Following a four-year pause, the world’s premier trade fair for the metalworking sector will once again be opening its doors in Hanover, from 18 to 23 September 2017. With its motto of Connecting systems for intelligent production, it will be spotlighting the issues of digitisation and networking for production operations.

At the beginning of June 2017, more than 2,050 firms from 45 countries had signed up. There are more than 1,400 exhibitors from Europe alone. The number of Asian participants has increased from 21 to 25 per cent. “This means the current registration status is significantly above the comparable figure for the previous event,” explains Welcker. There are plenty of indications that the EMO Hannover 2017 is heading for a record participation level.

The opening ceremony is scheduled to last about an hour on 18 September. Besides Frank-Walter Steinmeier, Lower Saxony’s Prime Minister Stephan Weil and CECIMO’s President Luigi Galdabini will also be speaking. After this, the President will be taking an exhaustive tour of the fair. “We shall be demonstrating to the President the performative and innovative capabilities of our sector, and the range of solutions we offer in the environment of digitisation,” added Carl Martin Welcker.

Intelligent production in a network of possibilities

The paramount topics of discussion in the international world of production technology are digitalisation and networking, as the EMO’s motto communicates. The EMO’s organisers are confident that the EMO Hannover 2017 will generate important impetus for implementing the much-discussed concept of Industry 4.0 or the Internet of Things (IoT). A foretaste will be provided by the EMO Hannover 2017 Preview in Hanover on 21 June, at which 36 EMO exhibitors will three months before the actual event be unveiling their innovations to the media on an exclusive basis.

“In the machine tool, we have long since implemented digitalisation,” says Carl Martin Welcker. “Digital images, for example, for simulations have likewise been possible for quite a long time now.” Under the keyword of Industry 4.0, the task now is to network the entire production operation, and indeed the complete added-value chain.

In a consistently networked manufacturing line, flexible production is possible with optimised sequences, so that even rush orders in small batch sizes can be handled. Complete networking of the entire production line with real-time communication and control will create maximised added value for companies when it implements horizontal communication from receipt of the order all the way through to dispatch. Within the added-value chain, moreover, it’s important to network not only the component suppliers, but also the logistical partners and the customers involved, so as to achieve maximised productivity, flexibility and efficiency. “If all this succeeds, this signifies a quantum leap forwards in terms of productivity, and will catapult those who can do it to the leading edge of international competition,” is the succinct verdict of the EMO’s General Commissioner Carl Martin Welcker.

As an innovation forum and trendsetter, the EMO Hannover 2017 will in addition be presenting a broad supporting programme themed around commercial and technical issues. Keywords here include Industry 4.0, the production operations of tomorrow, additive manufacturing processes, metal-cutting in the aerospace industry, the safety of machine tools, the development of the markets in the USA, Mexico, and India, start-ups for intelligent production, youth recruitment, etc.

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