000 exhibitors at CeMAT 2005, 20 had outdoor and indoor exhibits. CeMAT depends on "good weather as many exhibits are shown in the large open-air site and such weather in Germany is more likely in spring than in fall".

She said Deutsche Messe AG would "set goals [for CeMAT 2008] within the next months" and it expected the move to attract more than 1,000 exhibitors and 50,000 visitors in 2008.

Last CeMAT, 48,427 people visited the trade show, half of whom were first-time visitors.

Visitors from the materials handling industry accounted for 53.5 per cent of total visitors, 13 per cent were from the wholesale/retail trade, 20.7 per cent from service providers and the rest were from the construction industry, skilled trades and public institutions.

CeMAT separated from Hannover Fair for the first time in October 2005 and transformed its focus from materials handling hardware to a comprehensive intralogistics trade show.

According to the CeMAT organiser, "intralogistics" described the part of the logistics chain that covered the flow of materials between logistics nodes within organisations. It also covered the accompanying flow of information in the production operation and in goods distribution centres, airports and seaports.