K 2028 Advisory Board begins preparations for the world’s leading trade fair

The inaugural meeting of the Exhibitor Advisory Board has marked the start of preparations for K 2028. The world’s leading trade fair for the plastics and rubber industry will take place in Düsseldorf from 18 to 25 October 2028. The Advisory Board supports Messe Düsseldorf in the strategic and conceptual development of K and advises it on fundamental issues regarding the focus, programme structure and communication of the world’s leading trade fair.

Members of the K 2028 Exhibitor Advisory Board and the K team met in Düsseldorf on 27 May
© Messe Düsseldorf GmbH

At the start of the Advisory Board meeting, the committee unanimously elected Dr Axel von Wiedersperg, CEO of Brückner Group SE, as its new Chairman. He succeeds Ulrich Reifenhäuser, who has led the Advisory Board since 2004 and played a key role in shaping K over the past two decades.

Dr Axel von Wiedersperg holds a doctorate in law and has been Managing Director of the Brückner Group since 2009. He possesses many years of industry and market knowledge in the plastics and rubber sector, as well as an extensive international network within the industry. He has been a member of the K Exhibitor Advisory Board since 2023 and was therefore already involved in the preparations for K 2025 and the strategic development of the trade fair. In addition, he serves on the board of the VDMA Plastics and Rubber Machinery Association.

The meeting focused on a joint review of K 2025, the evaluation of the exhibitor and visitor survey, and an initial outlook on the direction of K 2028. Key themes for the upcoming event were discussed, and the next steps for the strategic development of the world’s leading trade fair were initiated.

The K Exhibitor Advisory Board represents the entire spectrum of the trade fair – from machinery and plant engineering through the production of plastics and rubber to their processing. It comprises representatives from the exhibiting industry as well as leading industry associations.

The K 2028 Düsseldorf Exhibitor Advisory Board comprises:

• Marc Gregor Baier, BBP Kunststoffwerk Marbach Baier GmbH
• Dr Christine Bunte, Plastics Europe Deutschland e.V.
• Boris Engelhardt, wdk – Wirtschaftsverband der deutschen Kautschukindustrie e.V.
• Dr Stefan Engleder, ENGEL AUSTRIA GmbH
• Dr Guiscard Glück, BASF SE
• Manfred Hackl, EREMA Group GmbH
• Jochen Hardt, Covestro Deutschland AG
• Juliane Hehl, Arburg GmbH & Co. KG
• Thomas Holzer, TROESTER GmbH & Co. KG
• Jan Karnath, Reifenhäuser GmbH & Co.KG Maschinenfabrik
• Thorsten Kühmann, VDMA Plastics and Rubber Machinery Association
• Dr Oliver Möllenstädt, GKV German Plastics Processing Industry Association
• Eric Schönel, SIMONA AG
• Ute Spring, Dow Deutschland Anlagengesellschaft mbH
• Dr Axel von Wiedersperg, Brückner Group SE
• Dr Sascha Witt, Windmöller & Hölscher SE & Co. KG
• Michael Wittmann, Wittmann Technology GmbH

Düsseldorf will once again become the global meeting place for the plastics and rubber industry at K 2028. Leading international suppliers from the mechanical engineering, raw materials and processing sectors, as well as companies from the plastics recycling sector, are once again expected to attend.

Exhibitor registration for K 2028 opens in January 2027.

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