From November 5-10, 2023, under the logo 'Smart Budapest,' a joint stand of the Budapest Chamber of Commerce and Industry showcased 16 Hungarian companies with 36 entrepreneurs at the Barcelona Smart City Expo. Many members of the delegation reported concrete business results from the exhibition. A company manufacturing solar pavement signed a contract with a local distributor at venue of the the expo. A business specializing in IoT product development signed an agreement on its comprehensive solutions system for a small town near San Sebastian at the BCCI stand. A solar smart bench manufacturing company secured a contract with a Lithuanian client. A company offering fleet decarbonization solutions made it to the top 12 in an EIT capital investment contest, thanks to the networking established on the trip. A company producing 3D spatial information systems got acquainted with the directorate of a city at the USA stand, and since then, the company's US office has been in continuous negotiations with them regarding the introduction of their products.
The largest tenant of the stand, EPS Global Zrt, operating smart parking systems – according to their press release issued since then –, reached an agreement in Barcelona with one of the world's biggest energy companies, Saudi Aramco, to solve a software problem in an ongoing smart parking project.
At the time of writing this article, participants reported that, in addition to the mentioned successes, they collected numerous inquiries and leads from companies, municipalities, and potential customers from various countries, the results of which are eagerly awaited.
The members of the business delegation organized by BCCI come from companies operating in the IT sector, whose activities are in some way related to the concept of smart cities. The companies, selected in an application system, had the opportunity to present their developments related to smart parking or smart energy usage, for example.
The expo provided additional space to expand its international institutional relationships for BCCI as well, as we signed a cooperation agreement with the Barcelona Chamber of Commerce, Industry, and Navigation. In connection with the exhibition, a business meeting was held organized by the Consulate General of Hungary in Barcelona, and discussions were held with the leaders of the Barcelona Smart City program. Our delegation was received by the Entrepreneurial Association of Barcelona (Foment del Treball), with which an agreement draft was also compiled.
After the exhibition, thanks to the invitation of the Madrid Chamber of Commerce, Industry, and Services – organized by the Hungarian Embassy in Madrid – we also participated in another conference and B2B meeting, and we got to know the Smart City program of the Spanish capital.
Overall, participation in the expo was exceptionally successful for the memebrs of the delegation, and several would be happy to travel to the exhibition again next year.