More than 260,000 Visitors Attend drupa 2016

As the 11-day drupa 2016 trade fair draws to a close, the 1,837 exhibitors from 54 countries unanimously reported excellent business deals, extremely promising contacts and a positive spirit for the global print industry, according to show organizers.
 
The re-positioning of drupa and its focus on future themes with strong growth potential – such as 3D printing, functional printing or packaging printing – proved to be a real asset. Be it publication, commercial, packaging or industrial printing, printing technology offers matching solutions for all of these applications while opening up new lines of business and business models at the same time.
 
“The print industry is constantly re-inventing itself and offers a wealth of high-potential facets. And this is precisely what drupa 2016 has very impressively proven. We were able to experience a highly innovative industry here in the 19 exhibition halls, one that has succeeded in moving out of the ‘valley of tears’ and grasping the future by the neck,” explained Claus Bolza-Schünemann, chairman of the drupa Committee and chairman of the board at Koenig & Bauer AG.
 
Some 260,000 visitors from 188 countries and some 1,900 journalists from 74 countries travelled to Düsseldorf to learn about technology innovations, further developments and new business lines. Visitors’ decision-making competence is extremely high: approximately 75% of all visitors are executives and in a decisive and or co-decisive capacity when it comes to capital expenditure in their companies. Various other indicators produced by the visitors’ survey include:
•  54% of visitors came to drupa 2016 with concrete investment intentions.
•  29% placed orders during drupa.
•  30% are planning to place their orders after drupa.
•  60% found new suppliers at drupa.
 
The development in visitor attendance (2012: 314,248) reflects the worldwide consolidation occurring in the industry. This is why visitors’ high decision-making competence produced a particularly positive effect, all the more as one in two visitors expected their companies’ business to develop very well over the next 12 months. “Customers – with very few exceptions – no longer come with large delegations or as part of a company outing to drupa. It is rather the top managers that travel to Düsseldorf today – and from 188 countries to this drupa,” explained Werner Matthias Dornscheidt, president and CEO of Messe Düsseldorf GmbH.
 
Totaling 76%, the percentage of international visitors is up 16% from four years ago. This figure can be attributed to Asian visitors: 17% of international visitors came from this continent alone (2012: 13.6%). And here India accounted for the largest share with 5%, followed by China with 3%. The leading European countries were Italy, France, the Netherlands and the UK.
 
As announced at the midpoint of drupa, the event will stick to its four-year cycle meaning the next drupa will be held from June 23-July 3, 2020.