TRAFIC 2013 brought together around 100 companies and over 4 thousand trade visitors
The FORO TRAFIC programme and the Innovation Gallery were resounding successes
Madrid, 23 October 2013.- The thirteenth edition of TRAFIC, the International Road Safety and Equipment Exhibition Fair, organised by IFEMA on 29 September to 2 October, 2015 at FERIA DE MADRID, drew to a close with highly satisfactory attendance figures. A total of 110 companies and 4,432 trade visitors gathered for the event, highlighting the improved profile of an industry with a high technological level and a significant international projection.

This capacity for innovation, best exemplified by the products featured in the Innovation Gallery, the enthusiasm for the FORO TRAFIC programme and the impressive attendance level were among the highlights of the event.

In terms of trade visitor profile, most - 28% - were from the various public administrations, 19% were from engineering and consultancy companies, and 6% from state security bodies.

Most of the participating companies consulted agreed that although visitor numbers were slightly lower, there were more professionals and decision-makers and a larger international presence. This was confirmed by José Manuel Palomera, Head of Projects at INDRA, Ignacio Domínguez, Managing Director of SIMEC, David García, Business Development Manager at DSTA, Julio Amarillas, Technical Director of IPS VIAL, Ismael Matute, Head of iBUMP, Patrick Fabré, Managing Director of LACROIX SEÑALIZACIÓN, Daniel Priet, Commercial Director of MYCSA, and Pablo Fernández, Commercial Director of AMYC.

José Manuel Díaz Fajardo, Project Director of ETRA, said that his group had achieved its goals of improving its position and international profile at TRAFIC. David García, Business Development Director at DSTA, was similarly enthusiastic, stating that: “our customers appreciated our efforts to improve our international profile and we used our presence to publicise our new factory in Mexico”,, while Pablo Fernández, Commercial Director of AMYC, was delighted to have secured several attractive contracts, including one in Russia, for his product.

Several other aspects of this edition of TRAFIC also met with approval. Ignacio Domínguez, Managing Director of SIMEC, for example, declared himself “very satisfied with the extensive media coverage of the event.” The staging of the event at the same time as the new Madrid Professional Fleet Show was also a plus for Ibón González de Audícana, Managing Director of NISSEN, and Marc Espí, Marketing Director of FEDERAL SIGNAL VAMA.

Some participants, including José Joaquín Lobo, Product Manager of CERTIO, and Joan Casarramona, Commercial Director of FRAFERANT, emphasised how difficult it is for companies and administrations to send staff to events of this kind.

TRAFIC 2013 was again supported by the Directorate General of Traffic, DGT, and the Directorate General of Roads, and also enjoyed the backing of the Basque Regional Government's Directorate of Traffic and Vehicle Fleet, the Catalonian Traffic Service Department, and the associations of the different sectors represented at the fair.

The main players at the event were the companies, whose offering underlined their commitment to R&D, with the Innovation Gallery showcasing the most groundbreaking products. On the first day, the 15th of October, the corresponding prizes were awarded to the Skidata DTA. Interface Hosted Services product, presented by Skidata Ibérica, S.L.. in the car parks category; InCa Inspector by the Inventarios y Proyectos de Señalización Vial, S.L. company in the road infrastructures category; and See Mee Crossing by Simec, Sistemas de Identificación y Mecanismos, S.L., in the road safety category, with a special mention for Crossafe (a product to protect culverts) by Cidro - Productos Tecnológicos de Seguridad Vial.

In the Intelligent Transport Systems category, the WK-300 vehicle detector produced by Simec, Sistemas de Identificación y Mecanismos, S.L. was selected in addition to the efficient driving help system (efiSAE) produced by Electronic Trafic, S.A. in the road sustainability category, with a special mention for Adilux (adaptive and efficient regulation of interurban lighting systems) created by Sice, Sociedad Ibérica de Construcciones Eléctricas, S.A.

FORO TRAFIC
Finally, FORO TRAFIC and its comprehensive programme of workshops, which tackled the key issues for the sector, was well received by the professionals who attended the event. Topics included sustainable road transport, internationalisation, the pivotal role played by highway equipment in road safety and intelligent transport systems (ITS).
The workshop on the pivotal role of road equipment in road safety, organised by the Spanish Road Association (AEC), highlighted the improvements achieved in recent years in the various spheres analysed.

The latest regulatory developments, CE marking, the importance of standardisation, etc. were among the key themes of the presentations. The programme was also used as an opportunity to present FORO VIAL, a body which seeks to achieve ongoing improvements in road safety in Spain, chiefly by enhancing the quality and service level of vertical signage, road signs, traffic guidance equipment, lighting, containment systems and anti-noise devices.

The speakers all expressed their concern at the impact of the decline in investment in roads and equipment on traffic safety and on the comfort and service quality provided to the user. The need for more investment in the sector was one of the key conclusions of the gathering.

The representative of AFASEMETRA, María Luisa Jimeno, highlighted the need to inventorise, review, conserve and replace, where necessary, both signal codes and orientation signage. She said that the authorities responsible for roads must ensure that they fulfil their duty to users/drivers, i.e. that they provide information to, guide and warn drivers and pedestrians. Signal codes and orientation signage must therefore be visible, legible, comprehensible and credible.

Meanwhile, Ricardo Pomatta, Technical Director of the Spanish Association of Lighting Manufacturers (ANFALUM), tackled the topic of energy efficiency in exterior lighting installations and spoke of a “road blackout.”

Particularly noteworthy during the road sustainability workshop was the address by Pablo Sáez Villar, Managing Director of ACEX, the Association of Infrastructure Conservation and Exploitation Companies, who said that “conservation must be systematic if we are to attain an appropriate level of sustainability, which means that we must avoid management via emergency plans.” He also asserted that “if resources for investment are scant we must prioritise conservation of what we already have over further construction”, and that “in light of the current situation we technicians must sell the benefits of conservation and users must demand that it is carried out."

On 16 and 17 October the VIII Workshops on Urban Traffic Management, which focused on road safety for the first time, were staged under the title “Road Safety: A Priority for Traffic Engineering. The workshops, which featured 37 speakers over 6 sessions and were attended by 137 professionals, succeeded in uniting the vision of the technicians and the standpoints of both the politicians with responsibility in this area and the victims of violence. It was agreed that there was a need to promote forums with this unified approach.

There was particular interest in the first session, presided over by the Director General of Traffic, which was attended by former Directors of the Directorate-General for Traffic (DGT). In addition to some of the lessons learned during their stints in charge, the speakers emphasised the positive results achieved when road safety is removed from political debate and the key unifying role played by the DGT in leading discussion of this issue at state level, also in the urban arena and even in the regions where interurban traffic management responsibilities have been transferred. They also underscored how this role has become essential again, seeking new solutions to attract resources to the urban sphere and to prevent their further erosion both through budget reduction and the dramatic downsizing being carried out by some companies owing to the economic situation.

The other sessions debated in depth the three main fields of Traffic Engineering but with a focus on safety: planning, road management and regulation. At the meeting of the Traffic Engineers Association the decision was taken to include the Spanish Association in the “Latin American Federation of Transport Engineers and Mobility Technicians”, based in Peru and chaired by Argentina, which was created on 7 October.

FORO TRAFIC also served as the platform for the presentation of the Madrid Mobility Project, headed by the Madrid Regional Transport Consortium.

IFEMA has already started work on TRAFIC 2015, the fourteenth edition of the International Road Safety and Equipment Exhibition, which will take place at FERIA DE MADRID from 29 September to 2 October 2015.