Path-breaking trends, innovative technologies and fresh ideas to solve global industrial challenges – this is what the HANNOVER MESSE trade fair stands for.

Just over ten years ago, the idea and the concept of Industrie 4.0 was presented here for the first time at HANNOVER MESSE. Since then, the concept and the related initiative have spread around the world, and have become a success story.

“Industrie 4.0” stands for a new industrial revolution. The data-driven transformation of industry and society is an ongoing process, and we are in the midst of it. The focus is currently on the establishment of trusted and open data ecosystems which enable new business models, innovative solutions, sustainability and greater resilience of supply chains. Here, artificial intelligence will play an increasingly important role. We need to vigorously progress this digital transition, because it is crucial for our competitiveness and important for solutions to current major challenges.

It is therefore encouraging to see that the Manufacturing-X initiative will be addressing the next steps towards the establishment of a cross-sectoral data ecosystem. It is now important for Manufacturing-X to enter into widespread use in industry, and to make it easy for SMEs to use it. Catena-X is already showing that this is possible for the global automotive value chain. It is now important to keep progressing these ideas and developments together with our international partners.

We will only succeed if we pull in the same direction. The Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action is therefore supporting numerous projects in the field of data ecosystems. Catena-X has since been joined by, for example, Factory-X and Aerospace-X. It is particularly important for Manufacturing-X to become a joint, internationally driven process – in a world of global value chains, data ecosystems must function globally. For this reason, we are highly committed to cooperation at international level.

Many of the experts on the conference stage are already part of this fast-growing international community, and part of Plattform Industrie 4.0. Plattform Industrie 4.0 is therefore once again a most welcome partner of the Industrie 4.0 Conference Stage, and I am glad to act as patron.

I wish all the participants of the Industrie 4.0 Conference Stage open and vigorous discussions, and a wealth of new insights and perspectives for your businesses and organisations during the forthcoming HANNOVER MESSE week.