After a five-year absence from Atlanta, Georgia, Pittcon returned to the city this year from March 6 to March 10. Attendance figures as of the end of the day on March 9 showed that conferee attendance declined 14.9% to 6,890. Exhibitor attendance was down 12.6% to 5,064. With Europe’s largest analytical instrument show, Analytica, taking place in May (it occurs every two years) and the American Chemical Society’s annual national meeting scheduled for the following week, potential attendees as well as exhibitors have a number of conference choices this spring, which may have hurt Pittcon’s draw.

The number of new product introductions also appeared to be lighter than last year, as companies increasingly debut products as they are ready to ship, and at conferences that are more application focused or end-market specific.

The number of press conferences was also lower, although Bruker, Thermo Fisher Scientific, Shimadzu Scientific Instruments and Waters continued to hold major press events at the show. In addition, MilliporeSigma rolled out its combined offerings, holding a press conference to showcase the company’s new brand and breadth of products. The company also presented a unified presence with one booth.

The number of exhibitors totaled 847, down 8.1%. After returning last year to the exhibit hall with a booth, PerkinElmer was once again absent this year. New companies exhibiting this year included Techcomp and Zwick USA.