Record Breaking Attendance at analytica 2018

Described as the most international analytica in history, the 26th analytica event at the Munich fairgrounds attracted 35,800 visitors, - a record high – with over 40% from abroad. The 1,164 exhibitors from 49 countries gave provided answers on the latest developments in technology, analysis, biotechnology and digital transformation in the lab.

Dr. Reinhard Pfeiffer, Deputy CEO at Messe München, said: “Exactly 50 years ago, the analytica was launched. By now, it has developed into the world’s largest and most important meeting place for the laboratory industry—nowhere else is the laboratory reflected as comprehensively as it is at analytica. Anyone who made his or her way through the five exhibition halls can confirm this impression.”

Siegbert Holtermüller, Advisory Board Chairman of the analytica and Regional Division Manager of Olympus Germany, added: “We had even more visitors at the booth than we had at the analytica 2016 and from a huge variety of industries too. Of course, digitisation and automation continue to become more and more important, but naturally visitors are still looking for individual solutions to challenges in analysis and diagnostics.”

Susanne Grödl, Exhibition Director at the analytica, adds: “The great interest in our smart laboratory program shows that digitisation has definitely arrived in the lab. In 2020, we will put even more emphasis on this topic.”

analytica 2018 in figures
Top visitor countries apart from Germany were Austria, Switzerland, Italy, China, Great Britain and the USA, while the strongest increases in visitor numbers attended from China, Austria, Korea, Russia and Japan: Satisfaction among the visitors was said to be very high, according to a survey by Gelszus-Messe-Marktforschungsinstitut.

“Every second exhibitor at the analytica 2018 came from abroad. This number underscores the synergy effects in the direction of Munich that emanate from our foreign trade fairs. For international manufacturers who are interested in the European market, Munich is a ’must see’ event”, emphasised Claudia Sixl, Exhibition Group Director of the analytica network at Messe München.

This high level of approval is also a sign that the industry is doing well. New developments in the health sector are driving growth in the IVD market. In 2017, for example, the Life Science Research department of the VDGH reported an increase of 1.4 percent in laboratory diagnostics.

The same applies to analysis, biotechnology and laboratory technology. “We are looking back at an outstanding year 2017 with a total growth of eleven percent”, said Mathis Kuchejda, president of the SPECTARIS Association for Analysis, Biotechnology and Laboratory Technology. From his point of view, one of the central challenges in digitisation in the laboratory is “the uniform device interface, together with the consideration of which data ought to be transferred in the first place and how data security can be ensured.”

Product presentations were also an integral part of the program at the Forum: Eppendorf, Mettler-Toledo, Thermo Fisher and the members of Nexygen presented smart solutions for the future. For example, Joe Arteaga, Director Connectivity—Laboratory Equipment Technologies at Thermo Fisher, showed how device networking helps to streamline workflows and drive research.

With digitisation a major topic in the programme there was also huge interest in areas such as the Personalised Medicine Focus Day, the two Live Labs, Food Analysis and Materials Analysis and the Forum Laboratory & Analysis and the Forum Biotech. visitors were enthusiastic about the special show Workplace Health and Safety with real-world scenarios on the dangers in the laboratory—including loud “bangs” as results of chemical reactions.

Strong analytica conference
The analytica conference also contributes to the top result: 2,074 participants—an increase by 12.8 percent from 2016—learned about the hottest scientific topics in the industry.

Professor Ralf Zimmermann from the University of Rostock commented on the analytica conference 2018: “The conference program is excellent. We were able to organize a nice international session on aerosol and health this year. The trade fair itself enabled us, as it always does, to meet our various cooperation partners very efficiently.”

Chairs and speakers from Europe, China, Korea and the USA gave lectures on such topics as the use of analytical methods in food chemistry and toxicology, the role of consumer health analysis, and the handling of big data. Here, too, the lectures were often filled to the very last seat.

The next analytica will take place from March 31 to April 03, 2020, on the fairgrounds of Messe München