Online-Newsletter "Wasserstoff + Brennstoffzelle" #0204, April 28, 2006

Hydrogen + Fuel Cells 2006: “Go to where the Market is!”

An Interview with Arno A. Evers, organizer of the
worldwide greatest presentation of the
H2/FC industry at the HANNOVER FAIR 2006

For the twelfth time now, the international hydrogen and fuel cell branch will present their newest research & development progress, their latest products and pilot projects as well as thought-provoking and visionary concepts of versatile applications of this future technology at the Group Exhibit Hydrogen + Fuel Cells at HANNOVER FAIR 2006, April 24-28, in Hall 13. To find out more about this trade show event, the Newsletter spoke personally with Organizer Arno A. Evers.

Arno A. Evers at the 17th NHA Annual Hydrogen Conference, March 2006, Long Beach, CA, USA (Photo: Peter Broeker, Concept and Design, Berlin)

Newsletter: Mr. Evers, what’s new this year at the Group Exhibit 2006?

Arno A. Evers: A visit to the Group Exhibit is most certainly worth it in 2006 – more than 120 exhibitors, forum participants and Hydrogen Ambassadors from 31 countries will show the many trade show visitors their latest achievements in hydrogen and fuel cell technology. An excellent result, when you think that we started with only 14 exhibitors from Germany back in 1995.

Newsletter: In 2006, like every year, there are more than a dozen congresses, symposiums and annual meetings about hydrogen and fuel cells worldwide. Even the experts can lose sight of it all in the plethora of events. What’s so special about visiting the Group Exhibit at HANNOVER FAIR 2006?

Arno A. Evers: The worldwide individuality of the Group Exhibit lies first, in its established location at the HANNOVER FAIR and second, in its internationality. The full value-added chain of hydrogen and fuel cell technology is reflected in the products at Hannover. Trade show visitors can witness a concentrated “Know-how” of the international hydrogen and fuel cell community. Our exhibitors consist of over 400 H2/FC experts, with whom all visitors can speak with personally. Scientists, researchers, developers but also company founders and owners as well as international journalists look forward to discussing ideas with the trade show visitors. All this, in the very midst of the largest industry and energy fair in the world. All other congresses, symposiums or annual meetings in the field of hydrogen and fuel cells tend to be “Insider-events”, which are somewhat restricted by the national scope of the organizing committee. Not to say that these aren’t great events too; in fact, we visit them ourselves!
(www.hydrogenambassadors.com/meet-aae/index.php).
However such events are not comparable with the Group Exhibit Hydrogen and Fuel Cells at HANNOVER FAIR. We use our slogan: “Go to where the Market is!”, to motivate new companies to come to Hannover. Whomever is truly interested in the worldwide commercialization of hydrogen and fuel cells need only to come to this annual exhibit in Hannover, whether as exhibitor or visitor.

Newsletter: The Group Exhibit offers its customers a wide variety of benefits – participation in the moderated Forum Program, Networking Evenings, nearly 24-hour service, even catering service directly to individual booths. What’s the motivation behind such an “around-the-clock“ service?

Arno A. Evers: As founder, owner and operator of the Group Exhibit at HANNOVER FAIR since 1995, my team and I travel around the world to the most important exhibits in this field. In 2005 alone we attended 15 H2/FC meetings in 10 countries. At these events we hear and see quite a bit; we speak with our international customers, potential exhibitors and visitors. We take in the environment, the scene, and the organization of the exhibit; based on this first-hand experience, we can evaluate what could have been done better. This evaluation helps us develop and refine our own “Full Service Package”, which makes the organizational work as stress-free as possible for our customers. To reach this goal, our 5-person team in Starnberg, led by Tobias Renz, works full-time, year around. Throughout this preparation-phase we concentrate fully on our product: the Group Exhibit. During the fair in Hannover, our team expands to up to 60 energetic young people from around the world.
For both exhibitors and visitors the Forum Program, with its 100+ interviews throughout the 5-day fair, is an essential medium for transmitting information and ideas. All activities of our exhibitors, forum participants and Hydrogen Ambassadors are photo-documented and placed online by our 16-person Media Team, led by Ulrich Felger. Each year we create approximately 400 new webpages with over 1000 snapshots, videos and panorama pictures of the daily on-goings. Using our website one can already prepare for the upcoming Group Exhibit. The secret to our success is that we provide a direct service, person-to-person. Anyone who has been to our Group Exhibit even once knows what I’m talking about.

Newsletter: According to press releases and to your own words, the Group Exhibit Hydrogen + Fuel Cells in Hall 13 is the most important presentation of the industry worldwide. But don’t other exhibitors also claim this title, for example the FC Expo in Japan…

Arno A. Evers: One shouldn’t compare apples with oranges. Over the past 12 years the Group Exhibit has developed into the “biggest” commercial exhibit or better said in English, the “greatest” exhibit of its kind, due to the high density of information and the high quality of the exhibiting representatives. We are without a doubt the most international trade show in the entire hydrogen and fuel cells industry. We can be very proud of these achievements, which we reached without any external funding or governmental subsidies. Our success is based solely on the satisfaction of our customers.

Newsletter: What are this year’s highlights? What more can you tell us about these Hydrogen Ambassadors and Starter Kits?

Arno A. Evers: When it comes to highlights, the best answer has to be the whole of the impressive international activities at Hannover. It’s quite difficult for me, as the organizer, to pick out just one particular exhibitor. Everyone is cordially invited to come see it for themselves, April 24-28, and to discover the very latest developments in hydrogen and fuel cells. Here is where you will meet, above all, the people who stand behind the technology and continually push it further. All of them are pioneers in their field.
The 12 Hydrogen Ambassador Teams from six countries and ranging in age from 17 to 62 are the winners of our International Competition that we began after the last Hannover Fair in April 2005.
(www.hydrogenambassadors.com). With their impressive innovations for the commercialization of hydrogen and fuel cells, these 31 team members qualified to exhibit at HANNOVER FAIR 2006. My company is the creator and sponsor of this worldwide initiative. The Starter Kits you mentioned are a chance specifically for first-time exhibitors. Fifteen exhibitors from eight countries took us up on the offer in 2006.

Newsletter: Again in 2006 you will have new countries represented and quite a few first-time exhibitors. For which reason and with what sort of expectations do these companies and organizations come to Hannover?

Arno A. Evers: Here I should make a distinction. On the whole we have 31 countries represented at the Group Exhibit – a 45% increase from last year’s count. Traditionally we have group stands designated for individual states in Germany; for example this year we will have a Hessen Stand and a Hamburg Stand. These are similar in structure to the cooperation of the German IBZ – Initiative Brennstoffzellen. New this year is the “group exhibit inside the Group Exhibit”: an Italian group booth with 8 exhibitors. The Italian booth is not an official government exhibit but rather a gathering of representatives from individual companies and organizations who plan to exhibit together. They look forward with an open expectation to this international platform. We are especially excited about Electric Power Corporation, an energy supply company from Apia, Samoa. They will be exhibiting at one of our Starter Kit booths as a first time participant. It just goes to show that there’s an international movement in hydrogen and fuel cells taking place, even in the South Pacific!.

Newsletter: Can you already tell us which innovations, in comparison to other years, will be must-sees in 2006?

Arno A. Evers: Like I said, I don’t want to pick out any specific exhibitor. The trend is clearly moving in the direction of micro- and nano- technologies, of discovering new materials, of system integration and management as well as that of industrial design. One part of our mission as organizers of the yearly Group Exhibit at HANNOVER FAIR since 1995 is providing information to the politicians, the international press and the general public, an important part of which is the younger generation. Many think that hydrogen can solve the energy crisis. Hydrogen however is not a primary energy source but rather an energy carrier. Hydrogen must first be produced which requires primary energy. Others speak of “fuel cell motors” which don’t exist. Automobiles, which operate off of hydrogen or hydrogen-containing substances, have an electric drive train – used by nearly all automobile manufacturers – or an internal combustion engine like in BMW, Ford or Volvo (pdf).

Newsletter: To close, what are the most important thoughts for the future?

Arno A. Evers: My personal favourite is solar, direct and decentralized hydrogen production: “personal power for everybody.” My dream is to see fuel cells as small as a fingernail that deliver 30kW electrical energy and 20kW thermal energy…solar-powered with hydrogen and supplying energy to things which we don’t even know about at the moment! These things will come; it’s only a question of when, where and from whom. When this service – it mustn’t necessarily be a product – reaches the market one day, you will hear: “But that’s so easy, I could have thought of that myself!” Everyone has the chance to come directly to the market. When they do, they’ve followed our motto; “Go to where the Market is!”.

Newsletter: Mr. Evers, we thank you for your time.

Source: Online-Newsletter "Wasserstoff + Brennstoffzelle, 28.3.06