David Savastano, Editor06.27.12
LOPE-C 2012 (Large-area, Organic and Printed Electronics Convention) completed its three-day conference, which ran from June 19-21 at Messe Munchen. Co-organized by the OE-A (Organic and Printed Electronics Association) and Messe Munchen, LOPE-C 2012 was the largest to date, as organizers reported 1,560 visitors, an increase of 36% over LOPE-C 2011.
In terms of exhibitors and presenters, LOPE-C 2012 also flourished. There were 104 exhibitors, up 14% from 2011, and 3,500 square meters of exhibition space, up 40%.
“The number of visitors exceeded 1,500, and the exhibition space was our largest ever,” said OE-A chairman Dr. Stephan Kirchmeyer, head of the Functional Coatings Business Unit from the Heraeus Conductive Polymers Division. “LOPE-C has been growing every year. The impression I received from attendees was that this show was much more professional than last year’s. We also see that people are coming with much more specific interests. The demonstration of products attracted a lot of interest, and we hope to expand upon it.”
“We are getting the right people here at the exhibition,” said Wolfgang Mildner, managing director for PolyIC GmbH & Co. KG and chair of LOPE-C 2012. “It is even better attended than last year. We are seeing the right contacts and getting a lot of requests from customers working on different application areas that we are targeting.”
“The number of visitors and their background was really strong, and the demonstration area was a success,” said Kolbusch. “Attendees have very defined projects, and we have seen more end-users with specific questions. There are more equipment manufacturers here who are from traditional converting markets, which shows there is growing interest in printed electronics. ”
Exhibitor Reactions
In speaking with printed electronics innovators, they said that LOPE-C was an excellent program that allowed them to showcase their products and generate new opportunities.
“LOPE-C has been absolutely solid,” said Dr. Davor Sutija, CEO of Thin Film Electronics. “We have a lot of good leads. I think the business conference is growing and is describing actual products, which shows this is a maturing industry.”
“LOPE-C has been very good and very busy,” said Dr. Michael Niggemann, chief technical officer, Eight19. “We have seen interest from end-users here, and also have met with a lot of our partners.”
Equipment manufacturers were well represented at LOPE-C 2012, and they were pleased with the response they received from attendees.
“LOPE-C went very well for us,” said Stan Farnsworth, vice president of marketing for NovaCentrix. “The ability to work on customer samples in cooperation with FUJIFILM Dimatix and Ceradrop was a big success, and we are looking forward to continuing this concept at future events.”
“We are seeing the right people at LOPE-C,” said Louis Panico, CEO of Xenon Corporation. “The show is well positioned, and there are a lot of equipment manufacturers here. This is still a market that is in transition, and we are committed to making this happen.”
“LOPE-C has been excellent,” said Jeffrey Anderson, sales engineer at Adphos North America. “This has been as busy as a trade show can be. We are seeing a lot of interest in equipment for lab and prototype production.”
“We see great potential. This is a natural fit for us,” said Tino Petsch, CEO of 3D-Micromac.
“This show has been at a very high level,” said David Johnson, sales director, Integration Technology. “I am quite impressed. We are seeing a lot of people who are developing projects, which will allow us to get in on the ground floor of these projects.”
“The fair is very good,” said Frank Schafer, sales director, new products for Kroenert GmbH & Co. KG. “The printed electronics market is good for us. We have a lot of inquiries, which is much better than last year.”
“LOPE-C is just perfect,” said Peter Fleischer, managing director, Micron Patterns + Layers. “Many visitors who are experts in their field are here, and these are very experienced people in R&D.”
Raw material suppliers were also happy with the conference.
“LOPE-C has been good, a pretty good mix,” said Andy Cooper, technical business development manager for Micro Chem. “It seems to have been well attended.”
“It’s been good. We are seeing our clients as well as some new contacts,” said Ian Clark, director of sales and marketing, Intrinsiq Materials.
“LOPE-C has been an excellent conference,” said Liu Yang, director, R&D at SunaTech. “It has been a good opportunity to meet related companies and researchers, which leads to new customers.”
“Attendees have been really specific and well informed,” Dr. Michael Rossier, project leader, Nanograde GmbH. “They understand the technical aspects and have specific questions.”
LOPE-C 2013 will take place in Munich from June 11 to 13, 2013. For more information, contact the OE-A at www.oe-a.org.