SAIE: a window onto the future

From 5 to 8 October 2011 the Bologna exhibition centre will be hosting the 47th SAIE, the specialist building trade fair that serves as an important international showcase for the industry.
Technological innovation and sustainability will be in the spotlight in specialist focus sections which will explore environmentally-friendly construction techniques and the use of new materials and technologies allowing companies to keep ahead of the times and trends. Topics of discussion will also include sustainability, green building, seismic protection and building/utilities integration with special reference to materials and innovative energy producing devices. Urban redevelopment and remediation will round off the range of topics in the spotlight.

The show will have three theme areas:
SAIENERGIA & Sustainability, which combines the spaces devoted to renewable energy with those focusing on systems, components and materials for sustainable building. The section will feature a wealth of shows, initiatives and forum and demo areas offering a close-up view of technologies and systems for sustainable building.
SAIECANTIERE & Production, a section that has always given plenty of coverage to site equipment, machinery and services. In 2011 it will also become the main focus of initiatives devoted to the concrete industry and the prefabrication sector (the former through the special initiative SAIEConcrete, organised in cooperation with Consulta del Calcestruzzo; the latter through the specialist event SAIEPrecast and the most important international event devoted to prefabrication, ICCX International Concrete Conference and Exhibition Europe, organised in cooperation with CPI).
SAIESERVIZI for designing and building, which will combine SAIEBit, the European exhibition of IT systems for building, with a section entirely devoted to measurement, control and test instruments and equipment. Through the dedicated technical forums, SAIESERVIZI will provide the most up-to-date information on the sector.
A wide range of initiatives will explore the theme of innovation throughout the sector, from the New product guide (which provides a selection of the most significant new products on display) to the SAIE product review entitled “A showcase onto the future” in which an expert jury selects products presented during the show that represent the cutting edge of building research in terms of innovation and experimentation. A total of 27 products will be selected in four major strategic areas: “integrated project”, “sustainable project”, “renovation” and “speed and ease of assembly on site”.

The brick and tile sector will as always be present in Hall 22 (LaterSaie), where Andil and Confindustria Ceramica will be taking part through their joint federation (Federazione Confindustria Ceramica e Laterizi) in a shared 1,000 square metre stand. Andil will set up its own exhibition area where it will showcase the latest technical and structural developments relating to the use of clay products in the building sector; Confindustria Ceramica will in turn set up a space under the banner of Ceramics of Italy, the new collective institutional trademark reserved exclusively for products manufactured in Italy by Confindustria Ceramica member companies including large-format floor tiles, designer wall tiles and ceramic tiles for exteriors and non-residential uses.

SAIE 2010 reported a total attendance of 168,000 including more than 6,800 international visitors.