Positive Response to OTWorld 2024

Presenting Products to Customers and Increasing Exposure

Fabio Vendraminetto, General Manager at ALPS South: "OTWorld has always been a very important event for us. It is a highly significant international trade show and we know we can meet our international competitors here. We hope to increase our business in Europe, especially in the German-speaking countries. This is a platform where the industry comes together and we can present our new products. Visitors come to see us because they are looking for products like ours. Here, they can take a closer look at them and see for themselves how good they are. The show is great for enhancing our visibility."

OTWorld Brings Industry Players Together on an International Level

Caroline Perrier, Marketing Director at amcube on the French collective stand: "This is our first time at OTWorld following a change in company ownership. The trade show is an ideal platform for us to meet existing and potential customers. We aim to grow our market share in Germany. OTWorld offers exciting opportunities for us because it brings all industry players together on an international level."

Shortage of Skilled Labour: Prosthetics and Orthotics as a Versatile and Fulfilling Professional Field

Antonius Köster, CEO at Antonius Köster GmbH & Co. KG: "The conference programme attracts well-informed people to the trade show. The biggest challenge facing our industry is the digitalisation of production. Visitors who come to our exhibition stand are looking for a viable solution. A major factor here is the changeover from one generation to the next. It is so important to talk to the trainees and students attending OTWorld. This can open up career opportunities and it could even be possible for an engineer to find a position working with skilled craftspeople. To help combat the shortage of skilled labour, the industry also needs to communicate with the schools that train master craftspeople. These schools have the potential to provide the best young talent. Furthermore, we need to offer career prospects for young people. Employees need to be placed in the jobs that best match their skills and talents so that they can enjoy their work and be productive rather than going home bored and looking for a different job somewhere else. Prosthetics and orthotics is such a versatile field of work with fantastic opportunities to realise your full potential. Unfortunately, not very many people know this. The technology we use is roughly the same as that used in Formula 1 racing. Slowly but surely, things are starting to change and companies are making more use of social media. We now need to focus on working with the next generation."

Challenging Business Environment Squeezes out Smaller Companies

Manfred Reichert, DACH Sales Manager at BASKO HEALTHCARE: "OTWorld gives us the opportunity to have an impact on the entire industry in both the domestic and the international market. Here we can reach our customers and our suppliers. There has been a fantastic response at our exhibition stand. Visitors love our products and they come especially to see the 3D technology. Major talking points in the industry are organisation mergers and manufacturer acquisitions. This situation is challenging for smaller companies and they are being squeezed out."

Well-Informed Visitors With High Professional Standards Are Looking to Discover and Test Products

Rainer Berthan, Chairman of the Management Board at Bauerfeind AG: "Exhibiting at OTWorld 2024 was a great success for Bauerfeind. We are very satisfied with both the quantity of visitors and the quality of the dialogue. Here in Leipzig, we came into contact with a well-prepared audience with high professional standards. Visitors were interested in our product presentations including our new SecuTec Genu Flex knee orthosis, the revised LumboTrain back support and the dynamic foot orthoses from Turbomed Orthotics. They were eager to see the products and try them out. This edition of OTWorld was clear proof that nothing can replace live trade shows and personal contacts. Manufacturers, service providers and patients really appreciate direct interaction as it helps them forge trustworthy and reliable relationships."

Close Cooperation to Shape a Bright Future for the Industry Together

Detlef Schindler, Head of Marketing at BORT GmbH: "For us, OTWorld is the trade show where we can showcase our portfolio of orthopaedic services. We see this event as a marketplace with exciting opportunities to exchange ideas with our customers without having to sit in a meeting room in a medical supply store. Together, we can discuss the best way forward because we all know the industry has a bright future that we hope to determine collectively. We are here to support the medical supply stores and would like to shape our joint future in cooperation with them. The conversations that develop here are very focused. OTWorld is special because it offers a versatile marketplace that gives our customers a comprehensive overview of the industry."

Access to the Market for First-Time Exhibitors and Start-Ups

Stefan Hauser, CEO & Founder of Brakeable: "As a first-time exhibitor and start-up, it is exciting to be on the collective start-up stand here at OTWorld and gain access to the market. It means we can get to know the various market players in person here at the event. It isn't possible to get a feel for the market just by researching online. Our digital platform offers manufacturers the chance to obtain better information on the performance of their products during the utilisation phase. A digital interface in our app means they are closer to the users. This enables us to extend the product lifecycle with a view to sustainability."

High Motivation for Product Development Thanks To Customers Looking for Innovations

Géraldine Gagnevin, Sales Manager at COP Creative & Responsible Chemistry on the French collective stand: "We come here every year because it's a great opportunity to meet our customers from all over the world and increase our visibility. This is where we can connect with the outside world. Customers here are looking for innovations. This is highly motivating for us. Our product launches are prepared before the trade show and then it's so nice to welcome interested visitors to the stand. We have developed 3D-printing solutions and we work to find solutions that are more comfortable and easier for patients to customise."

Significant Visitor Interest in 3D Printing

Myran Macdonald, Project Assistant for Additive Manufacturing at druckerfachmann.de: "OTWorld is an important trade show for us. The response from visitors to our stand has been fantastic. They are very interested in our products. This is why this trade show is such an important platform for us. 3D printing is one of the hot topics currently being discussed in the industry. Here, we can reach our target group."

A Trade Show That Gives Visitors the Chance to Discuss and Test New Products

Isabell Stampe, Team Leader Marketing Print & Online at Enovis: "OTWorld is an important meeting place. We can see our customers and partners personally again here. And this edition of OTWorld is particularly special for us as we are presenting several new products. Being at a trade show like this is especially valuable because it offers the opportunity for customers to touch and test the products as well as engaging in dialogue. It is the largest international trade show, making it particularly exciting for us as a global corporation."

Opportunity to Watch Machines in Action

Andreas Bucher, Managing Director at Götz Service GmbH: "There are large numbers of international visitors at this trade show. Trade shows are important for us as we can present our products at these events. OTWorld is a good place for people to see our machines in action, especially where prosthetics and orthotics are concerned. We work in the orthopaedic footwear technology sector. Of course, there is always the question of whether a trade show like OTWorld that focuses on rehabilitation is really the right place for us. However, we know from past experience that it's a good fit."

A Platform That Reaches International Target Groups

Timo Takkinen, Sales Manager at Klaveness Footwear AS: "We mostly do business in the Scandinavian market. However, we also hope to expand beyond Scandinavia. OTWorld offers a great platform for reaching international target groups."

Meet the Industry, Showcase Products, Monitor Market Trends

Melissa De Raedt, Marketing Specialist at materialise: "OTWorld is a great opportunity for us to bring our products to market and connect with the people here. What matters to us in addition to the customers are the new leads we generate. The trade show gives us an interesting opportunity to meet with the entire industry and showcase our products. Many people come to our stand to test our products at the live demonstrations. We use OTWorld as a platform to connect with the industry and see where it is heading."

OTWorld As a Family Reunion, Unique in Offering a Significant Platform for Dialogue

Robert Unfried, Managing Director at medi Germany: "OTWorld has always been a place for us to meet with our customers, a bit like a family reunion. We are more interested in discussions and dialogue than in selling our products. From our point of view, there is no comparable trade show because this is the only one for us. This year we are looking forward to the first trade show where people are no longer thinking about COVID-19. You can tell that people are really enjoying meeting up in person again."

Holistic Patient Care Through Cooperation

Heiko Denk, Head of Sales at Ofa Bamberg GmbH: "OTWorld is a trade show for exchanging knowledge and ideas. It's all about innovation, international contacts and expanding our networks. For us, the significance of this trade show lies in absorbing the energy we feel here and looking to the future both as a company and as an industry. Our overall goal is to create a better now and a better tomorrow. Alongside trending topics such as digitalisation and the shortage of skilled workers, discussions with visitors are also strongly concerned with the subject of cooperation. In several areas, we aim to strengthen our focus on solutions for our customers and position ourselves more broadly. No manufacturer can provide everything its customers need. In the past, it was often the case that the rehabilitation sector would be driving in the left lane and the prosthetics and orthotics industry in the right-hand lane, even though they both serve the same consumers. If the sectors manage to cooperate within the relevant market environment for a particular clinical picture, it then becomes possible to act holistically in the interests of the consumer rather than just concentrating on the sales figures."

Presenting the Full Range of Products to Visitors

Olaf Weber, Managing Director of the medical supply store division at OPED GmbH: "OTWorld means a lot to me because I am a technician myself and have been coming to the trade show for over 20 years as a visitor. This year, I am here for the first time as an exhibitor with our OPED medical supply store group. For us, it's very important that we present the medical supply store group within the context of OPED as a whole. The last time OPED was here was 20 years ago. We intend to show that we are more than just a manufacturer. Here at OTWorld, we can present our services. These are now tailored to meet the needs of our colleagues in the medical supply store sector. Visitors to our stand have been surprised by the breadth of our range. They are particularly interested in personnel management and digitalisation. Across all business areas, processes are becoming digital."

Electronic Administrative Regulation (eVO) Drives High Demand for Software Information

Dirk Spitthoff, authorised signatory at opta data Finance GmbH: "At OTWorld, we can present all our customer solutions at one exhibition stand. Owing to our size in the market, we always meet lots of customers here. This year, we were particularly surprised by the demand from new prospective customers driven by the electronic regulation (eVO) to find out about software options. Some of them are still using their own software solutions that have been running for decades. Increasing digitalisation in the healthcare sector is driving a growing need for future-proof software. As a B2B trade show, OTWorld offers a depth of dialogue beyond that of any similar events. It has shown us that the shortage of skilled labour is a concern in the industry. This is an area where we can offer support with our solutions."

Unique Platform for Interdisciplinary Dialogue

Philipp Hoefer, Managing Director of Sales & Marketing for the DACH region at Otto Bock HealthCare Deutschland GmbH: "This is where innovative products, concepts and processes in prosthetics and orthotics encounter a fantastic audience and experts from science and trade can come together. We have benefitted from OTWorld as a unique platform for interdisciplinary dialogue for decades. We are already looking forward to the 2026 edition!"

Community Building, Networking and Meeting "Old Friends" Again

Fabian Jung, EMEA MarCom Management Lead at Össur: "For us, the significance of OTWorld is in coming together. It's all about community building and networking. It's also a bit like meeting up with old friends again. This is manifested in the crowds of visitors and the conversations are much more relaxed again now that COVID-19 is over. Everyone is happy to be able to chat personally more easily and benefit from there being a great deal of information all in one place."

A Broad Target Group for First-Time Exhibitors

Dennis Decker, Sales Manager at Permobil GmbH: "This was our first time at OTWorld. We are extremely thrilled with the number of high-quality conversations we had and that we had them with a very wide audience ranging from decision-makers in medical supply stores to patients. We were on the rehaVital collective stand. In the last few years, we came to the trade show as visitors but didn't have the opportunity yet to get a feel for whether our target group is here. We have now found out that our customers most certainly are here."

Numerous Current Political Concerns in the Industry

Torsten Schweizer, Authorised Signatory and Head of Marketing and Export at SPORLASTIC GmbH: "Traditionally, OTWorld has always been an important event for us. We need to be here every two years. It is a wonderful opportunity to present our innovations and hold in-depth conversations with our customers. This trade show also provides us with a place to present our brand. And of course, we can also present our company and portfolio to new customers and international distributors here. The trade show is strongly focused on prosthetics and orthotics and the healthcare supply retail sector. This year, we relaunched our brand and are presenting ourselves in a new light here. The response has been very positive and we have a lot of innovative products on our stand. For us as a manufacturer, one of the biggest questions is still "How can we ensure timely reimbursement for innovations?" In general, there are many political issues currently preoccupying the industry. These include the increase in outpatient treatment, electronic prescriptions and cost pressure due to the fact that reimbursements by the health insurance companies have not increased to the same extent as the costs. However, all these topics need to be discussed on the political stage rather than at OTWorld. OTWorld is more like a big family reunion."

Maintaining a Sustainable Carbon Footprint in Production

Christian Walgenbach, Managing Director of Streifeneder ortho.production GmbH: "OTWorld is an essential event for us because it is the world's leading trade show for prosthetics and orthotics. Here, we can welcome both domestic customers and customers from all over the world to our exhibition stand. We have been presenting some new products and services. It is noticeable that acceptance is high and there is great interest. In discussions with visitors to the stand, we realised that additive manufacturing has become a general topic. This means we can already start looking into somewhat more unusual supply concepts such as complex hand fittings. Nowadays we can also print using different materials. One of the main attractions at our stand is the live workshop where we show how the various materials are used. Visitors are just as interested in processing techniques as in the availability of the materials themselves. Environmental compatibility is also an important topic. We inevitably work with a wide variety of materials, some of which are hazardous or toxic. It is therefore becoming increasingly important for our industry to operate sustainably and manage our carbon footprint."

Targeted Conversations Generate Interesting Leads

Terri Bacci, Head of Marketing at Taika3D: "We are a fairly young company and this is our second time at OTWorld. Our aim is to establish a stronger position in the German market. So, we are delighted to have the opportunity to be part of a collective stand here. Reactions of visitors to our stand have been very positive. They are explicitly looking for solutions like ours, so we achieve great results in customer conversations and can make interesting contacts. The trade show visitors we encounter here are well-informed and know in advance what they are looking for. They then come specifically to our stand. Overall, we are seeing a trend towards more automation in the industry."

Industry Concerns About Ever-Increasing Regulation Compared to Other Countries

Metin Eskinyurt, Director of Marketing & Communication at Thuasne Deutschland GmbH: "We can't afford to miss out on OTWorld. It is not only an essential platform for us because it is the largest trade show in this sector but also because it is the most interesting. In addition to meeting our competitors here, we above all encounter the right target groups. These are the staff from medical supply stores. They can familiarise themselves with our products here at the show. This means they can then pass information on to their patients about products that have proved successful. OTWorld is where the whole industry meets. However, the industry is being affected by increasingly strict regulations. This is making the playing field increasingly difficult for us when all we are trying to do is improve the quality of life for so many people. We have altruistic motives. In comparison to other countries, it is not made easy for us here in Germany."

Machine Manufacturers Also Available to Discuss Maintenance Issues

Hendrik Witzel, Managing Director at Witzel Vacupress e.K.: "There is no question that OTWorld is absolutely the best trade show in the world for prosthetics and orthotics. This is why it's always the most important event for us every two years. It's all about meeting national and international customers when the family gets together again. Our customers know that they can find us here. After all, machine manufacturing is less about new business and more about existing orders and installations. We are also here to answer questions about maintenance issues. Another reason why OTWorld is so important for us is because we don't have a sales team. Customers can contact us directly at events like this one. This trade show is very professional and well organised from start to finish. As a member of the exhibitor advisory board, I also get to see how much work goes on behind the scenes."

Low Political Involvement Indicates Work Is Still Needed To Raise Awareness of the Industry

Christoph Thiel, authorised signatory at Wilhelm Julius Teufel GmbH: "OTWorld is indisputably the largest industry get-together worldwide. Of course, it is especially appealing for us that this get-together takes place in Germany. I think the interaction between the conference and the exhibition is valuable. With this combination, the trade show goes well beyond just presenting products. Here, the entire industry comes together. OTWorld is a central platform for discussion. Time and time again, it makes you realise the significance of our industry. On the one hand, it is vital for the patients who are affected. However, it is also about Germany's relevance as an economic location. We can see from the low level of political participation how much work still lies ahead of us. This is despite OTWorld proving once again that Germany is a world leader in international cooperation with many great suppliers. It is essential that we continue working towards making the social and economic relevance of our industry more visible."