Power Electronics Conference To Be Held in Moscow This Month
The annual Power Electronics conference is returning for an in-person event in Moscow, Russia.
Several popular power electronics exhibitions have been canceled, postponed or digitized since the start of the coronavirus pandemic. But now, as many countries lift restrictions on public gatherings and resume international travel, a return to in-person events might be forthcoming.
A shot of last year’s Power Electronics expo 2019. Image courtesy of MVK/Power Electronics.
In Russia, the 17th annual Power Electronics conference is still on for Oct. 27 through Oct. 29 at the Crocus Expo International Exhibition Centre in Moscow. According to the event website, Power Electronics 2020 will focus on key market trends such as IGBT 7, IoT and E-mobility. The exhibition is divided into three sections: Power electronics components and modules, secondary power sources and converters, and auxiliary equipment and components.
The website displays a list of exhibitors, including industry leaders such as Japan’s Fuji Electric, California-headquartered KeySight Technologies, Chicago-based Littelfuse and Italy-based Eural Gnutti.
The agenda also includes a business program with discussion groups covering new power electronics applications, technical and educational seminars from exhibitors, and a contest showcasing developments from young researchers and engineers.
Tickets to Power Electronics 2020 are free as long as attendees register online. Without online registration, visitors will have to pay an entry fee of 500 rubles (equivalent to around $6.46 USD).
EE Power wasn’t able to independently confirm whether the Power Electronics conference would be held 100% in person or in a hybrid format, with a mix of online and in-person programming. Nonetheless, Moscow has steadily been lifting restrictions on gatherings since June, and the Crocus Expo center reopened on Aug. 1 with safety compliance measures for attendees.
The event is organized by MVK, which hosts over 50 industry-specific exhibitions and conferences across Russia each year. The company resumed hosting in-person events in September, starting with the InterStroy Expo and Design & Decor in St. Petersburg.
Last year’s Power Electronics conference, held Oct. 22–24 in Moscow, drew more than 40 companies from Russia, Italy, Germany, Israel and the U.S. The three-day event attracted a diverse audience of 12,572 visitors from a variety of companies and fields of expertise.
An event brochure states that 40% of attendees represented production companies, 23% worked in research and development, 16% worked in design, installation and integration services, and 13% represented electronic components delivery firms. The top five fields with the heaviest representation of attendees were heavy engineering (28%), instrumentation (17%), military-industrial complex (10%), aircraft (6%) and robotics (6%).
Status of COVID-19 Cases and Restrictions in Russia
As of Oct. 8, Russia has reported just over 1.2 million cumulative COVID-19 cases and 22,056 deaths. The city of Moscow has recorded 318,111 cases and 5,497 deaths.
Since imposing lockdowns in late-March and April, the Russian government slowly started to lift COVID-19 restrictions over the summer, beginning in June.
Exhibition halls in the city of Moscow were permitted to open on June 16, enabling industry conferences and trade shows to resume in-person programming for the first time since March and April.
International travel is still relatively limited, though. Since March 30, all Russian borders have been closed to foreigners, with some exceptions.
As of Oct. 6, the U.S. Embassy in Moscow advises American citizens to avoid traveling to Russia due to the country’s high infection rates and limitations on medical treatment.
