ITA news

Düsseldorf, November 2020 : Following close consultation with both exhibitors and partners, including the International Tube Association (ITA), Messe Düsseldorf has been forced by the current Covid-19 pandemic developments to cancel the Tube trade fair which was rescheduled for December.

Faced with the difficult conditions imposed by the virus, the ITA fully endorses the decision to cancel one of the most important dates on its calendar. Public health and safety must come first and the ITA feels certain that the industry will find the means to continue moving forward.

The Association recognizes nonetheless that the cancellation represents a huge gap; members will miss the hoped-for exchange, conversations, news, innovation, and most importantly, the prospect of strengthening business relationships.

It sees its key purpose as encouraging exchange and offering support, even under difficult circumstances. To this end, the team is developing a bespoke portal to help enhance contact among members, colleagues and partners.

On this portal, our tube industry can interact with colleagues and potential clients now that they can no longer meet in person.

It gives companies a virtual ‘expo’ space to introduce themselves and their products, and customers and business partners have the opportunity to contact the exhibitors personally, for example via video chat. Live presentations will also be a possibility.

Publication of the ITAtube Journal II’2020 has also been affected by the course change and will be delayed until after the New Year. This gives Association members, colleagues and associates more time to pull together marketing materials, articles and press releases for publication; the publishing deadline will be moved to mid-January, the exact date will be announced as soon as it can be arranged.

Meanwhile, the next wire and Tube events will be held in accordance with their usual cycle, which means the industry will come together again in Düsseldorf in 2022. 

As Dr. Gunther Voswinckel, President of the ITA, said, trade fairs are still “indispensable marketing tools in these times.” Whether in person or virtually, ITA members can continue to use this to their advantage.