ISH 2007   With the ISH in Frankfurt in 2007 aquatherm found the perfect international stage to present its products and services.   ISH, the world´s leading trade fair Building, Energy, Air-conditioning Technology closed with a sensational record: 215,378 visitors came from 6th to 10th of March to the ISH to Frankfurt/Main. Altogether 2,392 exhibitors from 58 countries presented their innovations to the specialized trade visitors. Generally the high caliber of the visitors and the number of new contacts were praised in the industry branch.   A result also the management of the aquatherm GmbH/Attendorn can join. On the 178 m_ exhibition booth of the company countless visitors from home and abroad scrimmaged during the five days of the fair. The portfolio of the company of Attendorn optimally adapted to the ISH main topics energy efficiency and fire protection, convinced. Particularly the climasystem, presented for the first time on the ISH 2005, provided for many promising contacts. The aquatherm pipe grids are ideally applicable for heating and cooling systems. They can be installed alternatively in the plaster or behind dry-lined walls and/or metal ceiling panels. Such a comfortable and healthy room climate is created by lowest energy costs.   Also the current fire protection solution of the family enterprise produced active interest. With firestop, aquatherm offers the first PP-R plastic pipe system for sprinkler systems. This systems features diverse important approvals for the field of fire protection, under it the internationally approved British Loss Prevention Certification Board (LPCB) and, of course, the German VdS-certification.   A further visitor´s attraction at the aquatherm stand were the new pipe sizes of 200 and 250 mm. In particular these large pipes are installed in big office-, hotel- and hospital buildings, in the shipbuilding industry as well as in long distance pipe networks. Also in plant construction and for the transport of most different media in the industry the corrosion resistant pipes are best suitable. In parallel the company offers a new service: from now on aquatherm designs and constructs custom-made manifolds directly in the works and dispatches them ready to be installed anywhere in the world. The customer only supplies the appropriate drawings or sketches with specifications and will receive a detailed offer including material list and designs. A new service, which will save architects, planners and plumbers at home and abroad considerable time and money.

Only one topic disturbed a little the generally good tendency.

As in many other industries unfortunately also the exhibitors on the ISH have to fight more and more with product and brand plagiarism.

In the last years product piracy became a world-wide phenomenon. Whole branches of industry live on the production of cheap copies. At the external borders of the European Union annually nearly 100 million product and brand injuries are discovered. The effects are fatal. Only in Germany annually approx. 50,000 jobs are to be lost due to product piracy according to estimations of the Ministry of Justice. In most cases the forger´s favourites are the high quality products of the market leaders. Worldwide successful market-leaders as aquatherm must resist more and more inferior pirate copies .

A probably less positive fair balance had to draw some foreign competitors of the aquatherm group. Due to clear offences against existing trademark protection rights of the

company aquatherm, the companies concerned were warned by lawyer and requested to remove all green pipe plagiarism from their exhibition stands.

Since 2004 aquatherm has trademark protection on the green colour of its pipe system fusiotherm. Already at the first day of the ISH members of the management went well directed across the exhibition and promptly discovered something. The urgent suspicion of trademark protection breach were confirmed at ten companies . aquatherm made short work and informed its lawyers immediately. Up to the next morning the regarded exhibitors had time to remove the green pipes, fittings and appropriate advertising material from their stands and had to sign a declaration to cease and desist. A great deal of the concerned exhibitors adhered to the lawyers’ warning and removed the products from their stands in the allotted period. A good decision, because the county court Frankfurt promptly sued out preliminary injunctions against the remaining companies. All green pipes and fittings, which still remained on the stands of the plagiarists were removed by a bailiff, partially supported by police and fair security within the opening times of the fair. Maik Rosenberg, as a member of the aquatherm management, i. a. in charge of legal questions, pursues the world-wide increase of product counterfeiting very critically and appears pugnaciously. “ By far it is not sufficient only to own trade and patent rights. To bring them to bear, a company must enforce its trademark and patent rights consequently by means of all legal options” explained Rosenberg and continues: “This effective procedure is an important component of the aquatherm philosophy in order to strengthen our position as market and technology leader world-wide and long-term in the field of plastic pipes made from polypropylene.”

Current success concedes the family enterprise, that they are right. After the year 2006 could be closed with a turnover increase of 25,1%, a similar trend is still recognizable before conclusion of the first quarter in 2007. These enormous turnover increases – in the meantime aquatherm supplies 74 countries – were a big challenge for the enterprise last year. In co-operation with the University of Siegen the entire organization of the production has been reorganised, so that since the middle of last year aquatherm produces in 4-shifts in 24 hours, 6 days per week. Apart from extensive investments just at the location in Attendorn, fortunately 46 additional jobs could be added since 1st of September 2006.