Drupa will maintain its four-year cycle but the show’s duration will be cut to 11 days to reflect the changed visitor demographics. The decision was made by the 20-member Drupa committee at its constitutive session on 2 November 2012.
“The visitor structure at Drupa has changed. While in the past large groups travelled to the fair – preferably at the weekend – Drupa is now increasingly developing into a B2B fair,” said Werner Matthias Dornscheidt, CEO at Messe Düsseldorf. “At this year’s Drupa 78% of the international visitors and 52% of German visitors came from top management. This makes running over two weekends unnecessary. With eleven days – i.e. one weekend and nine working days – we perfectly cater to the needs of both supply and demand.”
The next Drupa will be held 31 May to 10 June 2016. Claus Bolza-Schünemann, CEO of Koenig and Bauer, has been named president of that event.