HANNOVER, GERMANY and CHICAGO –- The Hermes Award is an integral part of Hannover Messe and is one of the world’s most important and sought-after technology prizes. Companies and institutions from around the world who will be exhibiting their product innovations at Hannover Messe 2014 are invited to apply for the Hermes Award. The coveted award carries a public relations prize package worth more than $100,000.

To be eligible for entry, products must have already undergone industrial trials and/or already be in industrial use and must constitute a significant technological advancement in terms of their technical and economic realization. Applications close on February 6, 2014.

“The Hermes Award embodies Hannover Messe’s core mission as an incubator of technological innovation. Every year, the exhibitors at Hannover Messe unveil to the world a wealth of new products and important technological developments. And every year, five of them succeed in standing out from their fellow exhibitors. These are the nominees and, more especially, the winners, of the Hermes Award. To this select few we offer a unique, high-profile platform where they can shine as the stars of the fair,” said. Jochen Köckler, a member of the managing board of Deutsche Messe as the organizers of Hannover Messe.

The nominees and winner of the Hermes Award will be selected from among the applicants by an independent jury headed by. Wolfgang Wahlster, the Managing Director of the German Research Centre for Artificial Intelligence (DFKI). The companies nominated for the award will be profiled at the Hannover Messe Opening Ceremony on April 6, 2014. The winning company will be presented with its prize in the presence of Germany’s Chancellor, Angela Merkel.

All products nominated for the Hermes Award 2014 will be showcased from April 7 to 11, 2014 at a special display at the Research & Technology show in Hall 2 at Hannover Messe..

The Hermese Award at Hannover Messe 2013 went to Bosch Rexroth for its Open Core Engineering project – a solution that combines the previously separate PLC and IT worlds into one comprehensive solution portfolio comprising open standards, software tools, function packages and the Open Core Interface.

Further information, including the terms and conditions for participation in the award, are available online at www.hermesaward.com).