From 14 – 15 September 2011 all eyes turned to Suzhou, China, and the fourth Valve World Asia Conference & Expo. Not surprisingly, the Chinese market was well-represented on the expo floor. But in addition, there was a strong contingent from other Asian countries, as well as a large number of Western valve manufacturers and distributors who were keen to present their products and services.

 

In fact, this year’s expo again broke all previous records, with 147 exhibiting companies on the floor. This extraordinary number of exhibitors, under the leadership of the international well-known sponsors Neway, Crane, FRValve, FZV, SJV, Viza Valves, Tyco Flow Control, and Weir, attracted record numbers of visitors on both days.

 

But the numbers alone were only half the story. Exhibitors also commented that visitor quality was excellent, with plenty of valve experts, engineers, procurement people and the like from key end-user companies walking the floor. These visitors represented both local Chinese companies as well as global enterprises.

 

The excitement felt on the exhibition floor was mirrored in the conference, which attracted around 250 delegates: yet another record! Opened by Chairman Mr Ling Yun (Guandong Dapeng LNG Company) and Mr Tony Smart (Shell Global Solutions) the conference boasted many quality key-note presentations which focussed on end-user experiences.

 

During the conference, break-out sessions were also planned to good effect, to enable delegates to really discuss and debate topical challenges such as fugitive emissions, safe valve operation, valve design, partial stroking, etc.

 

In short, the show was a real centre of attention for the global flow control industry, and expectations are high for the next Asian event, scheduled for the September of 2013.

 

Live updates on VW Blog!
For a blow-by-blow account of proceedings during both the conference and the expo, why not read Christian Borrmann’s regular postings on the Valve World Community Blog?

 

Photo retrospect
A picture says a thousand words, so why not see the show for yourself via our photo retrospect? A carefully selected range of images gives a great flavour of the conference, the exhibition, the social programme, etc.