The 64th IAA Commercial Vehicles in Hannover will be officially opened on September 20, by the Federal Minister of Transport, Dr. Peter Ramsauer (CSU). “Commercial vehicles: driving the future” is the motto of this year’s event being held in Hanover from September 20 to 27. More than 1,800 exhibitors will present technological highlights in the commercial vehicle, transport, trailer and supply industry at the world’s most important trade fair for transport, mobility and logistics.
One highlight of the first Press Day will be the “Evening of the commercial vehicle press,” to which the German Association of the Automotive Industry (VDA), the IAA organiser, traditionally invites representatives of the German and foreign media, board members of the commercial vehicle manufacturers and suppliers, association presidents, managing directors and communication and press chiefs from the exhibiting companies.
The “Oscars” of the commercial vehicle industry will be presented in this context for the fifth time: the awards “Truck of the Year,” “Bus of the Year” and “Van of the Year.” The judges are well known trade journalists and editors-in-chief from all over Europe, who give the products a thorough testing. The evening will be hosted by Christina Surer, herself a racing driver.
Beyond all doubt the engines of the future – but also of the present – include electrical drives. This key technology is an essential milestone on the way towards sustainable and modern mobility for tomorrow, as it promises intelligent solutions for efficient and environmentally-friendly transport of passengers and goods. The latest concepts and developments of hybrid and electrical drives in the commercial vehicle sector will be on show at IAA.
The performance show on the stands will be complemented by the possibility of test drives with trucks, vans and buses during which visitors can experience the electrically powered vehicles hands on for the first time. This thematic focal area at IAA will be rounded off by the “Electric Mobility Congress” being held at the Hanover Fairgrounds on September 26, organised by VDA jointly with BDEW, BDI, BITKOM, VDMA, VCI and ZVEI.
The congress, which premiered successfully at the IAA Cars with some 500 participants last year, will be exploring the entire value chain of the electric mobility system and will thus offer a platform for exchanges between all participating branches of industry. High-ranking representatives from the industry, academia, research and politics, including Germany’s Federal Minister of Economics and Technology, Dr. Philipp Rösler, will be examining a range of issues such as: where does Germany stand in the development of this future technology? What has been achieved so far? What hurdles have still to be overcome?
A second trend in the future of the automotive industry is networking. The vehicles of tomorrow will communicate – with the internet, with other vehicles, with infrastructure. Opportunities, challenges and potentials of these new IT systems form the focus of the “CarlT – Mobility 3.0” being presented by the branch association BITKOM on September 25. Top-flight experts from the commercial vehicle, transport and supply industry will be examining the themes of Car-to-X-communication, navigation and telematics of the future, driver assistance systems, traffic management, infotainment, apps and operation, as well as e-mobility & IT.
Both congresses are being held in Room 1 of the Convention Center (CC) at Hanover Fairgrounds. Participation is free of charge for journalists. The detailed programme and registration form can be downloaded from the IAA website at Opens internal link in current windowhttp://www.iaa.de/besucher/veranstaltungen/veranstaltungen/fachveranstaltungen/.