Fine Dust & Air Industry Fair

Air Fair 2019 – Fine Dust & Air Industry Fair

October 25^th ~ 27^th, 2019

Coex, Seoul

http://www.airfair.co.kr/

Categories of Exhibits:

Air Home Appliances

Air Conditioner-Heater-Ventilator Fan

Air Controlling IoT system

Air Measurement Sensor & Device

Air Controlling & Anti Air Pollution Technology

Anti Air Pollution Equipment.

2018 Exhibition History

Ÿ   90+ exhibitors

Ÿ   10,100+ visitors

Exhibition Overview

The Fine Dust & Air Industry Fair was focused on fine dust and products related to the issues. The majority of the displayed products were consumer products related to filtering fine dust. There were various types of household air cleaners from standing desk size installations and combined with the air-conditioning systems.

LG had the largest booth which was hard to miss. The products were all air cleaning related and for consumer use. Their exhibition design was similar to a household providing all their products with air cleaning functions, which includes air cleaners, air-dressers (Steam closet system), air-condition systems, ceiling fans and built-in environment systems which have an air quality system.   

 

Not all the products were specified for the consumer market. There were also industrial air cleaning systems, filters for air cleaning devices and air quality monitoring systems attracting visitors.

 

 

There were some government agencies’ booths which helped provide information on new technology which can be applied in the air industry and air quality control market. An interesting product from the booth was a combination of the fashion and fabric industry, providing cloth which protected consumers from polluted air. The Korea Agro-Fisheries & Food Trade Corporation also had a booth where they were providing information regarding natural air purifying plants.    

 

Industry:  

Unlike most general electronics such as refrigerators, air conditioners or washing machines, air purifiers were considered to be unnecessary until recent changes in environmental conditions. Within the past years, the number of air purifiers and large electronic company air purifier advertisements has increased remarkably.

Sales of Air Purifier	Volume	Value
2013	400,000	300
2014	500,000	400
2015	870,000	600
2016	1,000,000	1,000
2017	1,400,000	1,500
2018	2,500,000	2,000

Unit: EA, 1 billion KRW

The increase can be simply because of the increase in life quality in which air quality is a sub-sector. However, Korea has recently experienced a number of issues that have raised the awareness of air quality. There have been incidents like MERS. The outbreak of MERS in 2014 caused 38 death and led to changes in the air quality control regulations. Since 2012, fine dust has been a national crisis. People were depressed and devastated by the polluted air.  Because fine dust may cause critical damage, this was the main driver of the growth.  

Opportunities:

The market in Korea for air cleaners is characterized by steep competition. The major, domestic electronics companies have dominated the high end of the market while at the low end, imported products are constantly trying to climb up the ladder. However, the air cleaner is not the only product in the air industry.   

 

If you would like to identify and capitalize on business opportunities in Korea, let IRC Guide your Way!  www.ircconsultingkorea.com, Jacob at lsh@ircconsultingkorea.com

Chinese Dust:

As children, we are taught at an early age not to stare at the sun.  Youth of today could be excused for their skepticism.  In Seoul, in early March 2019, even at midday, staring at the sun (if you can see it at all), poses little danger to the retina. Dust from the Gobi Desert has delivered a fine, yellow tint to the spring skies in Korea for centuries.  In the past decades, as China industrialized, the factories along the East coast have emitted pollutants into the atmosphere which have bonded with the yellow dust and delivered a noxious health risk to the Korean peninsula.  While I have titled this piece 'Chinese Dust', political correctness now dictates that it be called 'fine dust' to disassociate it from China, an increasingly important political stakeholder. Nevertheless, these Chinese chemical imports are inflicting a tremendous cost on the Korean population.  Hospital outpatient visits spike on highly polluted days, instances of pneumonia and chronical lung suffers are growing.  Even heart disease grown is attributed to the dust.
Korea has implemented multiple responses to this problem.  Probably the most meaningful is political efforts to establish cooperative efforts with China and Japan to address the problem. The majority of the problem comes from China so the major solution must be found there.  Korean NGOs have established programs to plant trees in the Gobi Desert to try to stem the relentless expansion of the arid region.
Closer to home, the government has turned its attention to local contributors to the problem. For more than a decade, natural gas has been applied to home heating as well as fueling all city buses and taxis. Recently, tour bus drivers were instructed not to idle their engines when waiting for passengers. Korea has established a goal to convert all vehicles to environmentally friendly alternatives (e.g. we will produce 6.2 million hydrogen cars by 2040). The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy has announced that it will suspend operation of 'old' coal fired power plants.  The first (unsuccessful) attempt to seed clouds to promote rain was implemented in January 2019.
In the meantime, the government broadcasts warnings about dangerously high levels of pollutants almost on a daily basis.  Virtually everyone on the streets is seen wearing a mask.  The market for air purifiers has tripled since 2016.  There is a discernible migration of families to rural locations down country (Jeju island being particularly attractive) or even overseas.
The challenge appears daunting and politically complicated but efforts on many fronts must be implemented simultaneously if Seoul is to again see the sun.




Peter Underwood, IRC Consulting Managing Partner.