Day 1 at AIX Hamburg
By Bill Marter
Greetings from Hamburg Germany, home to the 2019 Aircraft Interior Expo (AIX) located at the Hamburg Exhibition Hall (Hamburg Messe).
First, let me try to explain the size of this show… over 560 exhibitors spread throughout seven different halls, in three different buildings. Four additional halls are located on the second story of a building on the north side of the convention center. I don’t even want to guess the total number of square feet…
While this is not my first foray into the world of the Aircraft Interior Expo, it is my first where I am an attendee and not an exhibitor. This gives me greater freedom to see (hopefully) all the exhibitors and their products, capabilities, programs, etc.
DAY 1
This show has everything. Exhibitors of leather, electronics, composites, coatings, fabrics, interior laminates, adhesives, you name it. Aircraft manufacture4res displayed aircraft sections with not only economy (my standard seating class), but also business and ultra-premium, first-class seating. These sections make my Texas home look like a cardboard shack located in some war-ravaged country. If that’s not exciting enough, many of the exhibitors are using virtual reality headsets to bring their products to life for attendees.
The 1st hour was spent scouring the program map, locating exhibitors that I wanted to meet. While I was able to arrange meetings prior to my flight to Hamburg, locating them over 16 pages of exhibition maps, was not the easiest thing for to do.
I did manage to spend time with DH Sutherland’s partners in the aircraft interior world. L&L Product’s European team is exhibiting (Booth 6C50) and we spent some time introducing ourselves. Thank you to our President, Andrew Crouse, for letting them know that I would be walking the show. Their knowledge of the European market is outstanding, and we were able to discuss some of the new applications and products that will be hitting the market soon.
Long story short, I spent over 4 hours in building B6 and then spent the remaining hours running through the other halls. Due to the sheer size of the exhibition, I don’t know if I was truly able to “get my bearings,” but I saw enough to (again, hopefully) check off a visit with everyone on my list by Thursday.
Tomorrow I will have more regarding the show and the exhibitors as well as my meetings with some of our customers!