June 2010
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Press Contact:

Anne Meerboth-Maltz
Tel. (312)781-5185
Fax (312) 781-5188
email: ameerboth@mdna.com

Messe Düsseldorf North America
150 North Michigan Avenue
Suite 2920
Chicago, IL 60601

INTERNATIONAL VISITS INCREASE BY 22% AT HOSPITALAR 2010

A total of 89,000 visits were recorded at the recent staging of HOSPITALAR 2010, 17th International Trade Fair for Products, Equipment, Services and Technology for Hospitals, Health Clinics and Laboratories, in São Paulo. This is a 4% overall increase and a 22% rise in international visits compared to the show’s 2009 results. Overall, buyers presented 54 countries.

In five halls of the Expo Center Norte, 1,250 exhibitors from 36 countries showcased state-of-the-art products, equipment and services for the healthcare industry. A total of 505 of the exhibitors at HOSPITALR 2010 were from outside of Brazil and 25 of the 42 U.S. exhibitors showcased their products within the successful U.S. Pavilion, organized by Messe Dusseldorf North America.

Exhibitors praised the 2010 event as “the best of the last few years” and the visitors as “extremely professional and representative of the entire healthcare value chain”. With the high quality of the visitors, the exhibiting companies reported growth in the volume of immediate business and post-show deals with hospitals, clinics and laboratories from all over Brazil and abroad (about Real 5.3 billion, an increase of 10% over the 2009 results).

Hospitals in Latin America invest substantially in expansion and modernization projects, making HOSPITALAR the ideal business platform for worldwide suppliers to reach buyers from Latin America. Consequently, the 15 largest represented countries at HOSPITALR 2010 included 12 Latin American nations: Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Mexico, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay and Venezuela. That the influence of the event reaches beyond the Latin American borders was evident by visitors from Angola, Canada, China, Czech Republic, Finland, France, Germany, Great Britain, Indonesia, Iran, North Korea, Russia, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and the U.S.

Considered the “barometer” of the health sector in Brazil, HOSPITALAR has grown nearly 20% annually over the last three stagings. According to Dr. Waleska Santos, Founder and President of HOSPITALAR, the event’s worldwide reputation is also a result of continuous and intensive promotion in the global market and the positive development of Brazil’s national healthcare sector. The growth of Brazilian’s GDP, which is currently one of the highest in the world, reflects the significant investments in the healthcare sector, both in public and private areas. HOSPITALAR 2010 reflected the strength of this industry and the service sector, indicating further growth in the future.

Exhibitor Statements:

Reynaldo Goto, Manager of Strategic Marketing at Siemens, stated that sales were much higher than in 2009: “We were positively surprised by the number of visitors from all over Latin America.”

Fanem, Brazilian’s leading manufacturer of neonatology products, closed deals worth $ 828,000 during HOSPITALAR 2010. “But we expect to reach $ 2.5 million in sales over the next few months from the business contacts we’ve made at the event,” explained Djalma Rodrigues, Industrial Manager at Fanem.

Responsible for the organization of the Contemporary Hospital exhibit, Lauro Miquelin had over 4,000 visitors at his booth: “We closed 110% more deals during the trade fair than last year.”

Input Center and Karsten participated in HOSPITALAR for the first time and were impressed. “We had about 2,500 clients a day at our booth, 95% with the intention of buying,” said Jonas Shartener, Marketing Manager at Input Center. Karsten made important contacts with buyers from Argentina, Peru, Bolivia, India, Germany and France.

The next staging of HOSPITALAR will take place from May 24 - 27, 2011 in São Paulo. For further information on visiting or exhibiting at HOSPITALAR 2011, contact Messe Düsseldorf North America, 150 North Michigan Avenue, Suite 2920, Chicago, IL 60601. Telephone: (312) 781-5180; Fax: (312) 781-5188; E-mail: info@mdna.com; Visit our web site http://www.mdna.com; Subscribe to our blog http://blog.mdna.com; Follow us on twitter at http://twitter.com/mdnachicago