328 brands present and representatives of the major shipyards visiting the IMM-CarraraFiere exhibition dedicated to the nautical accessories and composite materials sector, which confirms its hold on the chessboard of sector events by focusing on quality B2B meetings and on a high level training offer.
The 2019 edition of Seatec-Compotec closes positively, the double IMM-CarraraFiere exhibition held simultaneously from 3 to 5 April, dedicated to technology, accessories, design and subcontracting applied to pleasure boating and the sector of composite materials and their multiple applications. The events highlighted a high-quality professional visit in line with that of the previous edition, attracted by the 328 brands present at the fair, spread over 10,000 square meters. of exhibition space, of which 110 from all over Europe and from Japan, New Zealand, Great Britain and America.
In a macro-economic and trade-fair scenario of undoubted complexity, marked both by the years of crisis in the nautical sector – only recently started to rise thanks to exports – and by the appearance of competing exhibition events, the Carrara event firmly confirms its appeal of highly specialized technical hub, a professional meeting place between supply and demand for the experts in the respective sectors, attesting again this year its hold and scope despite the difficult economic situation and in a constructive effort to adapt the format to the different market needs.
Among the strengths of the edition just ended, the B2B Workshop dedicated to the Seatec-Compotec Marine Supply Chain, now in its 4th edition, is confirmed as a successful moment. The event allowed more than 100 exhibiting companies, who chose to join the business-to-business program organized by IMM-CarraraFiere in collaboration with the Digital Partner Uplink Web Agency, to meet the hundred carefully selected foreign operators and invited for the occasion by IMM-CarraraFiere with the support of ICE Agenzia, for a total of 2117 one-to-one meetings and an approval rating of the format quantified by live surveys in 94.7% satisfaction, demonstrating of the success of the initiative. Companies participating in the B2B program have in fact benefited from highly optimized business meetings thanks to customized agendas defined before the event. The foreign trade delegations included significant professional figures (including managers of purchasing departments and technical offices, engineers and nautical architects) representing strategic markets which, at present, record interesting prospects in terms of potential demand for Made in technology Italy: Albania, South Korea, Croatia, Denmark, United Arab Emirates, Egypt, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Iran, Israel, Kosovo, Latvia, Lithuania, Morocco, Norway, Holland, Poland, United Kingdom, Russia, Slovenia , Spain, Sweden, Tunisia, Turkey, Ukraine, Hungary, USA.
The business opportunities generated by the one-to-one meetings were then analyzed in depth at the exhibitors’ booths thanks to the Seatec-Compotec Showroom Experience, which allowed companies to get their hands on the innovative products and technologies proposed to buyer: a highly appreciated formula that led to the realization of business already during the event, contributing to the delineation of a stimulus model for the entire marine chain that Seatec-Compotec has been able to grasp and which it intends to pursue further in future editions.
In addition to the B2B workshop, the main pillars of the 2019 edition were the attention to the technical culture and the consolidation of relations with the main associations and trade organizations in the respective sectors, as well as with bodies and companies of the first level involved in various ways in the industrial processes active in the reference fields: aspects that have found full realization in the highly qualifying training offer of Seatec & amp; Compotec Academy, a training center dedicated to the professional updating of the sector which, through conferences, seminars and round tables, took stock of a wide and diversified range of topics related to the economy of the sea and ports, the circular economy and recycling , to the conservation of the environment, to research on the most innovative materials, but also on the tourist port system and on the situation of nautical refit in the Mediterranean. The special training offered in the framework of the events was especially aimed at construction site representatives, as well as all those professionals who, in order to comply with the requirements of their respective professional orders, both Engineers and Architects, needed Professional Training Credits (CFP ). Seatec & amp; The 2019 Compotec Academy has developed 14 training appointments, 7 of which are valid for CFPs recognized by the Professional Orders, to which 200 nautical engineers and architects participated. In addition to these events, 22 additional thematic workshops dedicated to topics crucial to the sector were added.
The synergies put in place by IMM-CarraraFiere were decisive for involving the highest authorities and the most accredited sector experts in the Academy program, starting from the universities that have departments and schools related to naval and nautical engineering, to naval architecture and to research in the composites sector, such as Genoa, Trieste, Naples and La Spezia. Another important synergy with The Italian Sea Group allowed to have a prestigious yard at the fair that gave appointment to its suppliers within the exclusive Seatec VIP Lounge. The Italian Sea Group also supported Seatec with an exclusive party at its headquarters, to which Italian and foreign sector journalists, authorities and exhibitors were invited.
The prestigious register RINA made its substantial contribution to the Academy by organizing the conference “New frontiers for emission reduction”, on the occasion of which the engineer Enrico Ursomando, head of Rina Academy, examined all the solutions currently being studied to break down the emissions of the great marine engines, proposing and illustrating a series of solutions applied by the Tankoa, Benetti and Sanlorenzo shipyards (intervening directly bringing their case histories to the attention of the public) and highlighting how the solutions to the problem are not around the corner but, on the contrary, they will require significant investments both from construction sites, but also from engine manufacturers such as Volvo, Man, Mtu and Caterpillar, who presented their in-house solutions at the fair.
In terms of composite materials, a high-profile academic panel represented by the voices of Enrico Cestino and Giacomo Frulla of the Polytechnic of Turin (Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering) – both Associate Professors and effective members of the College of Mechanical, Aerospace, Automotive Engineering and Production – addressed the issue of identifying equivalent materials for the realization of representative models in laboratory experimentation, the creation of molds for composite lamination by 3D printing and the analysis of slamming damage and fleet fatigue Volvo Ocean Race 2017-2018.
The conference section linked to the composites sector, from the beginning a feature of Compotec, has addressed the importance of research on composite materials as a tool for technological evolution and for a more sustainable development, within the prestigious framework of the Academy. care of the journalist Angelo Colombo. The seminar calendar also touched on the theme of recycling materials that feed and support the circular economy, for a better quality of the environment, flanked by a report on the Italian Stock Exchange of regenerated materials deriving from recycling chains. These events allowed to host important speakers such as: Engineer Pietro Russo of CNR IPCB; Engineer Claudio Mingazzini of ENEA; the Engineer Claudio Voto of the Aerospace District of Campania; the Doctors Aldrovandi and Ribaldi, Scientific Advisors of the “Mario Veronesi” Technopole – Democenter-Sipe; Prof. Andrea Bracciali and the Ph.D. Ing. Gianluca Megna representing the DITECFER and the University of Florence; Dr. Rosario Pavone of AIPAS and the Lt. Col Giuliano Cioccolo di Segredifesa; and again, Prof. Luigi Carrino, President of the Aerospace District of Campania; the engineer Giovanni Caprino of Cetena; the engineer Giovanni Cecchini of the Cecchini Racing Team; engineer Paolo Ponsicchi, Technical Director of Eurocraft, and engineer Günther Lutz, a consultant for Composites Engineering.
Speakers at the Academy include Deputy Minister of Infrastructure and Transport Edoardo Rixi, who spoke at the conference on “The Logistics / Port Supply Chain – Ports and Logistics as success factors for the development of the country”, organized by IGB Srl in collaboration with IMM CarrararaFiere, on the occasion of which Rixi brought the voice of the government and of its ministry to the complex relationship of the Italian ports of the Upper Tyrrhenian, both in relation to present and future trade flows, and in the competition with other Mediterranean ports and infrastructures necessary to maintain the competitiveness of national ports. Carla Roncallo, President of ADSP ML Orientale / Assoporti took part in the conference; Antonella Querci, Directorate of Development, European Programs and ASDP MT Northern Innovation; Andrea Gentile, President of Assologistica; Admiral Giuseppe Tarzia, Maritime Director and Commander of the Livorno Port Authority; Giancarlo Laguzzi, President Fercargo; Nereo Marcucci, President of Confetra; Gian Enzo Duci, President of Federagenti Marittimo, Daniele Testi, Marketing Director Contship; Olimpia Ferrara, SRM, Head of the Maritime Team, Iames Pigani of the Gavio Group, Marco Toccafondi, manager of RFI. Lorenzo Forcieri, President of the Ligurian Marine Technology District, moderated the round table.
A distinguished panel of international speakers has also distinguished the highly anticipated conference dedicated to trends in the refit sector, organized by IMM-CarraraFiere in collaboration with the well-known Dutch magazine dedicated to the world of superyachts, Super Yacht Times: Franc Jansen of the management team yacht JMS Yachting, Andrea Carlevaris of ACP Surveyors, Stephen Hills of Pendennis Shipyard, Alberto Perrone Da Zara of Lürssen, Pierre-François Lepoutre of Monaco Marine and Stewart Parvin of the new yard of refit Cantiere Rossini.
Spotlights also on the world of nautical design with the conference “Close encounters in the third millennium – Dialogues between designers and shipyards”, organized by the magazine Barche and moderated by its director Franco Michienzi in the presence of leading Italian yacht designers of the caliber of Brunello Acampora, Fulvio De Simoni, Alberto Mancini, Giovanni Ceccarelli, Sergio Cutolo, Roberto Piatti, Vasco Buonpensiere, Lamberto Tacoli. The conference analyzed the evolution of yacht design in the last decade through the direct voice of designers and shipbuilding exponents with whom the designers work, in a tight comparison between ideas, visions and complexity of realization, in a constantly changing market. In addition to the conference, the director of Boats Franco Michienzi organized the exhibition “The Idea Factory”, dedicated to 19 designers, true nautical archistars, who contributed to the fame and greatness of Italian yachting. Still on the subject of design, the conference organized by ADI Toscana, chaired by its President Perla Gianni and held by Sergio Buttiglieri, Style Director of Cantieri San Lorenzo, presented the unique history of the shipyard that reached the top of the builders of yachts over 24 meters thanks to innovation based on nautical traction and the organic relationship with design and art.
On the innovation front, the participation of Toyobo Co.Ltd, a Japanese textile chemical company leader in the creation of innovative fibers and materials for highly technical applications such as “Breathair,” the incredible material used to replace the polyurethane padding for Tokyo subway seats and the famous Japanese Shinkansen fast train.
The attention of Seatec-Compotec is also significant for the lively world of Startups (8 in total those present), which thanks to the Start Up Arena have interacted with the public presenting their innovations during the Elevator Pitch, in which they were evaluated by a commission of experts from the Talent Garden community and by the President of ADI Toscana, who have declared the victory jointly of 9T Labs and Superfici, both composites startups. All the startups also participated in B2B meetings with foreign buyers like all the other exhibiting companies.
In the context of an event that increasingly places itself as a professional moment of high-level technical updating for the sector, this year Seatec-Compotec has awarded the “Entrepreneur of the Year” Award, recognition to the nautical entrepreneur who contributed to significant way to the growth of the economy of the sector by demonstrating product innovation and work and wealth generation. The winner of 2019 was the Ferretti Shipyard, which through its Supply Chain Director Giovanni Berra thanked and praised the qualities of the companies in the marine supply chain represented at Seatec and Compotec.
Now in its 16th edition, the Myda prize, the contest that has become a reference point for the discovery of the most talented nautical and naval designers, has awarded the first prize for the Professionals category, section “Boat on a human scale”, to designer Anthony Lee for the MultyDouble project, considered to be perfectly in keeping with the spirit of the subject in question (“The boat on a human scale for simple and functional solutions for the approach to pleasure boating by a non-technical public”) by the jury chaired by Andrea Ratti and composed of Roberto Franzoni, Massimo Franchini, Marco Amadio and Ivan Zignego. The same jury identified the winner for the Debutants category in Sebastian Borzoni, author of the S005 project, whose efficient and original concept for motor yachts characterized by a strong personality and good control of shapes and proportions was appreciated.
For the coveted Qualitec award for the best product in terms of technology and design, the jury, composed of the President, Engineer Paolo Scifoni, the architect Marco Amadio and the nautical journalist Angelo Colombo, awarded both prizes to Biquadro Marine Division in virtue of the value and merits of the presented proposal. The special mention was also made for the QUALITEC award for the Technology part assigned to the AMPRO BIO Multi Purpose Epoxy System product of the GURIT exhibitor (Resintex brand), to which attention was given to the new environmental and anti-pollution requirements that led the company in proposing this new epoxy resin, ready for applications such as traditional lamination, adhesives, filling and filling, coating and painting.
ADI Toscana, chaired by Perla Gianni and a prestigious partner of Seatec-Compotec, has in turn reaffirmed its choice with its Innovative Design Technology Award, making use of the new protocol of the ADI Design Observatory dedicated to the prizes of exhibitions. The selected products will go directly to the examination of the final selection commission of the ADI Design Observatory, being able to enter the highly sought-after ADI Design Index.
The genesis of a Fair is long and complex. Behind the three-day event is the year-round work of our sales department and the communication and marketing team – declares the President of IMM-CarraraFiere Fabio Felici, who continues: “this year we worked on new content with particular attention to the topics of greatest interest to the sector also from the point of view of conferences; we have invested, both economically and professionally, inviting with the collaboration of ICE Agenzia 100 delegates of the highest quality to offer our exhibitors perfectly optimized bilateral meetings. Ours is and remains the only B2B event in the sector in Italy and we want to work increasingly in this direction, making sure that the participating companies find the best opportunities for doing business at Seatec and Compotec. We are pleased with this edition and from here we will start again with ever greater enthusiasm to give departments companies a more and more quality oriented 2020 edition, to enhance professional meetings, confirming the technical vocation of SEATEC “.
