Hannover Messe 2020 to focus on digital transformation and logistics

The 2020 edition of Hannover Messe, the world’s largest industrial technology fair, will focus on digital transformation and logistics.

Under the lead theme of “Industrial Transformation,” the 2020 show will spotlight all the latest trends and topics, such as Industry 4.0, artificial intelligence, 5G and smart logistics. The program will be rounded off by more than 80 conferences and forums. Hannover Messe takes place April 20-24, 2020 in Hannover, Germany, with Indonesia as its official Partner Country.

Industry 4.0 and digitalization are transforming all sectors of the economy, including logistics, where once tried and proven material flow models are becoming obsolete as industry looks for new answers that promise greater flexibility and transparency. This transformation process is a source of far-reaching opportunities and avenues for growth for all logistics providers.

But for the big, established players among them, it also harbours a certain degree of risk, as many startups are bursting onto the market with smart IT solutions and all manner of new products and business models.

“What impacts the digital transformation process will have on individual firms and how big the disruptive potential of it all will be for logistics – these are questions that will be answered for exhibitors and visitors at Hannover Messe,” says Onuora Ogbukagu, head of marketing and communications at Deutsche Messe AG, the organizer of Hannover Messe.

For the first time, Hannover Messe will feature a dedicated speaking platform for providers of logistics services. Organized in partnership with the German logistics journal DVZ, the platform will be known as the CAMP Logistics. It will be located in Hall 4 and include a dedicated presentation forum where industry experts will discuss a range of highly topical supply chain issues, such as blockchain, green energy, drones, low-cost sensor solutions for warehouses, big data analytics and risk assessment, and startups in logistics, to name but a few.

Then there is the Logistics Forum in Hall 2 with its five-day program of quality discussion on such topics as the platform economy, artificial intelligence, disruptive business models, drones, automated guided vehicles and innovative strategies in logistics for trade and commerce. “Many of the topics discussed at the forum are of relevance for industry generally, and not just logistics. The platform economy is a case in point,” Ogbukagu says. “Many industrial companies at the SME end of the spectrum are concerned at the risk of platform solutions being developed by providers from outside of their industry and are therefore working to develop their own platform solutions.”

Another forum topic of relevance to all industries is the use of artificial intelligence in logistics. The potential is enormous, and many experts believe that logistics will be the first industry in which AI achieves widespread penetration. Robotics – in the broad sense of classic robots, cobots and automated guided vehicle systems – is another increasingly important factor in the logistics industry.

And then there’s data security – a primary concern for all companies involved in the supply chain. In today’s production landscape, data needs to be shared between manufacturers, logistics providers and end customers. It is therefore vital to ensure that shared data repositories are standardized and secure, so that all companies involved can have confidence that their data will be used only for the purposes that they have authorized.