Asia Dive Expo 2007 returns to Bangkok in April

Asia Dive Expo (ADEX) 2007 is gearing up for another winning international dive show in Bangkok, Thailand this year as key dive industry stakeholders snap up exhibition spaces. With an influx of new exhibitors and with existing exhibitors significantly increasing their booth presence, organiser Suntec Integrated Media (SIM) is confident that the Asia Dive Expo 2007 (ADEX), which will be held on 27-29 April 2007 at BITEC Bangna in conjunction with Boat Thai, will be bigger and better than ADEX 2005 when the show was last held in Bangkok. This increase in the number of world-class companies taking up booths at ADEX 2007 also promises to attract a larger pool of quality visitors.

Many existing exhibitors such as BAUER Compressors have pledged a stronger presence at ADEX this year, increasing its booth space to 27 square metres. Stephen Hines, Managing Director, BAUER Compressors Asia Pte. Ltd., said “BAUER is expanding its presence at ADEX 2007 because we recognise ADEX as the leading international and regional dive exhibition and the only one that attracts the key industry leaders who matter. It is a must-attend for us because this is the ideal platform for meeting agents and distributors, networking and making new contacts. The Thai market is also an important one for us and ADEX 2007 presents an excellent opportunity for BAUER to strengthen its position there.”

National tourism organisations such as the Philippines Department of Tourism is rallying the Philippines dive resorts to form a much larger pavilion at ADEX 2007 while distributors and wholesalers of quality scuba diving equipment such as Dadriba Ltd and Coltri Sub are planning to participate in a bigger way. International training agency PADI has also increased their booth space reservation by 25% from 2006 to a whopping 180 square metres, representing support from a greater number of local dive centres.

New exhibitors, such as Seacam and Dive Supply, are riding the wave of confidence following the success of ADEX 2006 in Singapore to reserve significant space. For example, Dive Supply, the biggest distributor and wholesaler of big brand names such as Scuba Pro, Seac Sub, and Suunto, showed strong confidence in ADEX by confirming a 54 square metres booth in 2007. 

Roel van Leeuwen, Director of Suntec Integrated Media said, “t's good news to see some manufacturers effectively doubling the booth space because they have recognised that ADEX is the ideal regional platform from which to do serious dive business. What makes ADEX different from other dive shows is our 'holistic' approach to the dive business. We've created the broadest possible range of programmes designed to draw quality visitors from distributors and dive operators, to travel buyers and consumers. The interaction between these different groups of visitors and exhibitors really makes our show special.”

ADEX 2007 has also designed and incorporated other winning programmes aimed at drawing in quality visitors. The Dive Business Seminar Series will feature presentations, business and marketing tips as well as case studies by the movers and shakers of the dive industry. Other programmes include Dive Certification Updates which will be a hit with dive centres and training agencies. This module offers agencies, like PADI, an excellent opportunity to inform their members on the latest training programmes, product information and promotions, new course materials and marketing support. InDepth Training and its Public Service Diving division, Professional Emergency Response Training (PERT), will also bring an exciting new developments to ADEX 2007 with the Asian launch of PERT, a 15 year-old programme which is being introduced to Asia on a wide scale for the first time. According to InDepth Training, PERT is set to revolutionise the way Public Safety divers are trained and other dive professionals will be able to get an exclusive preview of this at ADEX.

Visitors can also look forward to an exciting line-up of dive-related activities and promotions, including the My Virgin Dive activity, a collaboration between ADEX 2007 and Virgin Radio to promote diving to the general public, where non divers will get to try-out diving in a 45 square metre pool and participants will receive a certificate of participation and Virgin Radio premiums. In addition, great dive deals like dive equipment and accessories and dive trips will be up for grabs at only US$1 with the very popular ADEX Dollar Deals. There will also be free public talks on a broad range of dive-related topics such as underwater photography, marine conservation and dive safety. 

ADEX 2007 is free for trade visitors while public visitors pay 100 Thai Baht for adults and 50 Thai Baht for children below 12 years of age. Admission tickets also entitle the holder to free entry into Boat Thai 2007.

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