AchemAsia 2010: Global Process Engineering Community Meets in China

In China eight is considered to be a lucky number. In many respects, therefore, all the stars are in the right constellation for the eighth AchemAsia 2010, which will take place from 1-4 June 2010 in Beijing. Many economists expect China to play a major part in pulling the world out of the global economic crisis. AchemAsia offers the global process industry an opportunity to acquire a prominent market position in the everexpanding Asian markets, to forge new contacts and to present their cutting-edge developments. ACHEMA’s “baby sister“ is the most international event of its kind in Asia, showcasing the whole range of the process industry both along the value-added chain from process development through to packaging machinery and in the breadth of the branches represented. The target groups are all sectors that offer or apply equipment, technologies, complete solutions and know-how for the chemical and petrochemical industry, the pharmaceutical and food industries, biotechnology, the environmental protection sector and related branches of the process industries.

New location plus new rates add up to increased attractiveness

The new location in the China National Convention Center is conveniently situated in downtown Peking. Besides the advantage of excellent transport links, the Center has state-of-the-art exhibition facilities. One spin-off of the new site is that it boosts the integration of the Congress with the Exhibition. The new, simplified rates have been designed with our exhibitors in mind and aim to facilitate planning. The flexible prices are based on the attractiveness of the location instead of the country of origin and enable exhibitors to tailor their presentations to suit their budget.

No halt to China’s economic growth

The Chinese economy has been less hard hit by the global financial crisis than the industrialized countries. The International Monetary Fund has forecast 8.5% growth for 2009 and 9% for 2010. One of the driving forces is the stimulus package totalling around 470 billion euros to be channelled into infrastructure projects and industrial restructuring. Measures to increase efficiency and promote environmental protection are also envisaged – themes that are also central to AchemAsia.

AchemAsia homes in on trends in Chinese industry

The list of Congress topics alone reads like an agenda for Asia’s industries: Sustainable Production, The Process Industries’ Contribution to Secure Energy Demand, Clean Production, Advanced Materials, Industrial Water Treatment, Biotechnology, Recover – Recycle – Reuse, Innovative Products and Services, and Laboratory Automation are the central themes of the Congress, thus picking up on quintessential trends of China’s process industry. The exhibitors’ role is to present practical solutions to these themes which they do in 13 different exhibition groups from Chemical Apparatus and Plant Construction to Environmental Protection and Water Treatment, Development of New Resources, Food Technology and Agrochemistry through to Laboratory and Analytical Techniques, and Packaging and Storage Techniques. Practiceoriented workshops and business sessions smooth the way for face-to-face dialogue with potential partners and convey a general picture of the state of research and technology in China. Exhibitors and visitors at ACHEMA 2009 in Frankfurt were unanimous about the effectiveness of direct contact with existing and potential partners, the more so in difficult economic times.

Not forgetting small and medium-sized enterprises

AchemAsia not only opens up access to Asian markets for large companies, but also for small and medium-sized enterprises. For this reason, several countries support participation in AchemAsia by offering, for example, the possibility of joint stands. The German Federal Ministry of Economics and Technology has launched such a programme. Representative offices in Beijing, China and Seoul, South Korea act as regional centres for Asian exhibitors and visitors.

International cooperation the key to success

It is not left to exhibitors, researchers and developers to pursue the goal of crossborder cooperation. The organizers, too, are guided by the principle that good cooperation is the key to AchemAsia’s success. For this reason, besides closely collaborating with the coorganizer CIESC (Chemical Industry and Engineering Society of China), DECHEMA Gesellschaft für Chemische Technik und Biotechnologie e.V. involves the expertise of some 30 other professional organisations from China and all over the world in the preparation of this event.