386 participants from 50 nations, including Dagestan, USA, Ethiopia, Colombia, Azerbaijan, Brazil, Japan, Oman, China, Vietnam, Australia and Uzbekistan – the entire world came to Austria to exchange information on technical subjects and to maintain international contacts.
The lecture series was opened with a keynote by Prof. Dr. Klemens Skibicki, economic historian and university instructor, on innovation and digital business models in B2B-SME. Above all he focused on changes in framework conditions for customers and companies in the digital age and how these conditions can regulate the establishment of future-proof corporations.
The topics of the following lectures followed up on this orientation towards the future and ranged from discussions on innovation management at Güntner to such basic technical aspects as the holistic hygiene requirements of the HACCP concept or customer-specific application examples such as the CO2 refrigeration system for Snø, one of the largest ski halls of Europe; or the current situation in CO2 applications with a view to future scenarios; or heat removal systems with water as a cooling medium or for wetting, to the presentation of current technology trends such as waterloop systems as flexible solutions for state-of-the-art secondary cooling.
Visitors were offered an additional communication and presentation platform for direct dialogue in the form of the new Innovation Plaza. On the 11 “stages”, it was not only possible to obtain direct insights into a wide range of areas and exclusive previews of upcoming innovations, but above all customers could give direct feedback on topics close to their hearts and discuss concepts and ideas with contacts usually found working behind the scenes at such locations as Güntner laboratories or in quality management. This focus on direct interaction, the human aspect as a guarantor of collaborative success, was the key theme in the introductory address by Robert Gerle, Chief Sales Officer of the Executive Board of A-HEAT AG, who clarified that it is personal contact between the company and the customer which forms the basic requirement for a successful future.
This personal relationship was duly celebrated with a festive evening in a truly royal setting: In the Imperial Tower of Kufstein Fortress, one of the most impressive medieval buildings in Tyrol, contacts were maintained during a superb dinner featuring local delicacies, and professional and personal topics were discussed while looking forward to the upcoming Saturday activities. A fitting conclusion to an all-round successful event!