GaLaBau 2018: Leading international trade fair begins its 23rd edition

• Even more variety: GaLaBau extends to 14 exhibition halls for the first time

• Even more knowledge: Extensive supporting programme for the gardening and landscaping sector

• Even more green: Garten[T]Räume (Garden of Dreams) area illustrates industry trends

All signals will be green once again at the Exhibition Centre Nuremberg from 12 to 15 September 2018 for the 23rd edition of GaLaBau, the leading international trade fair for urban green and open spaces. Extending to 14 exhibition halls for the first time, the event will give 1,252 international companies the chance to display the whole range of products and services for designing, constructing and maintaining gardens, parks and green spaces. The founder and honorary sponsor of GaLaBau is the Bundesverband Garten-, Landschafts- und Sportplatzbau (BGL). Visitors can also look forward once again to the impressive Garten[T]Räume (Garden of Dreams) in the BGL exhibition area, which will comprehensively illustrate the wide range of trends in horticulture and landscaping. Special exhibition areas, the lecture forum “GaLaBau Landscape Talks”, the GaLaBau Expert Forum, conferences, award sessions and competitions make GaLaBau Europe’s key meeting place for the gardening and landscaping sector once again in 2018. A new feature is the inclusion of presentations in English as part of the rich supporting programme for the first time. A total of 65,000 landscape gardeners, landscape architects and customers from urban and municipal authorities are expected.

Advertisement

Stefan Dittrich, Director Exhibition GaLaBau, is pleased with the even larger exhibition area this year. 66,000 m2, a full 5 percent more than the 63,000 m2 achieved in 2016. “In terms of surface area, GaLaBau 2018 is the largest in its history so far,” says Dittrich. “The huge demand from all areas, especially the area of maintenance machinery, encouraged us to open an additional hall once again this year: hall 11, including the NCC West entrance. The area of Playground and Urban Design in halls 1 and 2 will also be larger than in 2016.” German companies will occupy 3 percent more space. The growth in international exhibition space is also gratifying, however: exhibitors from outside Germany will have 12 percent more space in which to display their products this time. Dutch companies have booked 50 percent more exhibition space than in 2016. And the exhibition area for Denmark has more than doubled. The Czech Republic has recorded growth of 56 percent. International exhibitors this year account for about 25 percent of the total. Pavilions from Russia and China will also await visitors.

The visitor profile is also growing more international: GaLaBau 2018 expects delegations from countries like Spain, Finland, Hungary, France, Switzerland, China, South Korea and Russia.

ELCA confirms positive developments in the European GaLaBau market

Exhibitions are a mirror for the industry – and that applies to GaLaBau, too. In Europe, horticulture, landscaping and sports facilities have been on a solid growth course for years. And so, the trend toward building with a green component has led to a steady rise in the number of businesses and employees in the sector. This was the outcome of the last structural survey by the European Landscape Contractors Association (ELCA), covering the 24 member associations.

The study shows that the number of GaLaBau companies in Europe has grown to almost 90,000, representing growth of almost 23 percent. The country with by far the most companies in horticulture and landscaping is France (29,100), followed by Germany (17,177), and the UK (16,000). The number of employees has also grown by almost 20 percent to more than 400,000. The increasing need for more “green” life has also had positive repercussions on revenue for the gardening and landscaping sector, which is currently recording overall revenue in excess of EUR 30 billion, and rising.

German GaLaBau sector still extremely happy

The German market is continuing to enjoy excellent growth. According to the Bundesverband Garten-, Landschafts- und Sportplatzbau (BGL), the GaLaBau sector has been growing for some years, posting good revenues. The sector once again recorded an upturn in volume in 2017. Businesses in the garden, landscaping and sports facility sector recorded annual sales of about EUR 7.87 billion and an upturn in volume of 5.3 percent compared to the previous year. Lutze von Wurmb, President of BGL, is pleased with the record sector revenue: “Growth of 5.3 percent compared to the previous year is top-level performance, which confirms the trend observed in recent years. The GaLaBau sector is continuing to develop well, and along with it, the demand for landscape gardening services in businesses.”

In 2017, this milestone was achieved in Germany by 17,177 businesses and their total of 117,131 employees with the design, construction, development and maintenance of green spaces and leisure areas of all kinds in the private, commercial and public fields.

Many highlights in the supporting programme

As early as the day before GaLaBau, many dealers in power equipment gathered for their communication forum and workshop, “Conversations with Motorists” (Motoristen im Gespräch). During the exhibition, there will be many highlights for visitors to enjoy in the supporting programme in addition to the comprehensive product show. Once again in 2018, an important starting point for decision-makers in the sector will be the Garten[T]Räume (Garden of Dreams) in hall 3A, which will comprehensively illustrate the wide range of trends in horticulture and landscaping. In an area of about 1,600 square metres, visitors can enjoy eye-catching, inspiring presentations of products and services. An urban area, for example, containing high-rise backdrops, inner courtyards, rainwater management, green façades and green roofs, will illustrate the level of performance of the GaLaBau sector. There will also be a private area with a piazza to encourage relaxation and enjoyment of the latest trends in private gardens.

Another key area in this zone is dedicated to the rural area, especially the subjects of renaturing and kitchen gardens.

Special show and presentations on playground and sports facilities

The “home” of playground and leisure equipment manufacturers will no longer be restricted to hall 1 at GaLaBau 2018. As the result of growing international demand in the area of playground and sports facilities, this field has now extended into part of hall 2. Altogether, some 160 exhibitors are expected here. Once again in 2018, hall 1 will include a special show organized by the Bundesverband für Spielplatzgeräte- und Freizeitanlagen- Hersteller (BSFH), together with the international trade magazine “Playground@Landscape”. The subject for 2018 is “The future of outdoor play – The playground experience from schoolyard to park”. Many encouraging ideas on designing playgrounds for schoolyards, daycare facilities, parks and public green spaces will be on offer at the special show.

Accompanying product presentations at the BSFH trade forum will be provided on the morning of Day 2 of the exhibition. Topics include “Progressive design of sports facilities in an era of fast-changing trends in sport”, “Schoolyard design for disabled access” and “Servicing and maintenance of playground equipment”. The BSFH seminar will be held in the “GaLaBau Landscape Talks” forum area once again in 2018.

Pool of knowledge for professional designers and landscape architects

The GaLaBau Landscape Talks will take place in hall 2 in 2018. On Days 1 and 3 of the exhibition, visitors can look forward to presentations that get right to the heart of the matter, designed by the editors of Garten + Landschaft (Callwey Verlag). It all gets off the ground on the first day of the exhibition with the subject of “Green infrastructure for sustainable urban development”. Opportunities and impacts of green roofs and façades will also be discussed. Of course, there will also be examples from practical application. On Days 2 and 3, the key subjects will include plants as an element of urban construction, and the greening of roof areas. A new feature for 2018 will be the inclusion of selected lectures in English for the first time.

Designers and landscape architects should also include a visit to hall 3A in their schedules. One entity presenting here will be the Bund deutscher Landschaftsarchitekten (bdla). At its stand in hall 3A, it will provide an introduction through a range of lectures, not only to landscape architecture and design as a profession, but also to itself as a trade association.

Also in hall 3A, the BGL will hold a benefit for designers and landscape architects. As part of the GaLaBau expert forum, two 15-minute “power presentations” will be provided every hour on each of the days of the exhibition, covering areas like domestic gardens and public green spaces, rules and standards, and business administration. The brief presentations, some of them in English, are aimed at conveying the most important information on the individual subject areas in brief, compact form, and giving visitors an informative introduction to the various areas of horticulture and landscaping. In addition to the brief presentations, all prizes and awards from BGL and the European Landscape Contractors Association (ELCA) will be presented at the GaLaBau expert forum.

Tree Care LIVE: communications area for tree experts

Thorough and professional care is everything when it comes to keeping trees healthy. Professional arborists, climbers and others interested in this topic have an established meeting place at GaLaBau: the Tree Care LIVE area in hall 3A, established in collaboration with the trade journal TASPO Baumzeitung and Freeworker. It’s a place for knowledge and conversation, experiences and networking on every aspect of what trees need. In their professional presentations, industry experts will offer tips and suggestions on tree care, introduce new products and make themselves available for discussion. The strongly practice-oriented special show will also provide a live demonstration of long-established and new methods, using a special rig as a tree substitute. Interested visitors also have the opportunity to try their hand, with guidance. For the first time, there will also be a green- themed café, whose delicious gastronomic fare will encourage the opportunity to recharge and share ideas.

Everything for golf course managers and green keepers

Green keepers, managers and operators of golf courses will find, firmly established in the exhibition halls at GaLaBau, not only machinery and devices for maintaining the greens, but also seed, substrates and innovative watering systems. Spread around the halls at GaLaBau 2018 there will also be almost 150 exhibitors specialising in the areas of construction, maintenance and management of golf courses. The “Meeting Point Golf” will also be provided in hall 4A once again. For an overview of all exhibitors and products relating to golf, please go to www.galabau-messe.com/exhibitors-products.

Outdoor highlights: Landscape Gardener Cup and presentation area

GaLaBau also offers an attractive supporting programme in the outdoor area. Organized by the Ausbildungsförderwerk Garten-, Landschafts- und Sportplatzbau (AuGaLa), the popular Landscape Gardener Cup is an established part of the GaLaBau trade fair experience. For this nationwide professional competition, the best trainee landscape gardeners from all the German states will gather in a marquee in the Exhibition Center Park on 13 and 14 September to put their professional skills to the test. They all want to become part of the “German master team” that will take part in the World Skills professional world championships in the Russian city of Kazan in 2019. GaLaBau’s new talents will also gather again indoors, in the GaLaBau CAMP in hall 3.

Live mowing, digging and chopping will once again be a feature outdoors on all four days of GaLaBau 2018. Some exhibitors, in addition to their stand, will be using the GaLaBau demonstration area adjacent to hall 12 and along the Silbersee Lake in the nearby Dutzendteich Park to show off maintenance and earthmoving machinery in action on real lawns and soil. A highlight for everyone from Nuremberg: while the exhibition is in progress, these areas will remain open to the public and will be perfect for a Saturday outing with the family.

For all information on the supporting programme, please go to www.galabau-messe.com/programme.