MSV is a trade show young in spirit, speakers agreed at the opening ceremony of its 65th edition

Jan Kubata, CEO of BVV Trade Fairs Brno, reflected on the role and importance of MSV. In his opinion, despite the high number of past editions, this industrial expo has not grown old, but quite the opposite. "It has always been and still is a reflection of its time, and therefore also of the latest technological progress, in which, in addition to automation, the key concepts are digitalisation, artificial intelligence, additive manufacturing, energy reduction or sustainability and recycling. These areas in particular represent new challenges for modern industrial production in the 21st century, and if this expo can provide answers to them and show innovative solutions, it will remain technologically young in its future editions as well," believes Jan Kubata, who believes that MSV has a big overlap. "Thanks to the multi-level cooperation of all of us, the skill of Czech companies and their ability to develop world-class technologies and products, Brno has managed to build a showcase of Czech industry and, above all, raise awareness about this fact all around the world. Thank you for collaborating with us on this," he told the audience.
    
The opening speech of the 65th MSV was delivered by the Prime Minister of the Czech Republic Petr Fiala, who admitted right at the beginning that he looks forward to the opening of MSV every year and used to come to this expo already as a child. "Here one can get acquainted with the rapid development of the Czech industry and have a glimpse into the future. Today I was interested in the possibilities of 3D printing from various materials or virtual reality and artificial intelligence. The shift forward is evident here every year," said the Prime Minister and shared his experience from his journeys abroad, during which he is often accompanied by Czech companies operating in innovative sectors that have a great name and well-deserved respect in the world. "I am sure that thanks to innovation, better education and easier cooperation between the state, public and private sectors, the Czech Republic will experience a real reboot and secure a good position on the global market. This expo is a great opportunity to meet, build contacts, sign contracts, exchange ideas and get inspired for your own work. I hope you will find all this here," the Prime Minister concluded his speech.

Among the speakers there was the newly appointed Minister of Industry and Trade Lukáš Vlček, who has not missed MSV even in the past. As he admitted, engineering is remarkably close to his heart, and he meets many friends every year at MSV. "I enjoy coming to Brno every year for this fair and seeing the future as I would imagine it, in modern technologies," said Lukáš Vlček. 

The next speaker was the President of the Chamber of Commerce of the Czech Republic, Zdeněk Zajíček, who began by highlighting the long tradition of MSV: "Whenever I enter this temple of the Czech, European and world exhibition industry, three words come to mind: pride, respect and honour. To those who founded this tradition, to those who have endured for 65 years, and to those who have the desire and the will to continue this tradition." As he further emphasised, the Czech Republic needs not only a vision and a strategy, but also partnership and ability to join forces. It needs courage on the part of the political representation to try to prepare a plan for the next 10, 20 or 30 years, because there are key issues on which there must be agreement across different electoral terms. "We can't just keep changing things all the time, as it weakens us and we don't have the time," reflects Zdeněk Zajíček.

Jan Rafaj, President of the Confederation of Industry of the Czech Republic, also addressed the guests at the opening ceremony of the 65th MSV. "As it has already been heard here, this expo is young in spirit, and if you walk around its grounds, you see a whole range of new technologies," he said in his introduction, adding that this view gave him optimism and hope for the future. In his speech, he argued for the return of common sense to economic thinking and direction in an over-regulated European Union. At the same time, he followed on Zdeněk Zajíček's call for a consensus between the politicians from  the government parties and the opposition so that the result would be one common strategy.

The opening evening culminated with the announcement of the results of the Gold Medal 2024 competition. Six medals were awarded to the most innovative exhibits, and one gold medal for a lifetime of creative technical work.