By Meg Riley
The 2023 edition of Wine Eng kicked off yesterday, with nearly 30 exhibitors, over a hundred visitors and a variety of talks. Organised by the Winery Engineering Association, the conference is being held from 26-27 July in Nuriootpa in the Barossa Valley, and today will also feature technical visits to Yalumba Winery, TWE Barossa and VAF Memstar.
Yesterday’s conference topics ranged from AI and Chat GPT to ultrafiltration, vehicle to grid power, biocontrol products and CO2 capture. Today topics will include considerations in making NoLo wines and reducing the carbon footprint of wineries.
Conference manager Dr Simon Nordestgaard commented on the lively atmosphere. “There is a very good turnout. It’s nice to come into a tradeshow and it’s noisy and people are talking.”
Dr Nordestgaard emphasised the value of in person events, explaining that “almost more important than the presentations, it’s the networking.”
“The last event we had in person was in 2019. So it’s been four years and we’ve had a few online things, but I think nothing beats meeting in person and catching up, there’s some things you just can’t do on online,” said Dr Nordestgaard.
Jean Vittot, managing director of Pellenc Australia, was among the exhibitors at Wine Eng 2023, and was also upbeat about the event.
“I think this is evidence that the industry wants to meet, wants to exchange, wants to learn, whatever the state of the economy is,” said Vittot. “It’s very positive side.”
“It’s always good for you to meet other suppliers, it’s always good to catch up with current customers and new prospects,” Vittot said.
“Pellenc is known for its innovation: we bring new technologies every year to the market, whether it’s in the vineyard or the cellar, or the cellar door. It’s an opportunity to show the latest.”
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