Innovative trade fair and congress format
The CIRPLEX (Circular Plastics Experience Summit) is a novel combination of congress and trade fair. Sustainable and circular plastics solutions in the Alps-Adriatic region are presented in one location. This unique space connects start-ups with industry leaders. CIRPLEX is the hotspot for decision-makers in the plastics industry from Austria, the Alps-Adriatic region, southern Germany and central and south-eastern Europe.
Congress Programme
13 May 2025
- Exclusive networking pre-event at Lake Wörthersee (by personal invitation only!)
14 May 2025 – 1st day
- Opening Cirplex – Congress Theater
- Matchmaking Event – Cradle-ALP
- Klaus Ries (Vice President Business Management Styrenics, BASF SE)
Title: Closed Loop – The Holy Grail? - Thomas Rau (Expert in the field fo Circular Evonomy)
Title: The Next Chapter - Panel discussion with Virginia Janssens (Plastics Europe), Peter Hodecek, MBA (Member EuRIC – European Recycling Industries Confederation), Gerold Breuer (EREMA Group, Head of Marketing & Cooporate Development)
Title: How can Europe regain its pioneering role in the plastics industry – both internally and in global competition? - Erwin Smole (Member of Executive Board STW Klagenfurt) and Berthold Baurek-Karlic (CEO Venionaire Capital)
Title: InvestCEC – Circular Economy as a Growth Engine: Opportunities for Businesses and Investors - Aljosa Krizman (EVP and Head of BEWI Circular)
Title: Closing the loop with BEWI - Peter Nitschke (Director of Impact Partnerships at Plastic Bank)
Title: Social Plastic® und Plastic Credits: Sustainability as a competitive advantage - Panel discussion: Marta Pastres (ABA Invest in Austria), Marzia Di Bella-Negi ( BABEG Success in Carinthia), Nicole Holzbauer (Invest in Klagenfurt), Natascha Zmerzlikar (Invest in Klagenfurt)
Title: Promoting Green Tech in Austria: Business & Innovation Opportunities in Plastics - Paolo Garbagna (Professor at University of Pavia)
Title: On Thin Ice: The Daily Corporate Struggle to Navigate Between Greenwashing and Genuine Sustainability - Panel discussion Lindner and EREMA
Title: New Standards in Plastics Recycling and Process Efficiency - Herbert Tanner (Head of Software Development in Digital Industries, Siemens Austria)
Title: The power of digital transformation for sustainability - Network meeting with regional delicacies – Congress Theater
15 May 2025 – 2nd day
- Life Experience Tours to LINDNER-RECYCLINGTECH GMBH, HIRSCH Servo AG, KRM Kunststoff-Recycling-Maschinen GmbH & SynCycle Operations GmbH
- Matchmaking Event – Cradle-ALP
- Ingo Sartorius, Managing Director BKV GmbH
Titel: Contribution of plastics to carbon circularity - Andreas Witschnigg (R&D Product Development PreZero Polymers Austria)
Title: Mechanical Recycling of Household Packaging Waste – Opportunities, risks and achievements under legislative targets - Round Table: Karoline Moosbauer (Business Development Manager Reuse, Greiner Packaging), Corinna Franz (Marketing & Sales Assistant, Starlinger) Josefina Bölting (Sales & Business Development Manager CCL Label)
Title: Cooperation in the value chain’ using the example of packaging - Maja Mešl (Head of Career center and International office Slovenija)
Title: Circular polymer solutions – developments and activities in Slovenia - Macello Colledani (Professor at the Mechanical Engineering Department of Politecnico di Milano)
Title: Ongoing Industrial Demonstration Activities in DeremCo: High-Value Recycling of Composite Materials and their Re-use within and Beyond the Original Application Scenario - Joachim Kircher (Director Ernst & Young denkstatt Gmbh)
Titel: 6 blocks for the transition of the plastics industry - Peter Marschalek (Managing Director Digital Excellence GmbH) und EDIH-OFI
Title: AI in practice — Using artificial intelligence to make your business sustainable. - Markus Brillinger (Pro2future)
Title: Making the invisible visible: patented torque measurement as the key to optimising efficiency, wear and screw design in plastics extrusion - Elke Metzsch-Zilligen (Director Division Plastics | Fraunhofer Institute for Structural Durability and System Reliability LBF)
Title: From Waste to Resource: Improving Recyclate Quality for High-Performance Applications - Clemens Holzer (Head of Polymer Processing, Head of the Department Polymer Engineering and Science Montanuniversitaet Leoben)
Title: How we are saving the world with plastics - Start-up presentation
Growth potential due to pent-up demand
Harald Kogler
Within the Carinthian industrial landscape, the plastics industry represents an important focus that is well above the national average. CIRPLEX makes this core industrial competence visible and creates a new industry meeting place. I am convinced that CIRPLEX will establish itself well as a conference trade fair in the long term.
Werner Kruschitz
The first conference on the circular economy took place in Klagenfurt in 2022. At that time, the idea was born to develop a congress trade fair that would develop international appeal from Austria. CIRPLEX will make an important contribution to helping our neighbors in the Alps-Adriatic region and Southeast Europe develop a sustainable circular economy.
Virginia Janssens
CIRPLEX 2025 is a unique platform that combines innovation and sustainability in the plastics industry. As a hotspot for decision-makers from the Alpine-Adriatic region and beyond, it offers invaluable opportunities for knowledge sharing and networking. It will take all of us to shape the future of a circular and competitive plastics industry supported by new standards and an enabling framework. I am honoured to provide the keynote and to learn from the other speakers and participants. I warmly invite you to be part of this important event in Klagenfurt to help restore our journey towards a competitive, sustainable and strategic plastics ecosystem in Europe.
Thomas Rau
Thomas Rau is an entrepreneur, architect, innovator, inspir e r and visionary. His motto is "guided by the future". Everything he does is driven by what will be needed in the future not what is feasible at the moment. Thomas Rau identifies tomorrow`s challenges and uses his enthusiasm, energy and humour to convince his audiences and clients that they need to take radical steps to make sustainability work.
Dr. Elke Metzsch-Zilligen
As a leading institute for structural durability and system reliability, Cirplex is the ideal place for us to discuss and advance innovative solutions and technologies in the field of plastics. We see/view this as an opportunity to establish valuable partnerships and work together on the future of plastics technology. We are convinced that our innovative solutions for improving the quality of recyclates make a decisive contribution to replacing virgin plastics.
Peter Nitschke
CIRPLEX is a catalyst for industry leaders to collaborate in transforming waste into value. A truly circular economy requires cross-sector partnerships that integrate recycled materials into supply chains while creating social impact. By working together, we can close the loop on plastic waste, drive sustainable innovation, and build a regenerative future.
Maja Mešl
As a representative of the Faculty of Polymer Technology in Slovenia, I am excited to share our country's innovative approaches to circular polymer solutions at CIRPLEX. Slovenia has made significant strides in this area. I believe many opportunities for closer cross-border collaboration between all stakeholders in this region exists and that this summit provides an excellent opportunity to foster and enhance these collaborations and jointly leverage these opportunities, thus we are honoured to participate.
Aljosa Krizman
Cirplex is more than just a trade fair—it’s a step towards a truly circular economy. At BEWI Circular, we are committed to closing the loop by collecting and recycling EPS, one ton at a time, turning waste into valuable resources. This event brings together industry leaders, innovators, and changemakers to accelerate sustainable solutions and create a future where materials never go to waste. Cirplex is where ideas meet action, and together, we are shaping a smarter, a better everyday world.
Berthold Baurek-Karlic
Cirplex in Klagenfurt is a central platform for the Alps-Adriatic region to promote innovative solutions for the circular economy in the plastics sector. It brings together companies, investors and experts to develop sustainable business models and accelerate the transition to circular value creation. For projects such as InvestCEC in particular, the trade fair offers an ideal opportunity to promote cross-border cooperation and present new technological approaches.
Erwin Smole
For Stadtwerke Klagenfurt, Cirplex is an important platform for actively shaping sustainable solutions for the circular economy. In the InvestCEC project, we are contributing our experience in urban infrastructure and driving forward innovative business models that conserve resources and strengthen Klagenfurt as a pioneer in the circular economy.
Sandra Pechac
Establishing a functioning circular economy requires close cooperation between all players along the value chain. Only together can we develop innovative and sustainable packaging solutions that conserve resources and reduce the ecological footprint. Events such as CIRPLEX are essential for this, as they bring together companies, innovation drivers and decision-makers.
Dr. Andreas Witschnigg
I think it's good that this trade fair is taking place for the first time, as there is a lot of expertise in the area of circularity and recycling in this region. The trade fair also helps to make this transparent. True to the motto: Do good and talk about it.
Dr. Klaus Ries
A functioning circular economy is the conditio sine qua non for the future of the plastics industry in Europe. This requires innovation and openness to technology, not narrow-minded discussions about closed material cycles and excessive regulatory requirements. CIRPLEX provides the perfect framework for discussions on these topics in the Alpine-Adriatic region.
Peter Marschalek
Cirplex 2025 in Klagenfurt is an excellent opportunity to show how sustainability and artificial intelligence can be combined. I am convinced that Cirplex will become firmly established in Carinthia and contribute to the development of a sustainable circular economy.
Udo Pappler
The CIRPLEX trade fair is in tune with the times. Sustainable, circular plastic solutions are essential in these times. We have to face the challenges of the future, there is no way around it. I am therefore looking forward to exciting days in Klagenfurt, an intensive, professional exchange and am very excited about the new format - trade fair combined with congress.
Univ.-Prof. Dipl.-Ing. Dr.mont. Clemens Holzer
After the successful Circular Economy Conference 2022 in Klagenfurt, it is impressive what the innovative, committed and active industry representatives of Carinthian plastics companies have now achieved with CIRPLEX. The circular economy works across borders and this combination of trade fair and congress sends out a strong signal in the south of Austria, but also in the entire south-east European EU region.
Marcello Colledani
Fiber Reinforced Polymer material recycling and re-integration in new products is today being demonstrated by DeremCo, both from the technical and economic viewpoints. The next challenge is demand widening for secondary materials streams and business upscale.
Paolo Garbagna
Imagine a space where the conventional boundaries of the plastics industry dissolve, giving rise to a revolutionary cycle of creativity and sustainability. Cirplex 2025 is that transformative arena—a dynamic crucible where visionary start-ups and industry giants converge to reimagine plastics from waste into boundless opportunity. Here, every challenge is met with inventive solutions and every material is reborn through circular innovation. In this unique meeting place, the future isn’t just predicted—it’s actively crafted, turning ideas into actions and setting the stage for a resilient, regenerative economy.
Joachim Kircher
Cirplex in Klagenfurt stands as a pivotal platform in the Alps-Adriatic region, offering a prime opportunity to stay abreast of the latest innovative solutions and challenges in the circular economy within the plastics sector. It is the ideal venue to gain insights into recent developments and connect with partners to advance the business case for a circular economy.
Peter Hodecek
The plastics industry is characterised by a high level of innovation, a wide variety of materials and diverse applications. Our daily lives would not be possible without plastics. The recycling of plastics is becoming increasingly important from an environmental and sustainability perspective. The reuse and recycling of certain products, as well as material, energy and chemical recycling, make it possible to close material cycles, thereby achieving the desired conservation of resources. With CIRPLEX, a new platform has been created to demonstrate the recyclability of plastics.
Herbert Tanner
Tomorrow’s leading companies will be those that embrace digital transformation today to prepare for the challenges of tomorrow. To win the race against climate change, innovative digital technologies will enable us to do more with less in our industrial world - by seamlessly combining the real and digital worlds and using the creative power of industrial AI.
Peter Breuer
The progress in recycling expertise along the entire plastics value chain in recent years is remarkable and gives me confidence. Our recycling machines at EREMA are only part of the solution. It is gratifying to see that CIRPLEX is promoting this essential interdisciplinary dialogue in Austria.
Our partners and exhibitors
Graphics for download and further use
MATCHMAKING POWERED BY Cradle-ALP 
Your opportunity for B2B meetings!
Register and book your 20 minutes 1:1 meeting slots with potential partners for collaboration. During this event you will be able to network with entrepreneurs, startups, industry leaders and research institutions from the Alpine Space and Adria Regions, Central and Southeast Europe.
REGISTER for Cradle-ALP Matchmaking
How does it work?
- Register here: Cradle-ALP – Circular Alpine Space community (B2Match) from March 21st, 2025
- Publish your profile: establish your clear and easy to understand business profile (only visible for other participants).
- Select interesting participant profiles: Go to the list of participants and discover interesting and promising dialogue partners for you.
- Send and receive meeting requests
- Matchmaking event: Meet at agreed date, time and assigned table no.; you will find the list of your meetings
B2B Matchmaking time slots available from:
- 14 May 2025: 9:30 am – 5:00 pm
- 15 May 2025: 9:30 am – 4:30 pm
Ticket prices
| Day admission adults | EUR 25,- |
| Online adults | EUR 20,- |
| Teenagers (15-19 years) | EUR 9,- |
| Online teenagers (15-19 years) | EUR 5,- |
| Children up to 14 years | free |
| Groups of 10 or more (per person) | EUR 10,- |
| Online groups of 10 people or more (per person) | EUR 7,- |
| Visitor car park | EUR 7,- |
The CIRPLEX Team
Prok. Almir Slamnik, BA MBA
Leitung Marketing & Vertrieb Messen, MICE & New Business +43 463 56800-22 slamnik@kaerntnermessen.at
Leitung Marketing & Vertrieb Messen, MICE & New Business +43 463 56800-22 slamnik@kaerntnermessen.at
Data and facts
3.200 m²
Exhibition space
60
Exhibitors
35
Speakers
3
Live-Experience Tours
Highlights
Fitness & Power
Werde gemeinsam mit uns fit! Wir laden dich ein aktiv am Training auf der Bühne mitzumachen – Umkleidekabinen und Duschen sind vor Ort!
- Under Armour HIT Training, Stretching, Modenschau
- Yoga
- Zumba
- Piloxing
- Schautrainings
Besucherfolder & Programm
Impressionen
Themen
Wellness & Fitness
Fitness-, Sport- und Therapiegeräte – Infrarotkabinen, Saunen, Solarien, Whirlpools – Kuranstalten, Thermen, Wellnesshotels – Thermenregionen
Gesunde und ausgewogene Ernährung
Bio- und Naturprodukte – Ernährungsberatung – Gesunde Lebens- und Genussmittel – Gesundes Abnehmen, Heilfasten – Nahrungsergänzungsprodukte
Schönheit & Wohlbefinden
Fußpflege – Haar- und Körperpflege – Kosmetik – Schlank & Fit – Schmuck und Accessoires – Schönheitssalons
Vorsorge und medizinische Beratung
Kammern und Innungen – Bandagisten – Gesundheits- und Therapiezentren – Prävention und Gesundheitsförderung – Rotes Kreuz – Seh- und Hörhilfen – Sozialversicherungsträger
Altenpflege
Hauskrankenhilfe, Hauskrankenpflegeartikel – Mobilitätshilfen – Rehabilitation (Physiotherapie/Ergotherapie) – Sanitär- und Rehahilfen
Naturheilkunde & Alternativmedizin
Akupunktur, Akupressur – Aroma- und Farblichttherapie – Bachblütentherapie – Fußreflexzonenmassage – Homöopathie – Magnetfeldtherapie – Massagetechniken – Shiatsu – Osteopathie
Natürliches Wohnen
Biologische Reinigungsmittel – Feng Shui Beratung – Gesundes Schlafen – Schafwollprodukte
Literatur
Bestseller von Gesundheitsexperten – Entspannungsmusik – Lesenswertes zum Thema „Gesund Leben“
Gesund leben & gleichzeitig glücklich
Parallel zur GESUND LEBEN findet die “19. Österreichische Messe für Körper, Geist & Seele” statt.
Alle Aussteller und Vorträge finden Sie unter www.gesundemesse.eu
More trade fairs
Öffnungszeiten:
13 May 2025 Pre-Event
4:28 pm
4:28 pm
14 May 2025
9:00 am – 6:00 pm
15 May 2025
9:00 am – 5:00 pm
