Dortmund (ESa) – INTERMODELLBAU 2019 (4 – 7 April) once again provided approximately 500 international exhibitors from 18 countries with an attractive forum for customer service and sales. In total, it attracted 77,000 visitors to Messe Dortmund from Thursday to Sunday. “INTERMODELLBAU offers visitors and exhibitors alike an ideal and focussed platform for getting in touch with an international model-making community”, says Sabine Loos, Managing Director of Westfalenhallen Unternehmensgruppe. “So in 2019 it was once again able to prove its position as the world’s largest exhibition for model making and model sports.” The exhibitors were satisfied with the overall result and the growth of the exhibition.

INTERMODELLBAU visitors didn’t even let long journeys prevent them from coming to the exhibition. According to a survey by an independent exhibition market research institute, almost all the German states were represented at the exhibition. Along with North Rhine-Westphalia, large groups of visitors came from, amongst others, Lower Saxony, Hesse, Rhineland-Palatinate, Baden-Württemberg and Bavaria. Around 10 percent of the visitors even travelled from abroad. Amongst others, they came from Denmark, France, and the Benelux nations.

For exhibitors, INTERMODELLBAU represents an opportunity to speak to customers who wouldn’t be at any other exhibitions. That’s because almost half of all visitors don’t go to any other exhibitions with similar themes; they only go to INTERMODELLBAU. In addition, the INTERMODELLBAU audience is a loyal one: 87 percent have also been regular guests at the exhibition in recent years. The exhibitors confirm that they are also able to make valuable, ongoing business contacts: “We often see familiar faces at the exhibition who, over time, end up becoming regular customers,” says Susanne Dussling-Toniggold, owner of ETON e.K. – PROXXON Werksvertretung.

Model trains and model cars very popular

Model train making received particularly high interest at the exhibition, as did model car making and RC model making. In addition, model making materials, accessories and tools were in high demand.

The program highlights, such as the flight show in hall 3, model ship

making in hall 5 and the races in hall 2, as well as the new “micropulling”

championship in the courtyard, the new activity space for model train

manufacturers in hall 4, and the exhibition robot fights from Mad Metal

Machines in hall 1 were all rated highly by visitors.

Visitors gave the overall range of things on offer at INTERMODELLBAU

the grade “good”.

Numerous titles held

This year, Radio Controlled Tractor Pulling e.V. (RCTP) were showcased

for the first time in the courtyard between halls 4 and 7. The tractors they

brought with them, which they made themselves and which had

combustion and electric motors with up to eight cylinders, were very

popular with the spectators when they pulled brake vans weighing up to

25 kilograms for the competition. Following various demonstrations

throughout the week, the international experts in the championship racing

competed against each other in nine different classes. Whoever pulled the

brake van the furthest along the twelve-metre-long clay course won the

race. The winner in the top “5.5 kilogram” tier was Sven Daumann from

Gütersloh with “Miss Horsepower”. Second place went to Danny

Brockhaus from Neumünster with the “Monster Energie”, and third place

went to Christoph Krapp from Osnabrück with “Double Impakt”.

For the first time in many years, the national title bouts of the Deutscher

Minicar Club e.V. (DMC) – the umbrella organisation for remote-controlled

car model racing in Germany – was fought on the smallest scale in front

of a large audience at INTERMODELLBAU. In total, 60 of the best racers

competed in the “electrical flat track” categories EA (1:12 expert) and EB

(1:12 standard). There was also the guest category 1:12 GT. Designed by

Markus Mobers, one of Germany’s most successful RC car drivers, the

speedy and demanding course in hall 2, with a generous area of 20 x 30

metres, provides the national elite with top conditions for exciting title

bouts. He once again brought home the victory for 2019 in the category

1/12 EA.

An overview of the winners:

1/12 EA: First place: Markus Mobers, second place: Patrick Gassauer,

third place: Daniel Sieber.

1/12 EB: First place: Thomas Stenger, second place: Tim Altmann, third

place: Torsten Müller.

1/12 GT: First place: Fabian Nitschke, second place: Torsten Bräuer, third

place: Edmund Hoch.

Everyone who also wanted to feel like a “racer” was also able to grab a

controller on two courses at the DMC stand and so get an impression of

what racing is like.

On Sunday, Mad Metal Machines also took part in the final. In hall 1, the

remote-control fighting robots, which they built themselves, competed

against each other at INTERMODELLBAU for the third time since 2017.

For 2019, the winning robots in the various categories were:

Raptorweight – first place: Leo van Miert from the Netherlands, second

place: Ralf Schneider from Gemünden, third place: Aaron Wiebecke from

Essen.

Featherweight – first place: Frank Mazee from the Netherlands, second

place: Tim Bouwens from the Netherlands, third place: Dirk Kasten from

Bochum.

Beetleweight – first place: Jonas Fink from Frankfurt, second place:

Johannes Leo from Dresden, third place: Ralf Schneider from Gemünden.

Exhibitors and visitors thrilled

For about 86 percent of the exhibitors, the expectations they came to the

exhibition with were partly or completely fulfilled, and we were even able

to exceed those expectations for a further 6 percent. INTERMODELLBAU

2019 was also well-received by its visitors. On average, when asked about

their satisfaction with this year’s exhibition, the visitors gave the

exhibition the grade of “good”. So it’s no wonder, then, that 93 percent

said they’d like to recommend the exhibition to their friends and family.

93 percent of the visitors and 89 percent of the exhibitors have already

said they want to go to INTERMODELLBAU 2020.

Next year’s exhibition will take place from 23 to 26 April 2020.

INTERMODELLBAU 2019 – what our partners and

exhibitors say:

Dieter Matysik, President of nauticus e.V., Deutscher

Dachverband für Schiffsmodellbau und Schiffsmodellsport:

“Looking back over the course of exhibition, it was a successful one for

our association. More visitors were interested in model ship making in

particular than last year. The hands-on activities for children and young

people were very popular and were always fully booked. The 40 modelmaking

clubs from Germany and abroad presented their model ships.

Russian model makers travelled more than 3,000 kilometres to Dortmund,

and in so doing, once again proved the importance of INTERMODELLBAU

internationally.”

Ludger Katemann, Vice President of the Deutscher Modellflieger-

Verband (DMFV):

“INTERMODELLBAU was as strong as ever in 2019. THE DMFV was able

to achieve its goals for the exhibition. We generated exciting for the

model flying day on 9 June, and the exhibition visitors were hugely

interested in the hands-on activities and the exciting flight

demonstrations. The association also fulfilled its task of clearing up legal

foundations, and so also contributed to the exhibition with the topic

‘aviation safety’.”

Karl-Friedrich Ebe, exhibition speaker for the

Modellbahnverband in Deutschland (MOBA):

“INTERMODELLBAU in Dortmund is simply number one in Germany for

us. We have, for the 24th time, been involved in the exhibition as goodwill

sponsors. Some of our members travel up to 600 kilometres for the

exhibition. We were once again able to meet numerous model train

makers from the Benelux countries, as well as France and Great Britain,

here at the exhibition. The public thought the refurbished activity space in

hall 4 was exciting. We’re already looking forward to next year when we’ll

celebrate our 25-year anniversary.”

Harald Merten, youth speaker for the Deutscher Minicar-Club

(German mini-car club – DMC):

“The DMC is extremely satisfied with how the exhibition went. The

number of visitors we had was comparable with previous years. For us,

the advice and information about our hobby is important for reaching

‘new drivers’ and a new generation. Children and young people were

introduced to the hobby at our activity spaces and were given the

opportunity to take part in races on courses that we set up.”

Eric-Michael Peschel, Head of Event Marketing at Gebrüder

Märklin & Cie. GmbH:

“For us, INTERMODELLBAU is one of the most important exhibitions at

which the public can find out about our new stuff first-hand and in the

flesh. The quality of the exhibition is consistently high. We encounter an

interested public here, and always have exciting, interesting

conversations. The first two days have certainly gone really well. The

halls were always really full. Our location in the hall is fantastic. And our

talks and the games area were really positively received by the visitors.”

Werner Jaschke, Head of Production at AUHAGEN GmbH:

“We’ve been exhibitors at INTERMODELLBAU for many years. The

versatility offered by the exhibition is huge, and the public is very

competent. Visitors use the exhibition for shopping, which means that

there’s always a lively hustle and bustle at the stands. This year, we’re

selling a lot of railway station equipment that we’re also exhibiting in a

display case. The visitors like to be inspired and are open-minded.”

Martina Matthäi, Customer Advisor at PIKO Spielwaren GmbH:

“So far, all hell has really broken loose at the exhibition. This is really

shown by the fact that we’re selling a huge amount of catalogues. Half of

them went on the first day. You just have to be at INTERMODELLBAU. In

doing so, we don’t just increase our brand recognition, we also have the

opportunity to present the newest products to our customers, and we’re

also able to answer all their questions in person, and to demonstrate

functions and mechanics of the models first hand. The visitors value that

a lot, and we benefit from the great contact.”

Daniel Pasternok, Director of Product Development at Revell

GmbH:

“INTERMODELLBAU is a set date in the diary for us. We come every year

and showcase, amongst other things, our new products that will be

available throughout the year. For us, it’s very important to find out our

customers’ needs and interests, and to refine our products. That goes

really well at this exhibition. We always have numerous interesting

conversations here which really help us. Our workshop for children, where

you can build a car, is really well-received by the ‘little model makers’.”

Julia-Sophia Ernst-Hausmann, Managing Director of vth – Verlag

für Technik und Handwerk neue Medien GmbH:

“We present new publications at INTERMODELLBAU which are really well

received by the visitors. We were able to gain a large number of new

subscribers. Large numbers of our regular customers also come to the

exhibition as they like using our exclusive pre-ordering service. The

special thing about INTERMODELLBAU is that the catchment area is so

huge, and the visitors are really international. With its great connections,

Messe Dortmund also offers the visitors and exhibitors an ideal

infrastructure.”

Uli Gebhardt, Operations Manager at Carrera World:

“This is our first time here, and we’re very happy. There is considerable

demand from our target audience, and we can well imagine coming again

next year.”

Wolfgang Greger, Employee at Conrad Electronic SE:

“INTERMODELLBAU is an absolute must for all model makers. In any

case, the purchasing power is very high. Many visitors ask in advance

where they’ll be able to find us at the exhibition, and then come straight

to our stand to buy something. We’ll be happy to be here again next

year.”

Ton de Bont, Employee at mcc Model Car Parts:

“INTERMODELLBAU visitors don’t just come from Germany, some come

from, for example, Denmark, France, Belgium, and the Netherlands. We

were not only able to gain several new international customers, but we

were also able to meet a lot of our regular customers. We’re constantly

developing, for example by collaborating with Viessmann Modelltechnik

GmbH. That contact was made at INTERMODELLBAU.”

David Heusler, Department of Online and Events at SIKU:

“There’s a lot going on the whole time for us on the stand. We’re very

happy with how it’s gone up until now. We’re reaching both of our target

groups at the exhibition: model makers during the week with WIKING,

and families at the weekend with SIKU. We’re showing our end users new

stuff from SIKU which is being sold for the first time at the exhibition. And

WIKING is offering three special models which collectors will only be able

to get at INTERMODELLBAU.“

Susanne Dussling-Toniggold, owner of ETON e.K. – PROXXON

Werksvertretung:

“The interest from the INTERMODELLBAU visitors is huge, and we’ve

been able to get some good sales up until now. We often see familiar

faces at the exhibition who, over time, end up becoming regular

customers. We’re definitely coming again next year.”

Ms Schwarz, Head of Marketing at Modellsport Schweighofer

GmbH:

“The exhibition visitors have really wide interests. We’ve already been

able to have numerous technical discussions. What’s unique is that there

are a lot of larger interested groups out and about here – you don’t get

that at any other exhibition.”

INTERMODELLBAU 2019 at a glance

Market position:

The world’s largest exhibition for model making and model sport

Date:

• 4 – 7 April 2019

Organizer:

• Messe Dortmund GmbH

Goodwill sponsors:

• Deutscher Minicar-Club e.V. (DMC)
• Deutscher Modellflieger-Verband e.V. (DMFV)
• Interessengemeinschaft Modelleisenbahnausstellungen (IGEMA)
• Modellbahnverband in Deutschland e.V. (MOBA)
• nauticus e.V. – Deutscher Dachverband für Schiffsmodellbau und

         Schiffsmodellsport e. V.

Halls being used:

Halls 1 to 8

Thematic focus:

• Hall 1 = Robot fights with “Mad Metal Machines”
• Hall 2 = RC car race, German championship 2019
• Hall 3 = RC model sports, model aircraft making
• Halls 4 and 7 = Model train making
• Outside area (between halls 4 and 7) = Micro pulling championship
• Hall 5 = Model ship making, cardboard modelling
• Hall 6 = Model car making, functional model making, model figure making,

                         static model making

• Hall 8 = Fairground model making, steam engine model making, military

                         model making, plastic model making

Programme

Mad Metal Machines (hall 1)

• Fights in different weight classes, and fun fights

Model aircraft construction (hall 3)

• Show flights & flight demonstrations
• Special exhibition: Aircraft models & zeppelin accessories
• Legal advice
• Hands-on activity: Classic glider crafting

Model train making

• More than 30 displays (halls 4 and 7)
• Activity space: Model railway with expert panel (hall 4)
• Junior College Europa (JCE) (hall 7)
• Ride with the miniature steam locomotive (hall 8)

Model ship making (Hall 5)

• Presentation of model ships on a 500 m² water basin
• Captain’s licence for children
• Building mini boats

Paper craft (hall 5)

Road worker arena (hall 6)

• Show: “Build it! – An ordinary day on the construction site”
• Talks about model making: Discussions with model making experts
• Road worker digger challenge

Model vehicle making

• Mini car race course (hall 2)
• German championship (hall 2)
• DMC join-in course (hall 3)
• Mini truck driving licence for children (hall 6)
• Snow groomer obstacle course (hall 6)
• Model truck obstacle course (halls 6 and 8)
• Model giants (hall 8)
• Military model course (hall 8)

More information about the exhibition:

• Exhibition blog: blog.intermodellbau.de
• Facebook: facebook.de/intermodellbau
• Website: www.intermodellbau.de

Visitors: 77,000

Exhibitors: About 500 from 18 countries

Press contact:

Westfalenhallen Unternehmensgruppe GmbH

Marketing & Sales

Tel.: 0231 / 12 04 - 556, Fax: - 724

Email: evelyn.sabelek@westfalenhallen.de