Interview with Peter Spiel about the product highlights at HANNOVER MESSE 2023

Hannover Messe is just around the corner. This year's central motto is sustainability, another one is digitalisation. How do products from Wöhner fit into this motto? We asked Peter Spiel, Vice President Products at Wöhner, about the highlights in Hanover and their sustainability potential. 


Why do the products from Wöhner fit well with the central topics of Hannover Messe, which are sustainability and digitalisation, summarised in the slogan "Industrial Transformation – Making the Difference"?

Peter Spiel: The highlights and product innovations from Wöhner stand for intelligent energy distribution – and thus for more energy efficiency. This is exactly in line with the motto of the trade fair because the efficient use of energy is one of the conditions for a sustainably positioned industry, in Germany and all over the world.

Our solutions from the areas of digitalisation and measurement technology ensure precisely this efficiency – such as the new measurement technology module CrossMT, which digitises the CrossBoard®. The trade fair is the ideal setting for this, because here the exhibitors compete for the best ideas and innovations – just like in a sporting match. It's not just about competition, but also about being inspired by others. As a showcase for the international industry, the fair is a stage for companies. Here they can prove that they are committed to more sustainability as well as to the clear intention of exhausting the possibilities of digital technologies to the maximum, especially in this respect.


Which highlights can visitors expect at the Wöhner booth?

Peter Spiel: On the one hand, we will present the CrossBoard® with expanded possibilities – in the future, the basic system with first components it can be expanded modularly for four- or five-pole applications. Our motor starter MOTUS®C14 has also received an update: it now has a special softstart feature to reduce the starting torque of the motor. This allows the motor to be started smoothly.

Another trade fair highlight is the electronic measurement technology module CrossMT, which digitises the CrossBoard®. It adds intelligent functions and connectivity wherever the control cabinet components do not have these out of the box. It measures current, voltage and temperature, derives quantities such as power, phase angle, etc. and forwards them via interfaces.

Also new are the CAPUS®S32 and CAPUS®BB32 switches, which optimally complement our panel product range, as well as new modules for control cabinet monitoring. Last but not least, we offer continuous feature upgrades for our solutions in order to always guarantee up-to-date technology.


Sustainability as a major topic at Hannover Messe – what do the product innovations from Wöhner contribute here?

Peter Spiel: With the digitalisation that, for example, the CrossMT brings to the control cabinet, users benefit from a significantly improved overview of central values and data, which allows more precision overall – and thus a more efficient use of valuable resources. The measurements and the associated overall view form the basis for identifying potential savings.

In principle, the same applies to the entire measurement technology: the more information and precision, the more scope for action for corresponding sustainability measures. In combination, CrossBoard®, CrossMT and MOTUS®C14 deliver energy with the smallest achievable footprint, in terms of space requirements, but above all in terms of CO2 emissions.

One indication that Wöhner is a leading player in this field is the fact that we are taking part in a special tour about energy efficiency. The guided tour through the exhibition grounds shows "energy heroes" – those exhibitors who use current technical innovations for concrete applications and thus optimise their energy consumption. During the tour, questions on measuring energy consumption will be answered as well as on saving opportunities and optimising consumption profiles. The fact that Wöhner is one of precisely these "energy heroes" according to the tour providers shows our sustainability potential. We have a lot of solutions and will show them in Hanover, which is why the tour also leads to our booth in hall 12.


What does innovation mean to you – also in relation to Hannover Messe?

Peter Spiel: Our trade fair presentation is very much in line with what the trade fair as a whole has issued as its directive: innovation, inspiration, interaction. The innovation potential of our products and solutions as well as the corresponding upgrades and services is high. We want to be at the forefront of development and thus keep giving impetus to both our customers and our industry as a whole. To a certain extent, innovation or the ability to innovate always depends on whether and to what extent those responsible are also visionaries – in the most positive sense. It is not for nothing that the trade fair is regarded as a meeting place for visionaries from business, science and politics: looking ahead and daring the new is part of our corporate DNA. 

The trade fair sees itself not only as a showcase for industry performance, but also as a platform for use cases, insights and solutions of the future, as well as a stage for cross-technology and cross-sector exchange. It is also a forum for new contacts and business relations. All this is part of the unique character of Hannover Messe and offers excellent opportunities to us to put our innovation potential into a broader context and to think more holistically in one respect or another.