DFA Media, organiser of the Drives & Controls exhibition 2014, is optimistic that next year’s show (NEC Hall 3/3A, Birmingham, 8th-10th April 2014) will exceed both the exhibitor and visitor numbers of the 2012 show, which itself attracted the highest visitor numbers yet – totalling 11,146 for the three-day co-located event.
This represented an increase of 29% from the 8,624 attendance figure of the 2010 shows, highlighting a significant return of confidence to the UK manufacturing sector.
The free to attend exhibition will cover the latest in mechanical power transmission, motion control and automation from over 300 leading companies from around the globe. Some of the equipment, systems and services offered by these companies will include:
Motors
Drives
Machine safety
Sensors
Programmable controllers
Inverters
Motion controls
Repairs & maintenance
Gear, brakes, clutches and couplings
Displays & meters
Test & Measurement
Co-location advantage
For 2014, the biennial Drives & Controls exhibition will once again be co-located with complementary shows Plant & Asset Management and Air-Tech, together with the Fluid Power & Systems Exhibition, and the newly launched European Offshore & Energy Exhibition, as well as MACH.
Exhibitor update
Some of the recent signatories to next year’s show include:
Beckhoff Automation
Marelli UK
Schaeffler
ILME
Leuze
Lafert Motors
B&R Industrial Automation
Micro-Epsilon
Harting
WEG Motors
Seminar programme Complementing the exhibitions will be a full programme of free technical seminars, with speakers offering expert insight and practical advice on important and topical issues. New to Drives & Controls 2014 will be the Motor Driven Systems (MDS) programme, which brings together the varied strands of legislation, standardisation, system strategies and technological developments that affect motor driven systems. Featuring representatives from the UK government, the EU, research bodies, trade associations, manufacturers and end users, MDS focuses on practical solutions to real life industry requirements.
Electric motor driven systems comprise a massive 40% of the world’s total electricity consumption. Despite this, many businesses are unaware of the technologies available that have the potential to significantly reduce their energy costs, and in turn the global demand for electricity by 20-30%. MDS presents a series of live events that focus on ways to make these huge savings a reality by applying a systems engineering approach to reduce energy, improve performance and ultimately save money.
Ian Atkinson, managing director of event organiser, DFA Media, commented, “For 2014 we will build on the success of our 2012 shows by further improving the look and layout of each exhibition within our co-location of events, as well as making it as easy as possible for visitors to navigate their way around each separate event. We will also further enhance the format of our valued seminar programme for next year, which will include the Motor Driven Systems (MDS) programme for the first time, as well as many other attractive highlights. The combination of leading manufacturing events, with a highly focused seminar programme, will give visitors a unique opportunity to keep abreast of the latest industry developments by visiting a single co-located event. ”
For more information and updates on Drives & Controls 2014, visit www.drives-expo.com. Be sure to visit www.connectingindustry.com/Automation in the coming months for further updates on the show. There will also be regular content in the build-up to the shows in the printed version of Automation magazine.
