Fenestration China Protects Exhibitors against Plagiarism

Events of world format are currently boosting the Chinese building industry, which is booming in any case. The window and facade construction industry also profits from this. Representatives of this industry presented their products at the international exhibition Fenestration China 2007 from 14-17 November 2007. The exhibition, which has occupied a permanent position in the Peking exhibition calendar for years, took place for the first time in the economic metropolis of Shanghai. This year, the protection of intellectual property was right at the top of the organisers' list of priorities. The result: no exhibitor complained of counterfeits.

Fenestration China had never had such a large number of exhibitors in the previous years: 235 industry representatives from 12 countries were present in Shanghai. They showed what they have to offer the window construction industry on a gross display area of 25,000 square metres in the Everbright Convention and Exhibition Centre last November. The exhibitors included 187 Chinese and 48 international companies, the latter from all parts of the world as in the years before: For example, Japanese companies shared the exhibition halls with Brazilians, Koreans, Americans and Europeans of various origins. VIP visitors also illustrated the increased importance of the exhibition for the Chinese market: Liu Zhifeng, the former Chinese Vice Minister of the Ministry of Building of the P. R. China, attended both the opening ceremony and the traditional tour of the exhibition.

The increased importance of the exhibition also made it more important to protect the exhibitors' intellectual property. The exhibitors at the event wanted to be sure of not finding their products under a false name on the neighbouring stand. All exhibitors therefore had to make a compulsory declaration of protection of intellectual property on registering for Fenestration China 2007. Violations were to be penalised by immediate exclusion from the exhibition.

The expert for Intellectual Property Rights (IPR), Tianji Zhang, was present on the stand of the Peking Patent and Trademark Law Office (PSCU) during the event to answer questions on this subject. Her presentations in the German and American pavilion and as part of the general exhibition programme attracted a lively response.

‘We did not hear of any violations of intellectual property rights throughout the exhibition. This is a great success for us - and the exhibitors were naturally also highly satisfied,’ concludes Hendrik Engelking, Event Director at Nürnberg Global Fairs, the co-organiser of the exhibition.

The Fenestration China exhibition has previously only taken place in Peking. It was organised in Shanghai - a totally different market - for the first time in 2007. ‘We also want to establish Fenestration China in the South China market. Our aim is to achieve the same reputation for Shanghai that the event already enjoys in the Peking region,’ says Engelking. ‘Attendance of some 15,500 mainly Chinese trade visitors shows that we are already well on the way.’ Almost half the exhibition visitors were manufacturers, another 25 per cent were from the import/ export sector. The international orientation of the exhibition was also shown by the around 800 visitors from 23 countries. The accompanying conference, Fenestration Days China, was also well attended. Some ten of the altogether 26 presentations at the two-day conference, which was opened by the President of the China Construction Metal Structure Association, Zonghan Du, concerned energy efficiency.

German companies interested in exhibiting at the international exhibition were able to approach Nürnberg Global Fairs again. The subsidiary of NürnbergMesse was responsible for the international organisation of the event and also organised the German pavilion on behalf of the Federal Ministry of Economics and Technology, as in the past years. A total of eleven German companies used the opportunity to exhibit at Fenestration China 2007 under attractive conditions and supported by an experienced partner. German companies have the opportunity to work the lucrative Chinese market for windows, doors and facades again in 2008 and enjoy the cost and service advantages. The deadline for applications for the German pavilion is 18 July 2008.

According to the organisers, CIEC Exhibition Ltd. and Nürnberg Global Fairs, Fenestration China will alternate between Peking and Shanghai in the coming years. The international exhibition therefore takes place again in the Chinese capital in November 2008 - interested exhibitors can note the date in their diary now - from 18-21 November 2008.

‘Meet us at fensterbau/frontale 2008 in Nürnberg for more information - on stand 1-228 in hall 1.’

Web: http://www.fenestration-china.com