HANNOVER MESSE 2025 – a melting pot of innovation

Left to right: James Selka, CEO of the Manufacturing Technologies Association chairs a panel discussion with Jay Meyers, NGen CEO, Stephan Pottel of Zebra Technologies and Hubertus von Monschaw from Deutsche Messe AG. Photo: John Hunter

The German organisers of HANNOVER MESSE, the world’s leading trade fair for industry, descended on London at the end of last month to hold a press conference which was attended by Machinery Market’s online editor John Hunter.

The 2025 show, which has so far attracted more than 4,000 global exhibitors and is gearing up to welcome around 130,000 international visitors, is set to take place 31 March to 4 April and will showcase the latest solutions for the entire manufacturing value chain, from industrial production to logistics and industrial energy systems. This year's theme, ‘Energizing a Sustainable Industry’, will emphasise the growing importance of collaboration, data sharing, and integrated solutions in achieving sustainable and efficient production.

HANNOVER MESSE represents a great opportunity for businesses to showcase their latest products and innovations, network with other industry professionals, and learn about the latest trends in manufacturing and technology. Furthermore, the trade fair will highlight hot topics driving manufacturing forward including automation, artificial intelligence (AI), energy, industrial supply, digitalisation and sustainability.

Hubertos von Monschaw, Deutsche Messe AG’s global director trade fair and production management of HANNOVER MESSE, said: “The exhibition was originally established in 1947 and is a unique event as it highlights not just the technologies that are developing the manufacturing processes of today but also those of tomorrow. In recent years this has included Industrie 4.0, artificial intelligence (AI) and the widespread adoption of collaborative robots (cobots). All of these will be strongly represented at the show this year.”

‘Keeping ahead of the game’
Manufacturing companies will have the opportunity to see the latest innovations on offer and ‘keep ahead of the game’ on the technologies that can benefit their business. HANNOVER MESSE also prides itself on the fact that it provides the opportunity for political discussion with hot topics like AI and automation and robotics top of the agenda, as well as free trade and global growth which he stressed can only be achieved by companies growing with technological advancements.



Mr von Monschaw also pointed out that as HANNOVER MESSE is such a wide-ranging show it is a great melting pot for CEOs, and business leaders from the many different industrial sectors taking part to connect with new people, collaborate and create their own ecosystems. The exhibition is a global business platform that brings together countries from around the world to meet and talk about how they can develop and collectively drive global growth further.

He continued: “Smart manufacturing is the heart of the show. Automation, motion and drive technologies and robotics will be on display with impressive demonstrations of eco-systems and collaborations. There will be a particularly interesting user case study on battery production.”

Partner country
At the press conference, Canada was announced as partner to HANNOVER MESSE 2025 and will be bringing over 220 companies to the show. Jay Meyers, CEO of NGen, the not-for-profit organisation that represents next-generation manufacturing in Canada and is supported by technology companies, universities, colleges, innovation start-ups and manufacturers, gave an overview of what the country can offer. He said NGen focuses on taking a leading role in Canada’s manufacturing sector and is the organisation that not only champions advanced manufacturing but has also worked with its partners as well as the Canadian government to organise the country’s participation at HANNOVER MESSE 2025.

He continued: “Canada is a big country that is also big on manufacturing — especially advanced manufacturing. There are very few places in the world that have a concentration of natural resources, of technology, of university research, and which can boast such a diversified manufacturing sector and skilled workforce. From the energy sector, through to aerospace, automotive, health care and medical and food processing, as well as a growing bio technologies sector — Canada has it all.”

Mr Meyers added that NGen integrates a variety of advanced technologies and brings them together with manufacturing customers to develop new solutions for various sectors. “Our future lies in internationalisation and in building innovation partnerships around the world.”

Completing the line-up of speakers, Stephan Pottel, manufacturing strategy director (EMEA) at Zebra Technologies, explained why his company which has its global headquarters in the UK, is attending the show. He said: “Zebra Technologies was established in 1969, and while it is known globally for its printers, has evolved in recent years to have a broad portfolio of products that are of particular interest for the manufacturing sector. We have equipped partner booths and stands with Zebra products including mobile devices, printers and machine vision and we think HANNOVER MESSE is the place for us to be and make new connections.”

The press conference ended with a panel discussion chaired by James Selka, CEO of the Manufacturing Technologies Association (MTA). Topics including the future of AI in manufacturing, hydrogen and geo-political challenges were discussed.