“Future Mongolia” is now less than four months away. It will be the gest expo for mining and construction equipment and technology in the country. Stephan Fischer, CEO of the company organizing the event, talks about how he plans to make the expo a place offering opportunities to all and why the mining technology market in Mongolia is so attractive.
Could you please say a few things about yourself first?I would prefer not to talk too much about my person, but to give you some background information about the organizers of FUTURE MONGOLIA. VF Messen Gmbh is a joint company of Swiss and German experts in the field of international exhibitions.
The two partners are on one side Mr. Jьrgen Vogel, German architect and fair organizer, and on the other side the fair agency, a trade fair servicing company I founded back in 2000.
Both partners have been working on behalf of the German Federal Government on international trade shows for many years, and both companies and owners have been in that business for quite a long time. We can say that we have all needed experience to judge and work the markets.
Where Mr. Vogel represents the architectural side, I have a degree I civil engineering from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich, Switzerland. We both have not only good experience in the organizing of trade fairs, but as well in the set up and operating of trade fair facilities.
How did the idea of organising Future Mongolia come to you?
Mr. Vogel and myself have been organizing the German Pavilion at Discover Mongolia 2010. Together with the sponsor of such pavilion, VDMA, the German engineering association we made a debriefing after the show and came to the conclusion that the market has such good potential that it is a must to organize a international trade fair themed to the real needs of that country. We worked out a concept which now is followed step by step to make FUTURE MONGOLIA to come through.
What impact will the event have? And how successful do you expect to be?
The impact will of course be that for the first time in Mongolia the truly international offer will meet the national demand. A first successful trade show will automatically call for more, so there is a chance that within a few years Ulan Bator will have its place on the map of important fair places. This will automatically call for the set up of a modern fair venue in a not to far future.
I cannot answer the question how successful we will be, but I can say that we do our best to make this fair a success.
What kind of support are you receiving from governments, including that of Mongolia?
There has been a lot of support first of all from the Mongolian Government. The Embassies of Mongolia have assisted our communication to the markets by coordinated initiatives and lots of personal efforts to make the show known and to attract potential exhibitors to get in contact with us such support has convinced foreign government to come to FUTURE MONGOLIA with national pavilions permitting the national producers to take part at subsidized prizes. To mention two examples, Great Britain and Germany, both countries bringing a good number of companies to Ulan Bator. Four Mongolian ministries and the city of Ulan Bator have given their name and their logo to be used in our promotion, means they make their support public. This was and still is a great help when communicating to the different producers communities.
What facilities are you offering them other than hiring our booths?
The hiring out of booths to the exhibitors is just a small part of the organizational work. A trade fair is nothing else than a platform where offer and demand are brought together. Our job is therefore to convince the offer and demand that coming to the fair is a must, This requires a lot of creativity on one hand on the other hand a lot of work, both desk work and field work. By the way: answering your question and therefore making public the event and its background is part of that job as well.
Around how many companies are participating?
We expect some 120 – 150 companies. But the final figure will be known only a few weeks before opening the doors.
Why did you choose Mongolia for the event?
As I said before, the Mongolian Market represents such a tremendous potential that it would have been a mistake not to come to the idea to build up a future orientated trade show in this country. Mongolia needs the best state of the art technology to overcome the problems of developing the country at the rhythm given by the motor behind such development, the mining industry. We therefore try to bring “all what is needed” for such development, giving the locally responsible professionals the chance to inspect top products, technologies and processes right here. This will ease their decision making and the ordering of whatever they might need to perform at highest level in their jobs.
What do you think of the Mongolian construction sector?
I am not in a position to answer that question. But I am convinced, that following the mining activities the construction industry will boom when following the increasing rhythm of the mining sector, building transportation facilities (roads and railways) housing and industrial buildings, hospitals and schools just to name a few obvious needs.
Are you planning to make this an annual event?
Yes we will organize this event yearly at least for the first 4-5 years. Once the fair is well introduced in the market we will consult with representatives of both offer and demand and adapt ourselves to their needs.
Any final comment?
We organizers are delighted about the tremendous response we found. We will be ready to welcome all those interested in the future of Mongolia, in modern techniques and inspecting a truly international offer. We are looking forward to see you all on May 16, the opening day of FUTURE MONGOLIA.