And yes, you might have guessed: there is the first connection to MOTION Magazine, as the sustainability aspects in all things building have many influences on all things mobility. As I am particularly interested in innovation in urban mobility, the BAU Messe gave me great insights into what is to be expected from the building-industry’s point of view. Let me give you a few examples.
Meet our partner ROMA
My first point of contact was the innovative stall of our partner ROMA. The company based in Bavaria is the leading brand for sun screening systems with the highest requirements in terms of functionality, aesthetics and durability. In our Edition Two, we provided an insight into the exhibition ‘Biennale meets Roma’ which brought eight visionary architectural concepts to display in ROMA’s head office. The question was: How will we live together in the future? Now, these architectural masterpieces are long gone back to the studios of the artists, however the ROMA team is constantly searching for new ideas on urban future living. Hence I had a long talk with Tobias Löhner, ROMA Head of Marketing, on urban innovation, sustainable architecture and how the swabian company is continuing its efforts in decreasing CO2 emissions.
Next on my list was the innovation hub at the BAU Messe. The exhibition area close to the entrance gave an outlook to the building of the future. The displays were created using sustainable materials with participating universities such as the Technical University of Munich, the Technical University of Berlin, the Rosenheim University of Applied Sciences, the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology and the University of Applied Sciences Northwestern Switzerland all presenting current research projects. Awesome!
Parking Solution Providers @Bau in Munich
My next visit was to a hall full of parking solutions providers. Some of these international exhibitors had amazing stalls with displays ranging from smaller models to garage stations reaching the roof of the exhibition hall. One of the most fascinating displays was provided by Wöhr Autoparksysteme - one of the leading manufacturers of space saving car parking systems.
“We are experts in the development, production and installation of intelligent and technologically high-end parking systems for cars and bicycles.”
With projects around the world the family owned business is at home wherever space is rare and compact parking solutions are required. Also based in Southern Germany, Wöhr provides solutions for bike-storage, such as the Bikesafe parking system securely and compactly situated in a tower or shaft.
No charging solutions provided at BAU
To my surprise, I hardly saw any charging applications, charging stations or the like at the BAU Messe in Munich. Yes, there were quite a few solar building specialists but the natural next step when building or renovating a house or factory, the charging situation for the electric fleet, was missing. There is an opportunity for the organisers next time.
Still, I had a great time with so many innovative ideas and lots of learnings to be applied to the concepts of smart mobility. And it was great to lead these discussions on the first day of the fair, when it wasn’t that busy as to be expected from Wednesday onwards. I’ll be back in January 2025 - for sure.
Photos courtesy of Michael Brecht.
