Automotive Engineering - October 2021 - 6

TECHNOLOGY
REPORT
IAA AUTO SHOW
IAA Munich and the future of 'mobility' shows
SAE INTERNATIONAL
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Jeff Hemphill
President
Todd Zarfos
2020 President
Srinivasa (Sri) Srinath, Ph.D
2022 President Elect
Susan Ying, Ph.D
Vice President - Aerospace
Ken Washington, Ph.D
Vice President - Automotive
Nearly 18 feet of exquisite design, engineering and electric luxury: Audi's Grandsphere concept.
Enormous anticipation guided me as I entered
the expansive Munchen Messe on Sept. 7, the
inaugural media day and official kickoff for the
first IAA - Germany's combination auto show
and industry trade fair - to be held in picturesque
Munich. The Bavarian city is a far better
show venue than drab, industrial Frankfurt,
which had hosted IAA since 1951.
The modern, airy facilities at the Messe provided
more than ample floor space for exhibitors,
meetings and panel discussions. Services clicked
with cheery German efficiency. Blessedly, the ambient
daily temperatures were in the 72°F/22°C
range, with blue-sky sunshine. Frankfurt by comparison
was classically hot; one year I attended,
the Mercedes-Benz hall, packed with people and
already steamy, generated a fog bank. And the
Europeans still shun air conditioning.
Before we left the U.S., our group of American
journalists had to blast its way through a mindnumbing
wall of health protocols to get to
Germany and into IAA. These involved multiple
emails sending scans of passports, proof-of-Covid
vaccine, and a worrisome volume of personal data
sent through the internet. Everywhere, we wore
cushy FFP2 masks with an additional layer of filtration.
Chairs in the large presentation spaces were
set a perfect 1.5 meters (4.9 ft.) apart. I was told
that IAA staff were assigned to monitor proper
mask use, watching closely for masks pulled down
below the nose. If you were caught, you were given
a warning card and were a 'marked' attendee.
Caught three times and they kicked you out.
Could this be a health-safety model for future
industry shows and conferences?
But I appreciated the COVID rigor, sadly lacking
in the U.S. As of Sept. 8, 77% of German citizens
had received two jabs. By comparison, only
66% of Americans had received a single vaccination
shot. This was a proper strict, robust approach
to ensuring at least a baseline of safety,
and it was the price to attend IAA. We also had
to take a COVID test upon arrival at Munich airport,
another requirement to attend the show. I
underwent a second test at the show, just before
departure the last day.
Part of China's Great Wall Motors group, the Wey
brand spent big at IAA with expansive floorspace to
show its production 'Coffee' electric SUV range along
with PHEV properties, one of which is seen here.
6 October 2021
Suppliers step up
In a postmortem release from the IAA organizers,
the event hosted some 400,000 attendees,
with 744 exhibitors including 152 supplier and
tech companies and 78 startups. The classic
German Tier-1s clearly carried the day at IAA
2021. They brought a wide array of products,
from cleverly engineered subassemblies (some
as high-tech as many electronics) to sensors
Michael Weinert
Vice President -
Commercial Vehicle
Andrew Jeffers
Treasurer
David L. Schutt, Ph.D
Chief Executive Officer
Gregory L. Bradley, Esq.
Secretary
Pascal Joly
Jeff Varick
Rhonda Walthall
Joan Wills
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information, please visit sae.org/sections
or contact SAE Member Relations Specialist
Abby Hartman at abby.hartman@sae.org.
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you the engineering knowledge you
need, participation in your SAE Collegiate
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more information, please visit students.
sae.org/chapters/collegiate/ or contact
SAE Member Relations Specialist Abby
Hartman at abby.hartman@sae.org.
AUTOMOTIVE ENGINEERING
FROM TOP: AUDI; LINDSAY BROOKE

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Automotive Engineering - October 2021

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