The build-up to the next Intertraffic event of 2022 is in full swing to repeat the incredibly positive atmosphere that pervaded the exhibition halls and conference arenas in Amsterdam in March and April.
Encouraging visitor numbers and a high-quality list of exhibitors will come together in Mexico City from 8-10 November with the aim of speeding up the mobility transition. The Mexican Government has announced several multi-million dollar investment projects over the next few years, with maintenance and expansion high on the agenda for highways and bridges, as well as public transport and micromobility infrastructure. Urban infrastructure redesign and planning is also a top priority.
Intertraffic Mexico will host a wide range of both domestic and international companies, supplemented with unique presentations, workshops and conferences, so we asked three exhibitors (all of which have previously exhibited in Mexico City) why the show is such an important date in their event calendar.
Rebloc (stand 848), an Austrian concrete road barrier specialist; vehicle classification experts MetroCount (stand 732, through their Australian office); and Haenni Instruments (stand 1028) – the Swiss-based producers of heavy goods vehicle weighing technology, told us why you’ll find them at Intertraffic Mexico from 8-10 November 2022.
Back in the game
So, what was it about Intertraffic Mexico that attracted Rebloc to exhibit previously and, just as importantly, what is that keeps them coming back?
“Mexico is one of the largest economies in Central and North America but has not been a traditional operational area for our company,” says Carlos Ardon, Rebloc’s international sales engineer. “However, Rebloc understands that our MASH-certified [Manual for Assessing Safety Hardware] products will significantly improve road safety in Mexico, having an immediate added value in keeping the roads safer and saving lives. We’ve proven this with our precast barriers worldwide, from Iceland to South Africa, from the United States to China.
For MetroCount’s brand manager Jarryd Emery, the decision to exhibit clearly wasn’t one that caused any sleepless nights for the Western Australian.
“Mexico has shown to be something of a trampoline for many businesses, infrastructure, activities, etc. for the Latin American (LATAM) markets. Intertraffic Mexico is a worldwide well-known show and we have had recent success by exhibiting there. The reason why we are back in 2022 is because it works well for us, we get to see plenty of our customers in LATAM, and the show itself is well organized in every single detail.”
“Mexico has shown to be something of a trampoline for many businesses, infrastructure, activities, etc. for the Latin American (LATAM) markets"
Marcia Otter, Haenni’s business developer, says: “We were motivated to exhibit at Intertraffic Mexico not only because Mexico is the second largest economy in Latin America with a road network of about 400,000km, but also because it is an international exhibition which attracts visitors from the whole of Central America and also from South America.”
Market conditions
For Emery the Mexican automatic traffic counting market provides all the incentive to attend that MetroCount require.
“It keeps growing and growing and that is the reason why we are eager to promote our great products and excellent service. Mexico in particular and LATAM in general needs the most accurate products when counting and classifying vehicles, and MetroCount has them.”
Otter agrees. “The private concession holders of the Mexican highways are increasingly investing in improving the technology, installing automatic tolling machines, CCTV, dynamic scales and speed monitoring systems,” which can only be good news for the likes of MetroCount and Haenni Instruments.
As for clients, both existing and potential, Rebloc’s Ardon is currently approaching road owners (both government and private) with Rebloc´s innovative MASH certified precast concrete barriers to improve in their road network.
“We are looking for partner companies that are active in the road- and or road safety market, actively participating in tenders and that would like to offer our better and more advanced MASH solutions in terms of road safety,” he explains.
"We are looking for partner companies that are active in the road- and or road safety market, actively participating in tenders and that would like to offer our better and more advanced solutions in terms of road safety"
Haenni’s major local clients are the tyre manufacturers and transport companies.
“Our goal is to increase the awareness of the importance to protect the roads by having an efficient concept of weight enforcement,” insists Otter, “so our aim was to attract the road authorities to the exhibition as the Secretaria de Comunicaciones y Transportes, more specifically the Dirección General del Autotransporte Federal as they visited our booth last year.”
Geographically Mexico is in North America but both physically and spiritually it provides a link between the huge traffic technology market in the US and the still burgeoning Central and South American markets – therefore Intertraffic Mexico provides the perfect transcontinental gateway, something that is not lost on Jarryd Emery who says that MetroCount are looking to expand their reach in the Americas.
“We absolutely are, we have done it already, and we’ve been succeeding! Over the past few years, our Americas and LATAM team have been expanding through the region, reaching customers across the continent,” he explains.
Says Haenni’s Marcia Otter: “We have representatives in several countries in Central and South America. Until there is an Intertraffic in South America, Intertraffic Mexico remains as the biggest and most important event of the sector in Latin America.”
"Until there is an Intertraffic in South America, Intertraffic Mexico remains as the biggest and most important event of the sector in Latin America"
Opportunity knocks
In terms of opportunities for companies based outside of Mexico to make a significant imprint in the traffic technology market, how receptive do our interviewees feel Mexican cities are to ‘outsiders’?
“Mexico is still in its infancy when it comes to Official Weight Control and Legal Metrology,” explains Otter. “There is a lot to do about it. Nevertheless, we are confident that is a worthwhile market. It needs time, but we see that the awareness is increasing and the opportunities are coming. Haenni will continue promoting through our local partner in Mexico normativity as the NOM-198-SCFI-2018 which rules the dynamic weighing for vehicles.”
“We don’t think it’s necessarily that there are particular cities who are more receptive to new technology than others,” explains MetroCount’s Emery. “We find that our customers are very receptive to it, it is just a matter of time and sometimes the available funds. Our LATAM team are quite experienced in assisting new customers to procure new technologies, and have had recent successes.”
Rebloc’s view of the challenges and opportunities faced by European companies (in their case) in Mexico are particularly positive.
“The opportunities are limitless, because Rebloc works closely with road authorities to the extent of even developing country-specific solutions to adapt to the local road safety targets. As mentioned before, Rebloc is looking for local partners with a good connection to the market. That is the reason why companies outside of Mexico will have very good opportunities."
