The Guangzhou International Lighting Exhibition (GILE), held at the China Import and Export Fair Complex in Guangzhou, China last month, has set new records in exhibitor and visitor attendance.
The 17th edition of the show was held concurrently with Guangzhou Electrical Building Technology, which supports the electrical engineering, building, and home automation industries and Building Solar China – Conference and Exhibition, featuring integrated solar technologies and smart solutions for buildings. The GILE and Guangzhou Electrical Building Technology were organized by Guangzhou Guangya Messe Frankfurt Co Ltd, and Building Solar China – Conference and Exhibition, was organized by WIP Wirtschaft und Infrastruktur GmbH & Co Planungs-KG and Messe Frankfurt (HK) Ltd. Together the shows attracted 2,914 exhibitors in 21 halls, covering 210,000 square meters.
“As Asia’s most influential trading hub, we offer a world class industry platform where visitors and exhibitors can gain a comprehensive overview of what’s happening in both the Asian and global lighting and LED industries,” says Richard Li, Deputy General Manager of Messe Frankfurt in China. “This is why our show is so unique and popular with an increasing number of exhibitors and visitors. It offers them everything they want in one venue.”
Visitor numbers increased by 10 percent compared to the 2011 shows, with the final count being 110,406 from 111 countries and regions.
Guangzhou International Lighting Exhibition figures at a glance:
- Total number of visitors: 110,406
- Local visitors: 89,429, an increase of 11%, compared to 2011
- Overseas visitors: 20,977, an increase of 5%, compared to 2011
- Represented countries/regions: 111
- Top 10 visiting countries and regions (in order of highest attendance): Hong Kong, Taiwan, India, Korea, USA, Singapore, Japan, Thailand, Australia and Malaysia
- Total number of exhibitors: 2,653
- Number of exhibitor countries and regions represented: 27
- Total square meters (gross): 190,000
Approximately 1,900 exhibitors covered an exhibition area of 80,000 square meters and featured LED products, including: Citizen (Japan), CREE (USA), Delta (Taiwan), Everlight (Taiwan), GE (USA), Hongli (China), Lextar (Taiwan), Nationstar (China), Nichia (Japan), Osram (Germany), Panasonic (Japan), Philips Lumileds (USA), ROHM (Japan), Seoul Semiconductor (Korea), Tsinghua Tongfang (China), and Toshiba (Japan).
For easy sourcing, the LED Asia theme zone was divided into separate LED market sectors – retrofit lamps and lighting fixtures, raw material, manufacturing and processing equipment, manufacturing and inspection equipment, substrate and packaging materials; epitaxial wafers; chips and packaging; components and modules, as well as drivers and controls.
Other categories that were featured at the GILE included: technical, decorative, professional, and electrical lighting; accessories and electronic components; light control, management, and measurement systems; light production and measurement equipment; and display products and technologies. Exhibitors in these lighting sectors included A.A.G. Stucchi (Italy), ESTO Lighting (Austria), and Verbatim (HK) Ltd.
GE Appliances & Lighting showcased its LED products for various applications such as retail and hospitality. “This show is very helpful in developing this industry,” says Qi Fei, GE Appliances & Lighting Territory Sales Manager. “It is a national meeting place every year for all the customers to meet, share their [expertise], and find more opportunities between themselves.”
Philips had two booths at the show, one featuring general lighting and the other specializing in LED lighting. Jacob Trost, Asia Pacific and Japanese Distribution Manager for Philips Lumileds, Hong Kong, said that the LED lighting industry’s tastes, requirements, and technology were changing rapidly. “Realistically, every six months or so we need to be at one of these events to show our latest and greatest products and how we differentiate them,” says Trost. “That’s why it’s important to participate in a show like this. It serves as a good ground for education as the requirements for LED technology are much different from traditional fluorescent lighting.”
Toshiba from Japan, making its third GILE appearance, believes in the importance of reaffirming its brand. “This year we are exhibiting LED lamps, fixtures, and fluorescent lighting solutions for office and hotel use,” says Yoshinao Kodama, Toshiba International Sales & Marketing Manager. “Our main goals are brand promotion and building our customer base. Since we focus primarily on finished products, we are here to find distributors. The show is very important to the lighting industry as it is the biggest one in China for lighting and is a meeting place for all major industry players. We firmly believe that if we are going to meet quality distributors, this is the place to be,” Kodama adds.
GILE Educational Seminars and Networking opportunities
More than 1,600 people attended a three-day Asia LED Summit, featuring LED industry experts from China, Japan, Korea, and Taiwan. Keynote speakers included George Craford, Solid State Lighting, Fellow, Philips Lumileds and inventor of yellow LED; and Dr. Shuji Nakamura, inventor of the high-brightness GaN blue light LED.
“This show is a good platform for leading companies like Philips to speak to the industry,” says Craford. “I hope to give direction to the industry and let Chinese companies understand the trends. I hope they can learn something from the summit and that small companies can develop further.”
The summit featured a two-day Guangzhou International Lighting Technology Symposium, providing a forum for international and domestic lighting experts to discuss lighting design, and two locations for AGORA networking forums which were both well-attended by show visitors.
Associations participating in AGORA: Austrian Consulate General Guangzhou Commercial Section; China Association of International Trade; China Shenzhen LED Association; Fujian Optoelectronics Manufacturers Association; Guangdong Light Emitting Diode Industry Association; Industrial Technology Research Institute (ITRI); Japan Luminaires Association; Macau Construction Association; Nikkei, Inc.; Spanish Chamber of Commerce in China, South China; The Federation Asian and Pacific Electrical Contractors Associations (FAPECA); The Hong Kong Electronic Industries Association; U.S. Commercial Service, American Consulate General Guangzhou; and the Xiamen Optoelectronics Industry Association.
Other programs during the Asia LED Summit included: Lighting Design Gallery, Guangzhou International Lighting Technology Symposium, Innovation in Lighting Symposium, China Lighting Distribution Market Summit, Business Matchmaking Programme, Hong Kong Information Day, Asia LED Hi-tech Transaction Festival, LED Lighting Standards Promotional Meeting, and its Lighting Award Presentation.
The GILE and Guangzhou Electrical Building Technology are part of Messe Frankfurt’s architecture and technology shows, headed by the biennial Light+Building in Frankfurt which will take place in spring 2014.
The next GILE will be held June 9 – 12, 2013 at the China Import and Export Fair Complex, Guangzhou, China.
For more information about the shows, please visit www.light.messefrankfurt.com.cn
