drupa 2008, Solving a Complex Puzzle: An Interview with Werner M. Dornscheidt
Werner Matthias Dornscheidt has been board chairman of Messe Düsseldorf GmbH since January 2004. With a degree in hotel and business management, Dornscheidt has held various positions since 1979 at Düsseldorf Messegesellschaft, NOWEA International, and other convention companies. He served as deputy general manager of Messe Düsseldorf International from 1990 to 1999; and, as chairman of the management board, ran Leipziger Messe GmbH from 1999 to 2003.
Q: There are already indications that drupa 2008 will surpass the record-breaking drupa event back in 2000. In what respects?
Dornscheidt: drupa’s history goes back over 50 years, and since the closing date for exhibitor applications on October 31, 2006, it has been clear that drupa 2008 will be the largest yet. The exhibition grounds are totally booked up, with some 170,000 square meters of show space and 1,800 exhibitors. There isn’t even one square meter of space left in the newly built Hall 8b, next to Hall 8a at the north end of the convention grounds. For an idea of the total show space, just imagine an area the size of about 40 soccer fields. What’s more, we are expecting 400,000 visitors, over 50 percent of them from outside Germany.
Q: When will the final number of exhibitors be known?
Dornscheidt: We know right now that the current figure of 1,800 will increase, partly because a lot of exhibitors are combined in applications from the Ministries of Economic Affairs of individual countries. They won’t be listed as separate exhibitors until the building layouts have been finalized. We can’t announce the actual number until September 2007 because of the planning and allocation process.
Q: Why was there such a long period of time between the early application deadline and the final notification for exhibitors that they had been accepted?
Dornscheidt: The procedures I just mentioned illustrate one of the core competencies of the Messe Düsseldorf organization: superior service. We are currently conducting stand information meetings with exhibitors, both here in Düsseldorf and around the world, in the customers’ own countries. After all, each and every exhibitor deserves optimum service and the best show space in line with his needs. We take time for these personal interviews. It’s like putting together the pieces of a complex puzzle: finding the right hall and the right environment for individual companies, some of which of course are competitors.
Q: What will be different at drupa 2008 with regard to the exhibitors and the layout?
Dornscheidt: We want to make drupa as clearly structured and visitor-friendly as possible. The halls presenting “Digital Solutions” play a key role in this context. This area has been expanded since drupa 2004. Hall 8a and the new Hall 8b, as well as the adjacent Halls 5 and 9, are primarily reserved for exhibitors from this field, including major companies such as Xerox, HP Indigo, Agfa-Gevaert, Fujifilm, Kodak, Konica Minolta and Ricoh. When exhibitors like Canon reserve one thousand square meters of additional space for their booth at drupa 2008, it clearly indicates the relevance of this segment.
Q: The growth of digital technologies is obviously a central theme, so can drupa still be referred to as a print trade fair?
Dornscheidt: More than ever! Because people are printing more than ever. Digital solutions couldn’t exist without conventional print methods. As the leading trade fair for the print and media industry, we are presenting the interaction and co-existence of these technologies. We show the complete range of products and the entire added-value chain, from design all the way to the finished print product. When the demands imposed on the printing industry change, drupa is the very best “seismograph” for detecting new trends.
Q: What challenges does Messe Düsseldorf GmbH face, with just one year to go before drupa 2008 opens its doors?
Dornscheidt: One of the most important things we have to take care of is the complex planning of the halls, as I mentioned before, which is to be completed by summer 2007. We are also progressing with the organization of the ancillary program, together with our partners. Various campaigns to attract visitors are likewise being launched. In addition to ad campaigns, mailings and presentations, we have plans to hold some 60 full-scale press conferences on all continents, each tailored to their respective industrial regions. We will be visiting eleven countries in South America alone! Saudi Arabia, Southeast Asia and Australia are other primary targets. In many cases, executive managers will join the teams on site to establish and expand contact with multipliers who have access to potential visitors.
Q: Have the visitor demographics changed in any way, in terms of nationality?
Dornscheidt: The interest level of Asian nations in drupa has been growing steadily over the years, particularly India and China. In 2000, about 10,000 guests came from Asia, just 5 percent of the total; in 2004 the number had already jumped to 80,000 - 20 percent. We expect another increase in 2008. The fact is that drupa is an international trade fair: while the number of foreign visitors made up 20 percent in 1972, the figure hit 55 percent in 2004.
Q: What steps are you taking to make drupa more attractive to print buyers?
Dornscheidt: There will be a special program for print buyers, called “The Cube,” with events specifically geared to their needs and reflecting the latest trends in the industry. The concept is currently under development and we will have more about the actual content at a later date.
Q: What can visitors expect from the drupa 2008 accompanying program?
Dornscheidt: These know-how events were a big success at the last drupa, so we want to offer visitors the same type of information and support again this time around. The “drupa innovation parc” will make another appearance. All of Hall 7 will be dedicated to a forum showing new and innovative technologies, including workflow, publishing, PDF, XML and the like, as well as interdisciplinary themes in the “print buyer innovation parc”. A “JDF experience parc” and a new “JDF experience theater” will showcase the latest developments in JDF. In the “Compass Sessions,” the German Printing and Media Industries Federation (Bundesverband Druck) will hold technical and practical workshops daily from 9.00 - 11.00a.m. “Highlight Tours” to the booths of selected exhibitors, organized by Deutscher Drucker publishers, will complete the Compass Sessions by offering hands-on exposure to key trends in the print and media industry.
Q: What advertising measures will be part of the run-up to drupa?
Dornscheidt: Our drupa Podcast is a totally new feature which we will be premiering in summer 2007. It will enable those interested to download drupa presentations on their iPods and iPod cell phones, which should be available by then. Furthermore, we are currently developing a large-scale campaign including advertising in print, on television, billboards and public transport. Three months before the trade fair starts, drupa red will be the dominant color in and around greater Düsseldorf. And, what would drupa be without a new drupa song? It is currently available for download at ww.drupa.de
Q: What impression do you want visitors to have of drupa 2008?
Dornscheidt: We want them to feel as if they’ve participated in the Olympics of the print and media industry!
