Technological watch

JEC World comes back from 25 to 27 April in Paris. This annual exhibition organised by the JEC Group dedicated to the world of composites will once again bring together companies, start-ups, entrepreneurs, industrialists, academics and scientists. At the coming edition of the show, more than 35,000 visitors from 112 countries will learn about the latest innovations displayed by 1,200 exhibitors (half of them European) over an exhibition space of 72,000 square meters.

  

Nowadays there are countless applications in which composites are used. As reported by the organisers during the press conference for the presentation of JEC World 2023, held in live streaming on 2 March, the main application sectors are the aerospace, transport, electrical and electronics, energy, construction and medical industries. During the conference, some data were also provided in order to better understand the fundamental importance of composites for the entire economic system. In fact, in the 2019-2022 period a sizeable growth was recorded in North America (+4%), Asia (+3%) and the rest of the world (+4%), without the foreseeable effects related to the crisis ignited by the pandemic, while in Europe, in the same period, there was a minor decline of 1%.The prospects for the next five years are encouraging, with steady growth in the sector, from 1% in Europe to 4% in North America and the rest of the world. With regard to applications, in the next five years a steady increase is expected in all the above-mentioned sectors, in particular in the aerospace industry, which in the 2019-2022 period recorded a significant decline caused by the disruption to air traffic, consumer goods, transportation and energy.

Sustainability will be the absolute protagonist of the coming edition of JEC, also thanks to specific conferences such as: "The new black is green" dedicated to natural fibres and biopolymers for biocomposites; "Less and better" focused on the reduction of waste, costs, energy and time, with the aim of achieving a sustainable production of composites; "The 4 R’s (Recover, Recycle, Repair, Reuse)" dealing with the production of composites in the circular economy; and "Lightweight Made in Europe: challenges and opportunities" with reflections on the future of the European Union.

The attendants will have the opportunity to get in contact with the entire composite materials supply chain thanks to a rich program of meetings, workshops and conferences that will round off the actual exhibition. In this context, it is worth mentioning three conferences dedicated, respectively, to the aerospace industry, illustrating the development of tomorrow's aircraft thanks to composites; to the building and construction industry, explaining how to build a more solid and at the same time sustainable future; to the transport sector, describing how to manage land transportation in the future thanks to composites. Finally, on the last day of the fair, there will be a meeting between high school and university students and companies to illustrate the job prospects in the industry, which still represents an essential component of the economy of even the most advanced countries, where the tertiary sector takes the highest number of employees.