Exhibitions have been around since the ancient times and have been used by civilisations such as the Egyptians, the Romans, the Phoenicians, the Greeks and the Chinese.
In historical times exhibitions would be held in market squares and bazaars where tradesmen would travel to meet with the makers of cloth, dye and silverware. The first exhibition centre was believed to have been 2,500 years ago, when archaeologists excavated remains on the East Mediterranean coast. As time passed trade spread across to the west and into the north of Europe, new markets evolved and as interaction between different countries increased, there was a higher demand for new and interesting products and services. New distribution routes became essential, and this led to the industrial revolution which dramatically changed the way business was conducted.
In 1851 Queen Victoria decided to create an exhibition symbolising the industrial, military and economic superiority of Great Britain. Her husband, Prince Albert, conceived the idea of the ‘Great Exhibition’ as a celebration of modern industrial technology and design. Held in Hyde Park, London from 1st May to 15th October 1851, and constructed by Joseph Paxton, The Crystal Palace was built in ten days especially to house the exhibition. Over 6.2 million visitors attended and the organisers made £186,000 (£16.2 million as of 2011) which went on to fund venues such as The Albert Hall, The Science Museum, The Natural History Museum and the Victoria and Albert Museum.
Exhibitions are one of the most effective mediums for establishing and maintaining customer relations. In an increasingly digital age, they are one of the only opportunities for buyer and seller to physically come together.
Crowcon attend a number of exhibitions in the UK and internationally during 2011, to boost brand awareness and most importantly, to build new customer and distributor relationships.
Offshore Europe in Aberdeen, Scotland (6th-8th September) is Europe’s largest oil & gas event and the world’s largest outside North America. This year saw 32,025 visitors from 94 countries attend and more than 1,500 exhibiting companies. Crowcon previewed its new portables instrument, Gas-Pro, which is designed specifically for use in confined spaces.
A+A Show in Dusseldorf, Germany (18th-21st October) is the world’s largest specialist fair for all aspects of safety and security. The show saw 60,100 visitors and 1,600 exhibitors from 54 nations. Crowcon introduced IRmax HART communications at the show, an easy and reliable way of sending and receiving digital information from your gas detector to your PC.
In 2012, Crowcon will be attending the Safety and Health Expo in Birmingham, Adipec in Abu Dhabi and WWEM (Water, Wastewater and Environmental Monitoring) in Shropshire, as well as being represented by distributors at many more exhibitions in the UK and overseas. We hope to see you at some of next year’s events, and of course we’ll keep you updated in the next edition of Talking Gas News.
