Reports

General Observations. The core topics at HANNOVER MESSE included artificial intelligence, hydrogen, energy management, connected and intelligent production, and the new Manufacturing-X data ecosystem.

More than 4,000 exhibitors presented their solutions and welcomed 130,000 visitors from around the globe. There seemed to be a very large Chinese contingent at the show (both as visitors and exhibitors), as well as a large number of local governments, universities and startups. There seemed to be a predominance of exhibitors showing bearings, copper fittings, cables and components as well as systems / electronics companies.

There was also a large number of independent robots in evidence, ranging from robotic dogs and robotic servers to robotic messengers following pre planned routes.

The Exhibition site was huge with each hall easily taking at least 1.5 to 2 hours to walk thoroughly.

Selected Companies. More than 4,000 companies exhibited their products at the show, but we thought these few had products that were especially interesting.

Eikto is a Chinese company based in Xuancheng (Anhui Province) and which is situated approximately 150km west of Shanghai. Their products are mainly suited to Material Handling Equipment, Golf-Buggy, Aerial work Platform, Cleaning Equipment and small marine applications.

They had a small stand showing their Battery Cells (in different sizes) (see Picture 1) and their new Lithium-Ion Battery Pack (Picture 2 &3). They weren’t to open about the size of the Battery pack but I would estimate its between 10kWh and 20kWwh

Delta is a Dutch company with a global presence (Netherlands, Taiwan, USA, Australia, Japan, Singapore, India, Thailand, Indonesia and the Philippines) that specializes in EV chargers. It was one of a number of companies with EV chargers on display.

It also made a big issue about retrofitting older buildings with chargers.

Wilo. The Wilo Group is a multinational technology group and a supplier of pumps and pump systems for building services, water management and the industrial sector. It has also used its expertise to move into Hydrogen.

Their H2POWERPLANT uses electrolysis to convert green solar, wind and hydropower into green hydrogen. When it’s needed, a fuel cell can then be used to convert the hydrogen back into electrical energy. The waste heat is either used in the interconnected system for heating, stored or converted into cooling on site. This sustainable use of all released energy optimises system efficiency. The process relies on the precise configuration of the water-bearing systems in addition to intelligent control of energy and load management.

The 20ft container includes all the components necessary to generate hydrogen and fuel cells to convert it into electricity. The storage of H2 is in a separate 20ft container

MTU is a regular at most trade shows and their stand was fairly small (smaller than at Bauma). They were mainly displaying their Fuel Cell package.

Auyan. Established in June 2011, and located in Weifang City, Shandong Province, Auyan New Energy Technology Co., Ltd. specializes in manufacturing cryogenic equipment. As an offshoot of this they have developed their own Hydrogen electrolysis and storage equipment

Their mobile electrolysis machine manufactures approximately 1m cubed of hydrogen per hour. They have larger versions too.

Accelera (Cummins) had a small display under their new related business name, Accelera. Accelera is the new brand for Cummins’ New Power business segment, it launched March 8, 2023. Accelera is an energy technology leader committed to securing a sustainable future for the industries that keep the world running. A diverse portfolio of zero-emissions solutions includes battery systems, fuel cells, ePowertrain systems and electrolyzers

Others. Some of the university stands had very interesting displays. One was a fuel cell powered bike with a thermos like device on the left for fuel. A lower box holds the fuel cell and the upper box holds a small battery.

Golz is a medium sized, family run company that specializes in handheld and small portable equipment for construction sites (table drills, power saws, drills, etc).  They have a long term relationship with Stihl and make some of the Stihl products.

They have branched out into providing power packs for small construction sites. One product shown was a power bank that has 4.8 kwh. The business idea is that a small contractor takes one or two of these power banks to his site, uses them and recharges over night.

Pre-Zero is a plastics recycling company that was founded in 2009 under the name GreenCycle. It originated from a department in waste disposal logistics of Lidl.  PreZero, are now the environmental division of the Schwarz Group with 485 locations worldwide and over 30,000 employees.    PSR

Guy Youngs is Forecast & Adoption Lead at Power Systems Research