A report from the trade show’s opening ceremony, which featured an appearance by President Obama.
Editor's note: AAM staffers Brian Lombardozzi, Riley Ohlson, Mark Musho and Lou Delatore are in Hannover, Germany for the Hannover Messe conference. They'll be posting dispatches from the event throughout the week.
As part of the Alliance for American Manufacturing's delegation on the ground here in Hannover, Germany, I've had a front row seat to President Obama's visit to the Hannover Messe, the world's largest industrial technology trade show. The Messe first started here in 1947 when the British military government set up a small trade show in an undamaged factory building with the hope of bring some economic aid to post-war Germany. Now the fairgrounds resemble warehouses several football fields long and a couple of football fields wide.
About 5,000 companies from 70 countries are exhibiting at the conference this year. AAM is among them, and we will be encouraging attendees to make it in America, focusing on the strengths of our domestic manufacturing sector and educating folks on the skilled workforce the United States has to offer.
But the reason for Obama's big visit is that this is the first time the United States has officially partnered with Messe, with SelectUSA as the official partner at this year's event. Some claim it is also the first time a sitting U.S. president has visited Hannover.
Aside from SelectUSA's active role in attracting foreign direct investment to the United States, manufacturers from all around the USA as well as a majority of state economic development agencies are participating here to foster additional investment in American manufacturing.
TTIP Dominating the Discussion
Almost 3,000 guests, including German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Obama, attended the conference's opening ceremony on Sunday night, where they witnessed a choreographed performance between dancers and seven LBR iiwa robots that visually depicted the five flagship themes at Hannover Fair over five acts: Digital Factory, Industrial Supply, Industrial Automation, Research & Technology, and Energy.
The speeches from Obama and Merkel at the launch of the Hannover Messe focused on their push to see the U.S. and the EU strike a deal on the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) by the end of 2016. Both acknowledged that action by Congress and European governments on a final agreement would wait until after Obama's administration has ended. Obama acknowledged the difficult politics of trade back home. "The benefits are often diffuse, while a particular plant or business that feels it can be hurt by outside competition feels it very clearly," he said.
From our direct experience here, it's not just back home in the United States. Our arrival at the Hannover train station on Saturday coincided with the tail end of a very large anti-TTIP and CETA protest, and the areas out side of the Messe proper are full of posters and graffiti expressing opposition to those deals.
During our stay here in Hannover, AAM will be exploring both sides of this argument as we engage with manufacturers present at the Messe, as well as meet with our European counterparts from the steel industry and labor to discuss their concerns about the current state of trade enforcement and the changes to the rules that are being negotiated in these new agreements. Stay tuned throughout the week.