NORTEC’s Expanded Advisory Board Sets Vision for 2026 Event

Stuttgart, Germany – NORTEC’s expanded trade fair advisory board met recently and is looking forward with anticipation to the industry event. The trade fair for manufacturers will be held at Messe Hamburg from February 3-5, 2026, under the direction of Messe Stuttgart and the German Machine Tool Builders’ Association (VDW). Whereas Messe Stuttgart is contributing its extensive experience in staging trade fairs and congresses in places outside Stuttgart, VDW and the trade fair advisory board are responsible for the technical expertise of the industry-related content.

Together with VDW, Messe Stuttgart has expanded the current NORTEC trade fair advisory board in order to provide the latter body greater input to the content of the trade fair in a more target-group-oriented manner. The new members of the trade fair advisory board are Citizen Machinery Europe, Fanuc Deutschland, GF Machining Solutions, Hexagon Metrology, IBG Technology Hansestadt Lübeck GmbH, Mitutoyo Deutschland, and SolidCAM. All the members of the trade fair advisory board stress that their declared objectives are to adapt NORTEC even more closely to the needs of the industry and develop it further as a place for discussions and a platform for innovative ideas.

Advisory board member Michael Leditzky, Managing Director, SolidCAM, highlighted the relevance of NORTEC for the various regional requirements as he observed, “Every region in Germany, including the north, has its own industry-specific requirements. NORTEC makes it possible to experience the complete process chain from ‘A to Z’ in one place. For SolidCAM, the trade fair is an important meeting point. It is therefore only natural for us to make NORTEC attractive as a central hotspot for the exchange of knowhow, and tailor it even more closely to the visitors, i.e., from the SME sector for the SME sector.”

His advisory board colleague Sascha Gersmann, Head, of Marketing & Key Account Management, Citizen Machinery Europe, added that it is especially important for him to make NORTEC a complete success. “The quality of the exhibitors, relevant topics, future-oriented technologies, and an international focus are key factors,” Gersmann stressed. “Citizen Machinery Europe wants to present access to new markets and naturally our innovations.”

Every member of the trade fair advisory board unanimously emphasized the importance of a separate platform for manufacturing in northern Germany. Joachim Seele, Head, of Marketing & BDS, GF Machining Solutions, believes that NORTEC is the technology trade fair with customer proximity in northern Germany. Thanks to the reorientation and organization of the trade fair by Messe Stuttgart, synergies will be created both for exhibitors and visitors. Seele is convinced that “something good from Stuttgart will be rediscovered in this respect ‘at the sea’ without losing the personal touch.”

Advisory board member Marcus Lengerer, Director, Marketing Communications, EMEA Central Manufacturing Intelligence Division, Hexagon, emphasized that the topic of Industry 4.0 will play a key role at NORTEC. “NORTEC provides our company in northern Germany with a platform to develop strong partnerships and present cutting-edge technology for manufacturing in the future,” said Lengerer. “NORTEC is exactly the right place for companies from the manufacturing industry, tool construction, moldmaking, and aerospace engineering, as well as companies looking to switch to digital production. In 2026, more attention will be paid to sustainable production and Industry 4.0. We are expecting new technologies which will link these topics.”

Matthias Fabian Goeke, Group Manager/COO, IBG Technology Hansestadt Lübeck GmbH, explained how important NORTEC already is for the industry, why it should definitely become even more important, and what topics will also be requested in the future: “NORTEC has become established as one of the most important trade fairs in northern Europe and provides a platform for business transactions, further training, and networking. As a new member of the advisory board, I want to strengthen our production location in Lübeck and promote the competitiveness of the mechanical engineering industry. In my opinion, the main aspects are sustainable development and innovative production engineering in order to safeguard the industry in northern Germany.”

Other members of the advisory board include companies Paul Horn, Hein & Oetting, Hoedtke, Trumpf, and Wache. The NORTEC trade fair advisory board is also complemented by educational organizations, research institutes, and business organizations such as Fraunhofer Institute for Silicon Technology, Hamburg Elbcampus Chamber of Crafts, Hamburg Chamber of Commerce, University of Applied Sciences, Hamburg Technical University, and VDMA Nord.

NORTEC Hamburg is offering exhibitors an early bird discount up until October 31, 2024. Registration can be carried out via the online exhibitor portal on the company website.

Image Source: NORTEC