“Plastics are absolutely essential.”

With her opening statement at the inauguration of this year’s Fakuma plastics trade fair (www.fakuma-messe.de), Bettina Schall, managing director of German event organiser P.E. Schall (Frickenhausen; www.schall-messen.de), left no doubt as to the future viability of the materials. Nevertheless, the challenges facing the plastics industry are “highly complex”, said Schall, referring to the industry’s still-tarnished public image.

The industry will be holding its (almost) annual rendezvous in Friedrichshafen, Germany, until 21 October. It features 1,663 exhibitors, which is significantly higher than 1,470 in 2021. However, the mark was still well below the pre-pandemic level of 1,933 exhibitors in 2018. 

All 12 halls at the Friedrichshafen Exhibition Centre and a total area of 85,000 m² have been covered by Fakuma, reported Annemarie Schur, project manager for the show at Schall. Of 724 exhibitors, 44% come from abroad, led by Italy (134), China (120), Switzerland (79), Austria (70), Turkey (58), and France (55). The event also includes a special zone with 17 start-ups.  

No details were given on the number of visitors expected at this year’s event. Plastics Information Europe (PIE) and its sister publications, Kunststoff Information (KI) and K-PROFI will also be present in Friedrichshafen this year (booth ÜO-02). We look forward to welcoming visitors to our traditional Yellow Hour drinks and conversation at 4pm each day of the fair!