Whatever the Weather – Meteorological Technology World Expo Flooded with Visitors

Despite somewhat challenging weather conditions in Belgium earlier this year, courtesy of Hurricane Gonzalo, an excellent turnout for the Meteorological Technology World Expo 2014 ensured that the 3-day show held in Hall 3 of Brussels Expo was a resounding success.

Drawing some 2500 visitors from across the globe, and over 150 exhibiting companies, the show, now planning its 6th instalment for 2015, proved to be a must-attend event for anyone interested in the very latest climate, weather and hydrometeorological forecasting, analysis and measurement technologies. 

A range of conference topics provided ample food-for-thought for all attendees. Tom Blees, author of Prescription for the Planet and President of The Science Council for Global Initiatives, delivered an interesting and informative talk on Providing water and energy for 10 billion by 2050, focussing on the potential of nuclear power to solve many of anthropogenic climate-change issues. Kuoying Wang, from the University of Taiwan, gave a comprehensive overview of Monitoring and modelling ambient CO₂ levels from heavy CO₂ emitters – research on which he has previously published an article in our sister magazine, Asian Environmental Technology. Speaking to IET editor Rachael Simpson following his talk, Kuoying stressed the importance of such work, especially in Asia. “Industrial CO₂ pollution from plants and factories poses a massive problem worldwide, but especially in Asia. I hope that by speaking here at the show today I can draw attention to this subject, and hopefully more can be done to reduce the impact of this major issue.” 

Campbell Scientific’s CR6 Datalogger was the “highlight of the show” at Meteorological Technology World Expo event. So says Campbell Scientific Marketing Manager Iain Thornton following their recent successful attendance at the event. He continued, “Word was out that we had a new datalogger and people were keen to see it in action; at several points we had people literally queuing to talk to us. Once again we came away with a record number of enquiries”. 

The range of E+E Elektronik products was received with great interest throughout the show. KNMI, DWD and plenty of other notable meteorological institutes where present at stand 6090, where E+E Elektronik exhibited a wide range of products for the meteorological and HVAC industries, such as the HC103M2 for radiosondes, the EE33-J for highly demanding meteorological applications, and CO₂ transmitters for HVAC/demanding applications. The E+E booth was highly frequented by visitors and the company was successful in forming contacts with a large range of potential buyers.

LI-COR Biosciences was excited to be a first-time exhibitor at the 2014 Meteorology Technology World Expo, and already the company is looking forward to seeing everyone again in 2015. And if booth traffic was any indication, their customers and potential customers were excited to see them this year too. Visitors were able to learn about some of LI-COR’s instruments as well as innovative new ways to use these systems for measuring CO₂ and H₂O, and evapotranspiration rates - see their article in this issue to find out more. 

Whilst there were no isobars present to tempt thirsty meteorologists, Wednesday nights’ drinks reception proved to be a fantastic networking opportunity for all attendees and visitors, as well as the chance to catch up with colleagues and contacts after a busy day at the show. A free lunch on the final day was also gratefully received by all present as visitors continued to pour through the doors.

“Everyone has left this year’s event on a real high, including us,” said Simon Willard, sales director, Meteorological Technology World Expo. “We’ve seen unprecedented growth and more than 70% of our exhibitors have booked prime positions for our 2015 show already, with many of them taking much larger spaces. So you can expect a bigger and more diverse show next year, with more technology, more buyers and the most exciting meteorological technology event yet!”

Next year’s show will be held the 13-15 October – hope to see you there!