Preparations for a successful ORGATEC 2014 are already in full swing, with over 75% of the available exhibition space already booked ten months before the international trade fair opens its doors in October 2014.
Approximately 400 companies have already confirmed their participation at the fair, which presents a multitude of innovative solutions for working and living spaces in the office.
"The number of bookings has increased compared to the same period of the previous event," explains Katharina C. Hamma, chief operating officer of the Koelnmesse. "All of the major exhibitors have already registered for the fair and the industry is looking optimistically ahead to the ORGATEC 2014."
The list of exhibitors includes, amongst others, : Arper, Bene, Carpet Concept, Dauphin, Durable, Hay, Hund Büromöbel, Interface, Interstuhl, Kommtech, König + Neurath, Rehau, Sedus Stoll, Stoll Giroflex, Tobias Grau, Unifor, Vitra and Walter Knoll. The trade fair will once again offer a prominent international focus, with over two thirds of the exhibiting companies coming from abroad. Companies from Italy, Sweden, Denmark, Turkey, France, Great Britain and Spain are particularly strongly represented.
Next year's offering will tap into the increasing need for radical changes to working environments globally. Over the course of demographic change, the number of older employees is increasing, whereas young "digital natives" are starting their professional careers. The pressure for companies to be innovative is rising, whilst for employees a personal work/life balance is gaining more and more importance. Due to the continual emergence of new technologies, working hours and leisure time are constantly merging, and both companies and employees themselves are having to adapt to this shift.
From 21st-25th October 2014, ORGATEC will focus on holistic solutions and overall concepts from all of the relevant sectors relating to work and office spaces. In Cologne, leading national and international manufacturers from the furnishing, flooring, acoustic, lighting, media and conference technology sectors will be presenting their products and services to industry players from all over the globe, from start-up founders, to distributors and decision-makers from medium-sized companies, through to the purchasers of a DAX company. The trade fair programme of ORGATEC doesn't exclusively focus on solutions for the classic office, it also covers comprehensive furnishing solutions for public spaces.
ORGATEC will present innovative solutions for office interior design in Halls 6 to 9, while Hall 6 will also accommodate the international "ORGATEC Trendforum", which will see top-class experts from the business, (interior) architecture, planning and consulting sectors over the five days, as well as diverse user companies which will discuss current trends and present examples of best practice from the modern office and working environment.
A novelty at ORGATEC 2014 will be the 'Materials' exhibition in Hall 8. Under the title 'IOI – Smart Office Materials', this exhibition is going to be of particular interest to architects, planners and interior designers, who are looking for something truly unique.
Hall 10.2 is completely dedicated to 'ORGATEC Contract'. Here, the trade visitors can look forward to comprehensive furnishing solutions for diverse areas in public spaces such as transit lounges, hotel lobbies, restaurants or theatres and cinemas. The hall also houses the Architects' Lounge that features a further special exhibition.
There will be two new competence centres in Hall 11.2, named 'ORGATEC Space' and 'ORGATEC Mobile'. Countless different details have to be taken into consideration when designing modern working environments, for example, the flooring is just as important for the chosen lighting as it is for the overall room acoustics. The 'ORGATEC Space' competence centre does justice to this integral approach, bundling under the motto 'Spaces 2014 – Connecting people', and combining the lighting, flooring, wall, climate and acoustic sectors into a comprehensive exhibition on the theme of room concepts.
The second competence centre, 'ORGATEC Mobile' concentrates on mobility and technology in the modern working world. Here, the term 'mobility' doesn't just refer to working outside of the classic office, but also to flexibility within the actual workplace itself. 'ORGATEC Mobile' will provide trend-setting solutions which satisfy the growing demand for flexible working environments. Suitable products and concepts - from software modules, to portable devices, through to classic solutions for working on the road, such as briefcases or suitcases on wheels - will be on display.
The support programme 'Young Innovative Companies' will also once again form part of ORGATEC. The networking format 'ORGATEC Boulevard' – the motto of which is "Out of Office" in 2014 – will invite the trade fair visitors to a business chat or to relax in the lounge and communication zones away from the hustle and bustle of the trade fair.
'INSIGHT COLOGNE' will present concrete examples of best practice. The Cologne Office and Architecture Night will turn contemporary office architecture into a true experience on October 24, 2014. Visitors interested in architecture can discover the innovative world of offices in Cologne by shuttle bus. This is one of Koelnmesse's wider concepts, which carries the ORGATEC themes "Furnishing", "Space" and "Mobile" out into the whole city.
For all companies who would like to secure themselves an attractive stand location at the ORGATEC 2014 in good time, the ORGATEC early bird discount with a reduced square metre price of €174 Euros is still available until March 31 2014 (registrations cost 189 Euros from April 1, 2014, onwards).
