Following speculation over how the show would rise to the challenge of today’s economic climate, National Electronics Week has been hailed a complete success by event organisers. Amid reports of visitors attending with the sole aim of purchasing equipment and exhibitors re-booking for 2010, NEW 2009 represents further evidence of a pending industry recovery.

Officially opened by Richard Noble, former land speed record holder and the driving force behind The Bloodhound SSC project; NEW 2009 attracted visitors from across the industry. Featuring three well-attended seminar programmes including the inaugural Electronics Weekly Live design conference, education was a strong theme at the show. But mostly, it was the show’s status as a business platform that has dominated feedback so far, with EcoPac’s David Sproat claiming: “The quantity and quality of the leads was very good; we found that everyone at the show was genuinely looking to do business. On the back of our success this year, EcoPac Power has already reserved a bigger space for NEW’s 2010 show.”

Juki’s Phil Stokes added; “For the quality of leads and new contacts made this is the best show Juki has had in the UK for the past eight years.” Almit’s Peter Martin stated; “We also saw a number of people looking to spend money – positive indicators for both the show and our industry. We now have some very interesting new opportunities to follow up.” O’Dell Rework Solutions’ Jason O’Dell said: “Not only did we get some great feedback from our customers, but we were also delighted to pick up a number of new leads. I will definitely be back in 2010!” James Cawkell from Adaptsys agreed: “I believe the UK needs a show like NEW and its success will benefit all of us. I have already booked for 2010.” Nick Theodoris from Wurth Electronics UK Ltd. echoed these sentiments, saying: “Our time at National Electronics Week saw us collect over 100 good quality qualified enquiries – a fantastic result.”

Quantum CAD’s Heather Norbury added: “We have supported and participated in the NEW show from year one and believe it’s a well run, well supported show for the electronics industry.” VSMT’s David Clements also explained that as a direct result of visitor feedback at the show, the company has decided to bring forward the launch of a new machine for customers who require a quality SMA solution but who do not necessarily need the power of its newly launched vivo⁵ placement machine. He explains: “We found NEW to be an extremely useful show; not least, because we came away with ten great quality leads – all of which were new names to us. It also provided a valuable opportunity to gauge industry trends.”

Show organisers are naturally extremely encouraged with initial feedback. Event Director Claire Jeffreys explains: “Despite the challenges we all face in today’s tough economic times, NEW 2009 really highlighted how much the UK industry has to be proud of. The number of exhibitors I spoke to who were delighted by the number of quality leads they were collecting on stand are strong indicators of the long-awaited recovery. I would like to thank everyone who supported us and in turn, the UK industry. We’re still the UK’s number one electronics exhibition and look forward to returning in 2010!”