The first half of 2022 ended with a slight and widespread improvement in the Covid emergency. This made it possible for ELA to actively participate in INTERLIFT and to be able to organise, after three years and again in physical form, our General Assembly in Frankfurt on 19 May. The meeting in Augsburg at the end of April was attended by many representatives of our Association, who were ready to welcome ELA and EEA members (visitors/exhibitors) to the two official booths. Once again, the contribution of ELA representatives to the seminar activities in the 'Forum' was significant.
The General Assembly took place in an atmosphere of great enthusiasm and satisfaction on the part of our members, with general appreciation for the organisation of the traditional Gala Dinner (offered by VDMA). Of great interest was the Annual Conference that saw the participation of European Institutions at their highest level (from the Vice-President of the European Parliament to the Director General of the European Commission) alongside with the President of CEN and representatives of the industry (FIEC/eu.bac) and standards (ETSI), organisations with whom ELA collaborates. Sincere thanks are also due to the Secretary General of the China Elevator Association as well as to the representatives of ELA's Committees and Working Groups who provided, as always, their valuable contributions.
The general improvement in health conditions also enabled ELA to relaunch its 'international' agenda. The Global Technical Advisory Group (G-TAG) to support the World Elevator and Escalator Federation (WEEF) formed and met during a kick-off meeting on June 9. With the ambitious goal of 'moving beyond the mere exchanges of information between associations, progressively acting in a more structured form', the WEEF consists of 11 associations representing Europe, Asia-Pacific, North and South America. These entities are committed to achieving barrier-free trade globally based on the standards of the International Organisation for Standardisation (ISO). A new meeting is planned in Shanghai in November, during the World Elevator & Escalator exhibition.
New commitments are expected in the coming months, among which I would like to mention the preparation of the celebrations for the 25 years anniversary of ELA's foundation, to which we will all contribute as part of the usual activities in preparation for the 2023 General Assembly.