Welcome to this live blog about the second day of the Carwash Show Europe Digital Stage 2021. The event will be broadcast live from the ProMedia studios in Rotterdam. At this digital fair you will hear everything about the latest developments in the car wash sector and make relevant contacts.

Yesterday several speakers spoke about the latest innovations in the industry. The main programme will resume at 15.00. Also, today there were several break-out sessions to follow. In addition, there was again room for participants to get in touch with each other.

Live blog closed

The panel discussion brings the main programme of the two-day event to an end. It were two days in which the car wash sector was discussed enthusiastically. We had 1100 people from 60 countries. Tonight and tomorrow people can still use the platform to netwerk. Thanks for reading and have a good evening!

Update 17.15: Panel discussion

The programme will conclude today with a panel discussion on the strengths and possibilities of the European market. Trade associations from England, Germany and the Netherlands participate in this. Especially the large indoor car washes with a vacuum cleaner hall will become increasingly important, they say. 

Update 17.00: Final presentations

The stage is already for the last speakers of this second day of the Carwash Show Europe Digital Stage 2021. We first heard Laurens Metternich from Spectro about sustainable use of products. The final presentation will be given by Bob Schaefer. When it comes to conveyors, according to him it is mainly in the numbers. The more cars, the faster the belt has to go.

Update 16.40: Bouchra Hashassi about leadership

Bouchra Hashassi runs a truck wash in the port of Antwerp. Her company has four places to wash trucks. The company only uses sustainable products. “We have or own water recycling system”, she says. Especially the manual pre-wash is important for a good result. We wash the truck entirely by hand, before the machines go over it. A car is just a box, so the machine can take it over. A truck is different.”

For Hashassi, sustainability not only means using the right products, but it is also the way in which customers are treated. ”We have an environment where we try to give opportunities to people with a distance to the market. My first employee was someone who was homeless.”

Before the inspring story of Hashassi was told, we got a virtual tour of Delta Sonic Car Wash Downers Grove in Illinois, USA: a huge car wash with the latest gadgets. The tour is quite an experience, because the colored lights alternate at a rapid pace. If you come out with a shiny car again, you can have the vehicle dried by an employee.

Update 16.10: Second part main programme has started

The second part of the main programme has started. Ryan Essenburg of Tommy’s car wash systems have the honor to kick that off. He talks about the trends in the United States. For example, he is talking about paid vacuum cleaners, which can be used with a subscription. Washing without cash is also becoming increasingly important: the use of cash is becoming less and less. Especially during the corona pandemic. Franchises are also growing in importance. This way of doing business ensures, for example, that you do not have to reinvent the wheel, according to Essenburg. 

In those two days, professionals from all over the world gather to network, share their experiences and talk about the latest developments.

Update 15.50: Superoperator is speaking

We just heard from Superoperator. The men discuss the Scandinavian market and the lessons others can learn from it. ‘Data can help to optimize the business’, says Mika Alapiessa. ”Data is key. Businesses will become more data driven. But how sensitive are the systems to hacks? “Security and data privacy are absolutely key for any kind of success.” The limit of digitization is one’s own thought, says Alapiessa. Before we move on to the next story, it’s time for a break. See you in a bit!

Update 15.20: Presentation on sustainability

Tim Ewing of Turtle Wax takes the digital floor. For the next twenty minutes he will be talking about sustainability, an increasingly important topic. ”Washing at home has a bigger impact on the environment’, says the company’s vice president. ”Make them aware that what they are doing at home, is not beneficial for the environment.”

Update 15.00: Second day has started

After we saw a nice summary of the first day, we will start with today’s first guest: Arthur Wessels from WashTec. What does the European market look like? ”Mobile payments have taken speed during the pandemic. Pay at the wash will grow. It is already big in Southern Europe. You don’t need to go into the store to pay a wash.”

Wessels does not think that factors such as car sharing will result in less work at the car wash in the future. ”I see a very positive future for carwash”