Windows of opportunity
Issue: Summer 2009
The first half of 2009 proved to be a difficult time for companies trading in the freight and logistics sector. Manufacturers and suppliers found customers cutting back on budgets across the board. Amongst the casualties of the economic downturn were a number of high profile trade events, including this year's Commercial Vehicle Show that was scheduled to take place in April at the NEC, Birmingham.
Mike Parry Reports
In previous years around 30,000 visitors have attended the three day exhibition.
The cancellation of such a prestigious gathering certainly left a void in the road haulage calendar, so the recent announcement by the CV Show Partnership that the NEC will host the ‘Commercial Vehicle Operator Show’ next spring (13th – 15th April) is most welcome.
“This new show will be an ideal platform, particularly for those specialising in vehicle maintenance equipment, replacement parts, logistics and fleet management systems,” said Nick Jones, chief executive at the Society of Operations Engineers. “This industry needs a business-to-business show to cater for professional transport operators’ wide ranging needs and the Commercial Vehicle Operator Show will do exactly that.
“There have been strong calls from companies within the sector for the CV Show Partnership to run a new style event in 2010. The Commercial Vehicle Operator Show will meet this demand while setting the scene for the return of the Commercial Vehicle Show in 2011. I am delighted that the new show will be at the NEC and that mid-April remains a significant date on the industry calendar. The partners have listened to industry and will be bringing forward events that meet their needs and anticipate the economic conditions.”
One event that did take place recently at the NEC was Multimodal 2009. Freight Industry Times had a stand at the show and can report that it was a resounding success. Launched in 2008, the event in its second year recorded a 66% increase in visitor numbers with more than 135 exhibitors in attendance. Multimodal 2010 is already attracting a great deal of interest and the organisers have found it necessary to move to the larger capacity Hall 4 at the NEC (27th – 29th April).
Trailer 2009 will take centre stage later this year (20th – 24th November), at the revamped Kortrijk Xpo in Belgium. While many other European trade shows have either been cancelled or postponed this biennial exhibition is on track to showcase the latest on trailers, semi-trailers, bodywork and all kinds of accessories for the transport and logistics sector. With trade events in short supply this year, Trailer 2009 is bound to attract many visitors from the UK.
The transport and logistics sector has been through hard times recently, and there are more to come, but events such as Trailer 2009, the Commercial Vehicle Operator Show, Multimodal 2010 and the restyled Commercial Vehicle Show can be part of the recovery process.
For further information, visit: www.freight-online.co.uk
Published: 06/07/2009
