Inaugural International Composites Summit : Good to meet peers again
The International Composites Summit (ICS), co-organised by Composites UK and Fluency Marketing, took place in London on 8th and 9th September. The trade shows are restarting across Europe and this inaugural event in UK gave enthusiasm to the business of the composites industry in a post-brexit context. Every one was happy to meet « real » people again.
According to the organizers, over 600 people attended each day of the event, visiting 46 exhibitors, a product display area featuring innovative components and 11 full and standing forum sessions where speakers included GKN Aerospace, Ford, McLaren, Jaguar Land Rover and Vertical Aerospace to name a few.
Supporting partners came from across the globe, with representatives from the JEC Group and the American Composites Manufacturers Association in attendance. EuCIA (the European Composites Industry Association) and SAMPE (the Society for the Advancement of Material and Process Engineering) also gave their invaluable backing through promotion to their members. The continual lifting of COVID-19 restrictions will result in a bigger presence for both organisations at next year’s event.
Organisers are happy of the outcome of this first edition of the International Composites Summit:
Claire Whysall, Marketing and Communications Manager at Composites UK said:
“ICS was organised at the request of our member companies, who wanted a show solely focussed on composite materials. Coming out of an EU-Exit and a pandemic meant this was a huge risk but we couldn’t have asked for a better response from everyone involved. We are particularly grateful to our 2021 exhibitors, supporting partners and sponsor, the National Composites Centre, for taking the leap of faith with us and investing in the future of the global composites supply chain in our event’s first year.”
Gemma Smith, Managing Director at Fluency Marketing, added:
“The rebooking statistics speak volumes – industry needed this event. The attendees were serious about composite materials which resulted in business deals being done on the show floor. After 18 months, the industry was ready to meet face-to-face and take its future into its own hands.”
Organisers indicated that 83% of this year’s exhibitors have already rebooked, most of them opting for a larger presence in 2022.
How to grow the Composites Business in the UK was with no surprise the big topic of the event with a focus on two main application sectors with a lot of added value: Aerospace and Automotive. Industrials from the UK are, indeed, worried by the new deal imposed by political decisions. But it doesn’t mean they want to work in self-reliance. As soon as it has a beneficial impact on the economy of the UK at the end all solution providers are always welcome. After all, UK government is renowned for pragmatism and the Composites Community needs global exchanges to overcome future challenges. Sustainability is clearly one of them and was the other big topic of the conferences. Here again engineers showed Composites can bring solutions in CO2 emission reduction and found new ways of recycling. The UK is famous for the first carbon fibre Formula 1 with Mc Laren and the wings of several Airbus airplanes but these examples are the trees that hide a forest of great Composites knowledge.
The next ICS will take place on 21 – 22 September 2022 in London.
