Hot trends and innovations for firefighting and rescue work

Hannover/Leipzig. Things will literally be "heating up" this summer when some 1,139 exhibitors from 45 different countries will be on hand to reveal the future of firefighting, disaster relief and rescue work.  Germany leads the crowd with 616 registered exhibitors so far, followed by China, the US, the UK and Italy. For the first time ever, the show will also be featuring exhibitors from as far away as Australia, Belarus, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Peru and Serbia.

Visitors will be treated to the latest equipment and techniques, spectacular demos and eye-catching exhibits in five fully booked halls and on the open-air site at the Leipzig Exhibition Center. INTERSCHUTZ is staged by Deutsche Messe with the professional support of the German Fire Protection Association (vfdb).

INTERSCHUTZ: making the world a safer place

Hans Jochen Blätte, President of the German Fire Protection Association (vfdb), has high hopes for the event in Leipzig: "As a leading international exhibition, INTERSCHUTZ offers the entire sector an opportunity to come together. It is a prime rendezvous for all the top people in the fields of fire prevention, firefighting, emergency services, rescue work, disaster relief and civil security. In our capacity as Germany's professional association for fire prevention, we are looking forward to seeing numerous innovations that will make life easier for these services and which contribute not only to the safety of crews, but also to safety and security in general. This would help us achieve one of our prime goals, namely to make the world a safer place." One of the biggest assets of the event is its unique combination of commercial exhibitors alongside a broad range of professional organizations. Companies and institutes will showcase their latest products and services, which range from the most basic tools to complex information technology and software.

Practical demos by firefighters and rescue teams will illustrate how this technology can be used to best effect.

Highly valued by exhibitors and trade visitors alike

Stephan Ph. Kühne, the board member of Deutsche Messe with responsibility for INTERSCHUTZ, is convinced that the forthcoming INTERSCHUTZ will make a big impression: "The positive memory of Hannover five years ago will be reinforced by INTERSCHUTZ 2010 in Leipzig. It has a clear international focus and will attract a high proportion of attendees from outside the host nation. With more than 1,100 exhibitors, nearly 50% of them from outside Germany, and an anticipated 100,000+ trade visitors from around the globe, the event is likely to once again play a major role in stimulating the sector." Some 95 percent of the visitors at the past event - INTERSCHUTZ 2005 in Hannover - were professionals. 69 percent of these visitors indicated playing a decisive role in purchasing decisions. A similarly high-caliber turnout is expected for INTERSCHUTZ 2010 in Leipzig.

The German Firefighting Convention at INTERSCHUTZ

Similarly, Leipzig will also be the place to find innovative solutions for effective, modern firefighting, disaster management and civil protection which address the universal need to curb public spending as well as key demographic and social trends. "The event in Leipzig has a clear international orientation, so we hope to build bridges to Eastern and Central European markets, where many fire brigades are being restructured along the lines of the German fire services", announced Hans-Peter Kröger, President of the German Fire Services Association (DFV.). He explained: "This would certainly enhance the status of INTERSCHUTZ as an event of pivotal significance." On behalf of his organization, Kröger is responsible for staging the German firefighters' convention at INTERSCHUTZ. The Convention takes place every 10 years and is the central and single most important event for the fires services in Germany. Kröger is delighted that the convention, together with INTERSCHUTZ, is taking place under such ideal conditions, at such a high-profile venue: "INTERSCHUTZ will add excitement and interest to our event, and by the same token I am sure the exhibition will benefit in many ways from the German Firefighting Convention."

Spectacular live presentations on the open-air site

Every day, starting at 10.0 in the morning until 5.30 in the afternoon, the open-air site at INTERSCHUTZ will become the arena for a series of realistic demonstrations of rescue operations and disaster scenarios, which can be viewed from stands by up to 3,000 visitors at a time. The highlights of these dramatic shows and demonstrations will be state-of-the-art firefighting equipment and fire prevention techniques, as well as diverse rescue operations. One event that always proves popular is the exciting knockout contest for the title of "the world's toughest firefighter". The winner is decided over four days of trials in which two firefighters at a time pit their skills against each other in full gear. Demonstrations of this kind bring home the benefits of modern technology to the arsenal of the fire, rescue and emergency services and help fulfill the core mission addressed by INTERSCHUTZ - to afford all participants a unique overview of the world of rescue services.