New spirit at the forestry fair 2017
With around 26,000 admissions, the 24th edition was once again a very well attended trade fair, with the PPE and PPEgA sector not missing out either. "The Forestry Fair in Lucerne is the most important industry meeting place. The four days of the fair were a pleasure for everyone involved," says fair manager Marco Biland.
Lucerne was even more international than usual, with many visitors traveling from Italy, Austria and Scandinavian countries to be the first to see new products and further developments. Those who are connected with the forest did not miss this forestry fair. The latest techniques and machines attracted the national and international audience in droves. 280 exhibitors provided information about innovations and services in the forestry industry. It was noticeable that electric drive is becoming increasingly important, at least for smaller power tools. The varied supporting program ranged from the Meeting Point Forest, Forêt, Foresta, three specialist events at which lively discussions were held, to daily shows on sport logging and the rustic wood splitting championship. In addition, the visitors were shown the latest developments in the field of PPE and PPEgA, in order to learn about Occupational safety during forest work to the latest state of the art.
Wood connects
The 24th International Forestry Fair was opened with speeches about the focus on Swiss wood by Government Councillor Josef Hess; Rolf Dürig, Managing Director of Codoc and by the retiring patronage president and former National Councillor Max Binder, who was praised by Bruno Röösli (Head of the Forestry Department, Canton Lucerne) as a "ver-binder". In his speech, Josef Hess addressed the principle of forest care but also of economic use and mentioned as the main problem in timber construction that foreign timber is too often used. "It is this tree-like spirit that makes us so strong and nowhere is it more tangible than at the Forestry Fair, where forestry professionals, forest owners, equipment suppliers and many experts meet to exchange knowledge and experience," said Max Binder at the end of his confident review and outlook on 20 years of forestry followed from close quarters. The fact that wood connects was also shown by the symbolic opening act with the wood chain.
Trade fair appearances with pep - and safety
WaldSchweiz came out on top with good ideas. The association drew attention to its new image as well as to its current climbing courses promoted the further developed Forstcontrol management program - which enables a digital office in the forest - and presented the trade fair innovation Toolprotect. At the Lucerne Forestry Fair, Lignum showed its support for the Swiss timber label of origin (HSH). It attracted a lot of attention with the guest figure Madame Tussaud from #Woovetia, which stood as a subject for selfies.
The trade fair appearance of the Association of Forestry Contractors Switzerland was all about safety. Five machine manufacturers presented important principles for occupational safety between man and machine so that accidents can be prevented.
Text: ZT Trade Fairs Ltd.
