Gérard Kottmann,
chairman of WNE and AIFEN
For the past few years, the nuclear sector has been engaged
in a process of digital transformation across the entire
value chain: from research to decommissioning, via
construction, operation, maintenance, training and more.
Technology is innovating ever more rapidly, with profound
changes to the sector building the nuclear industry of
tomorrow. Objective: enabling significant cost-savings while
optimising quality, efficiency and thus safety in existing
installations and new developments.
At the same time, Digitalisation of the civil nuclear sector
is reinventing industrial processes, offering a unique
opportunity to attract the next generation and build a
skills base on which tomorrow’s talented professionals will
rely.
From 26 to 28 June, WNE 2018 will offer a window into this
new era for the civil nuclear industry. It will highlight
new technologies, innovations and research programmes, real
drivers for performance and competitiveness on this pathway
of excellence: atom-level modelling and simulation,
artificial intelligence, robotics, cobotics, drones,
additive manufacturing, augmented reality, connected
objects, etc.
WNE 2018 will help enhance the growth of this new ecosystem
in which international cooperation flourishes, based on
collaborative, interactive and secure technological
solutions.
Like the previous two editions, this third show looks very
exciting, with 750 exhibitors already signed up - up 10% on
2016 – including 15 international stands and a significant
expansion in the show area compared to 2016.
WNE is increasingly representative of the sector and its
international dimension, with 40% international exhibitors,
and over 20,000 visitors expected from all over the world.
To keep up with such developments, a change of venue was
needed. Paris Nord Villepinte was chosen as the site,
offering more modern halls and easier access - it’s just 15
minutes from Roissy Charles de Gaulle airport and has a
direct RER rail service from Paris.
The programme for the 2018 show boasts a number of new
features.
Together with a wide-ranging programme of talks and round
tables, attended by experts and globallyrenowned leaders,
four themes have been selected to illustrate the major
advances in the sector (programme can be downloaded from the
WNE website): “Small Modular Reactors (SMR)” and “Advanced
reactors GEN IV & and beyond” - the subject of the two lunch
debates, and “Digitalisation” and
“Decommissioning/Deconstruction”, covered in themed guided
tours.
Following its 2016 successes, WNE is also announcing the
second WNE Awards, showcasing the real innovations and
talents with 8 prizes rewarding innovation, skills and
knowledge management, operational excellence and nuclear
safety. New for 2018, micro- and small & medium-sized
enterprises will have their own prizes awarded in each of
the four categories. To date, almost 150 nominations have
been submitted, and the winners will be announced on the
first evening of the show in the Panel discussions hall.
The “young shoots” shaping the nuclear industry of the
future will have their own space, the Startup Planet.
Presentations (contributions by experts, demonstrations,
pitches) will allow them to showcase their innovative
capabilities and interact with visitors and professionals at
the show.
Another new feature in this edition will be an “Investors'
Day” on Thursday 28 June, a prime opportunity for French and
international investors to meet the most promising startups
seeking finance.
Finally, alongside the show, the INDEX conference
(International Nuclear Digital Experience) will take place
on 25 and 26 June, organised by the SFEN in association with
WNE, highlighting digital technologies and their role in
transforming the nuclear industry.
At a time when the world's growing need for energy is at
odds with the need to fight global warming, WNE stands out
as the international meeting-place for the civil nuclear
industry, a key component in the bundle of carbon-free
energy sources (and one which is also non-intermittent) to
be promoted to protect the planet.
