Automechanika kicked off Tuesday in Frankfurt, Germany, returning to the large-scale automotive aftermarket show for the first time since 2018.
The five-day event began with the CEO Breakfast featuring Formula 1 professionals Mika Häkkinen and Mark Gallagher, and was followed by a CEO roundtable discussion.

“We created the new CEO Breakfast format to offer a new opportunity for dialogue and inspiration. With these two guests from the world of Formula One, we want to help supply fresh insights for the industry,” said Detlef Braun, Member of the Executive Board of Messe Frankfurt.
Philippe Colpron, Head of ZF Aftermarket, whose company supported this new format for the kickoff said, “It’s up to us to leverage the opportunities that lie in the future challenges of our industry by working together to continue the servitization orientation of the mobility ecosystem.”

Later in the day, the winners of the show’s Innovation Awards were announced at a special ceremony. Winners were chosen from a total of 133 candidates. The products and solutions submitted were evaluated by an international panel of 14 experts, show organizers said.
The winners are:

Autel wins eMobility award

Herth+Buss wins for Data and Connectivity

GelKoh GmbH wins in Workshop and Service Solutions

Knott-Bremse wins in Parts and Technology Solutions

Celette France wins in Body and Paint

Lederzentrum GmbH wins in Car Wash and Care Category

Dropracks AS wins in Accessories and Customizing

ZF wins in the Commercial Vehicle Category

GelKoh GmbH wins the Green Award

Automechanika Frankfurt continues through Saturday.