Messe München International: Information about the fairgrounds and events

Ecological concept

We take responsibility

The New Munich Trade Fair Centre is much more than just a trade-fair venue. The New Munich Trade Fair Centre is an exemplary workplace and recreation area for people as well as a habitat for a multitude of plants and animals. The planning process was careful and balanced, and it included developing an environment-oriented ecology concept for the New Munich Trade Fair Centre. Essential steps that were taken along the way included an environmental-compatiblity study, an energy study, an expert report on noise and a waste-management concept. The result: an extensive range of innovative and environment-oriented measures at the New Munich Trade Fair Centre. Come and see for yourself!

See for yourself!

125,000 m² of green space
Climbing plants on the outer walls of the halls
Grass-covered roofs on buildings less than 16 meters high (approx. 35,000 m²)
The atrium – an oasis for relaxation during the fair
One of the world's largest photovoltaic systems on the roofs of the exhibition halls
Combined heat and power plant/natural gas
Recycling stations
Waste-sorting plant
Rainwater seepage system
Use of rainwater for the lakes
Noise-abatement measures
Container terminal
... and more

... and more

Ecology was a central issue when building the New Munich Trade Fair Centre. That
is why we made extensive use of wood during construction. The halls were
designed taking energy-saving aspects into account. For example, when assembling
and dismantling stands during the day, there is not usually any need for
artificial light. After all, it's the little things that demonstrate our
commitment to the environment.

It's easy being green

The atrium at the New Munich Trade Fair Centre is an axis between the east and west entrances and an open-air oasis with trees, areas of lawn and water that has a great deal of recreational value. Green open spaces account for 125,000 m² or 17 percent, of the trade-fair center, which covers a total area of 73 hectares. More than 2,000 large trees and 70,000 bushes and smaller trees have been planted throughout the grounds. Many of the outer walls of the exhibition halls are also covered with climbing plants, and many of the buildings have grass-covered roofs. As a result, the New Munich Trade Fair Centre is a green meeting area. Its combination of architecture and nature sets new standards.

Natural gas/Combined heat and power plant

Natural gas is one of the most environment-friendly sources of energy that is currently available. So using it extensively was an easy choice. The New Munich Trade Fair Centre uses natural gas in its combined heat and power plant and all other heat-generating systems.
A combined heat and power plant that runs on natural gas heats the western portion of the New Munich Trade Fair Centre including the West Entrance, the International Congress Centre Munich (ICM) and the main administration building. It has a power output of 2.8 MW and a heat-generating capacity of 3.6 MW. Energy-saving aspects were also taken into account when it comes to operating the heat and power plant. Automatic control systems ensure operational efficiency thanks to the coordinated and optimized operation of all systems. Decentralized heat-generating and air-conditioning systems are used for the halls to avoid line losses.

Solar energy

The New Munich Trade Fair Centre is the only exhibition center to have one of the large roof-mounted photovoltaic systems in the world, which generates 2.7 megawatts (MW) of electricity per year. In doing so, the Munich Trade Fair Centre underscores its commitment to the use of innovative environmental technologies.

Besides two existing systems on the roofs of the twelve halls in rows "A" and "B" from the years 1997 and 2002, additional space was created to collect solar energy on the roof of the new multi-story parking garage in 2004. Sponsored by the European Union, the third installation is also a solar-energy test site that is used to research different types of solar cells and power inverters.

Thanks to its three photovoltaic installations, the Munich Trade Fair Centre is making a unique contribution to generating electricity with renewable energy sources and is avoiding production of some 3,300 tons of carbon dioxide that would otherwise be produced if fossil fuels were used. Together with the electricity generated by its combined heating and power plant, the electricity generated by the installation on the "B" halls almost completely covers the trade-fair centre's basic electricity requirement of some 4 megawatts, which it needs on days when no events are being held.

Total roof area on halls in row "A" and "B" and multi-story parking garage: 149,000 m², and some 75,000 m² of that space is being used for photovoltaic installations
Maximum output: 1,058 MW (halls A1-A6), 1,016 MW (halls B1-B6), 655 KW (parking garage)
21,900 solar modules
Output per module 130 watts, test modules between 55 and 220 watts

Please click here for more information on solar energy: www.sev-bayern.de (information available only in German)

Use of rainwater

To relieve the burden on the sewers at the trade-fair center, a seepage system is used to channel rainwater directly to the ground water. In some cases, rainwater from the roofs of the buildings is collected in tanks and used to refill the lakes at the trade-fair center.

Noise abatement

An expert report on noise determined a noise level that would be acceptable to the local population, yet allows the trade-fair center to function smoothly. For example, the fork lifts, garbage trucks and other vehicles in the company's fleet are all low-noise vehicles.

Minimizing and sorting waste

An environmentally compatible concept for avoiding, sorting and recycling waste was developed especially for the New Munich Trade Fair Centre. Besides a network of standard recycling stations, the Munich Trade Fair Centre has its own waste-sorting plant.

Container terminal

Transporting freight by rail makes good ecological sense. Transporting exhibits to and from the fair by rail is easy because a modern container terminal is located directly next to the fairgrounds. As a central hub in the European railway network, it ensures access from all major economic regions and is an environmentally compatible, time-saving and safe alternative to road transport. Direct rail access from the container terminal to the trade-fair centre.