Megacities and mobility is the focused theme of ContiTech’s booth at the Hannover Messe 2012. Over an area of around 400m² (booth A16, in hall 5), the technology company will be showcasing applications and innovative mobility concepts for urban transport. Once again this year, a round table discussion with experts will be a special highlight, chaired by Hannes Friederichsen, head of the ContiTech Air Spring Systems Business Unit, one of the market leaders for air springs in urban transport systems. In keeping with the theme of ContiTech’s booth, everything revolves around the city of the future.
For many years now, the trend to urbanisation has shown no sign of letting up. In just a single decade, the urban areas of fast-growing metropolises have doubled in size. By 2015, the world’s 20 megacities will already be home to around 400 million people. The distances between residence and workplace are increasing, and metropolitan areas and economic infrastructure are reaching far out into the urban periphery.
"Soaring populations combined with increasing motorisation in often poorly infrastructured metropolises of well over ten million people make mobility a mega issue for megacities," points out Heinz-Gerhard Wente, CEO of ContiTech.
"This is a key challenge for ContiTech. We are a development partner for rapid transit systems and rail vehicles designed for urban areas as well as a manufacturer of components for the commercial vehicle and automotive industry. And so we are working intensively on forward-looking mobility concepts designed to improve the lives of city dwellers. The air springs developed by ContiTech Air Spring Systems, for example, promote safe and climate-friendly travel on metro systems in Shanghai and São Paulo and stabilise the gondolas on urban aerial tramway systems."
Focus on China
"We are delighted that our partner country at this year’s Hannover Messe is China, because the country is a key market for the economic success of ContiTech", says Heinz-Gerhard Wente. The company has been working closely with Chinese industry for more than 30 years now and is represented in many of the country’s key sectors. With ten sites and more than 2,000 employees, ContiTech is on track for continued growth here. "China also plays a key role in our trade show activities. At our annual press conference held as part of the Hannover Messe, Junsheng Liu, chief representative of ContiTech in China, will talk about our market activities and provide an insight into developments in the country," emphasises Heinz-Gerhard Wente.