Europe’s largest PPE exhibition

Meet the SATRA team at the A+A Safety & Security Show in Düsseldorf.

An important diary date for anyone interested in safety footwear or personal protective equipment (PPE) is the A+A Safety & Security Show, with the 2015 edition being held on October 27th-30th.

The Messe Centre in the German city of Düsseldorf will once again be the home for this impressive biennial event, which is extremely important to suppliers and buyers of PPE. A+A is probably the largest of its kind in the world (and easily the largest in Europe), with over 1,600 exhibitors showcasing their products and services and more than 60,000 specialist visitors expected to attend.

As usual, there are a number of special events taking place within A+A. For example, in hall 10, some 100 international noncommercial organisations will be presenting their work and services, with experts taking questions on the practical implementation of health and safety policy requirements.

The A+A fashion show in hall 11 has been designed to showcase the latest in workwear and protective clothing. Manufacturers of protective wear are becoming increasingly conscious of the fashion aspect of the clothing they produce. According to the show organisers, the result has been that design and safety are no longer mutually exclusive. Protective clothing is also said to have become better performing, incorporating intelligent solutions and new materials.

Another aspect of the A+A Show is the International PPE Trade Conference. Entitled ‘Trends in Global PPE Distribution’, this event will be held on 28th October in the Congress Centre, Düsseldorf South, and is to be presented in English. It is marketed as an opportunity for the PPE industry to discuss currently relevant topics, including new cooperation models and online strategies for PPE trading.

There will be ‘theme days’ during A+A 2015 – on Tuesday, the topic will be ‘safe handling of hazardous substances’, Wednesday’s theme is to be ‘fire protection and disaster management at work’, and the subject for both Thursday and Friday will be ‘personal protective equipment’.

As one of Europe’s foremost test houses and Notified Bodies for PPE, SATRA has attended this exhibition regularly for many years. For this year’s event, we will be located at stand 3B77 in hall 3 and will be demonstrating a number of test machines.

The last time the exhibition was held, the SATRA team in attendance received a steady stream of visitors who posed a variety of technical questions on the topics of testing or certification, covering the full range of SATRA’s test and Notified Body activities, including ISO 9000 auditing. We also took the opportunity to display boots worn by members of the British team who were the first to climb to the summit of Mount Everest in 1953. These boots were manufactured by SATRA in 1952 and, at the time, were revolutionary in design.

Planning ahead

Many members of SATRA are keen to display ‘Member of SATRA’ logos on their stands and recognise the added value of having their products tested by the Technology Centre. Clearly, for manufacturers or distributors of safety footwear and other items of PPE, this show is one of the best opportunities to showcase new product ranges. While October may seem to be a long way off, it is necessary to be making preparations now. What could be more important – particularly in the current economic climate – than ensuring that your footwear is fully tested and certified to the latest European and international standards by a highly reputable Notified Body such as SATRA so you are ready for the exhibition?

At SATRA we pride ourselves on being at the forefront of CEN activities and are represented on all of the relevant Footwear CEN committees. We are, therefore, confident that we always have the latest news, developments and proposed changes. This is invaluable in providing our clients with the most up-to-date advice.

As a consequence, particularly at this time leading up to a major exhibition, we find ourselves testing and certifying new products ready for launch. At SATRA, we provide a fast and efficient testing programme and can offer constructive help and advice where appropriate. Our customers find such help – from concept to certification – invaluable in reducing development times and getting their certificates quickly.

Publishing Data

This article was originally published on page 10 of the July/August 2015 issue of SATRA Bulletin.

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