Leading German technology businesses have expressed excitement ahead of the annual industrial and technological show Hannover Messe, hoping that the fair will help them strengthen their presence in the Chinese market.

They believe that China's policy reorientation from high growth to sustainability in the current five-year plan will lead to increasing demand for their products and services.

Peter Kohler, CEO of Weidmuller, which provides products and solutions for the transmission of power, data and control signals in industrial environments, said he looks forward to meeting existing and potential customers from China at the fair.

"We will have the opportunity to show our broad product portfolio, to understand customers' needs, and make customers excited about our products, solutions and services," he said.

Weidmuller first expanded into China in 1994 with a sales base in Shanghai. It opened a production facility in Suzhou in 2003, and subsequently built two Chinese research and development centers.

Kohler said that Weidmuller has witnessed a sharp rise in the demand for customized solutions by Chinese customers, and he expects this trend to continue.

Kohler said that Weidmuller's technology gives it an edge over its Chinese competitors, especially in the supply of components, and Weidmuller's Chinese management team has been very important for understanding Chinese customers' needs.

Weidmuller has around 1,000 employees in China, the company's second biggest market after Germany. But Kohler believes China will become Weidmuller's biggest market over the next four to five years.

Also attending the Hannover Messe is Eisenmann, a supplier of systems for technologies, including general finishing technology, environmental technology, material flow automation and process and high-temperature technology.

Eisenmann first expanded into China in 2003 by establishing a subsidiary in Shanghai, and has served an increasing number of Chinese customers alongside multinational businesses with operations in China.

"Germany developed early in these systems. Nowadays I also see some kind of mind change in China, so China is embracing these technologies," said Matthias von Krauland, chairman of the executive board of Eisenmann,

To take full advantage of China's growth, Eisenmann acquired the China-based provider of general finishing technology Hightec Group last year, which brought its employee number from about 80 to 300.

But von Krauland believes that Eisenmann has great potential to grow further in China, and expects its staff in China to double in five years' time.

The Hannover Messe, held from April 23 to 27, will attract some 5,000 exhibitors from 65 countries and regions. Almost half of these exhibitors come from outside Germany, among which nearly 500 came from China.

China is Hannover Messe's partner country this year. Premier Wen Jiabao and German Chancellor Angela Merkel together opened this year's fair.

While China's exhibition at the fair is themed "Green and Intelligence", the fair's theme is "Greentelligence".

Michael Schumann, of the German Federal Association for Economic Development and Foreign Trade, said that China still faces many challenges related to environment friendly production that German businesses can help.

Cooperation can take place in the form of projects, like the planned Sino-German Eco Park in Qingdao, or through regulation, for example the adaptation of German regulations on sustainable building in China, Schumann said.

BAE Batterien, a lead acid battery producer, is one German company keen to help China reduce heavy metal pollution by exporting high quality German-made battery to the Chinese market.

BAE recently started exporting batteries to Hong Kong, where its customers include Cathay Pacific and Hongkong Electric.

Jan Ijspeert, CEO of BAE said that his company's next step is to find more customers from the Chinese mainland.

"Our strategy is to develop a niche market, so customers can rely on the highest quality of our batteries," Ijspeert said, adding that BAE will be a good supplier of batteries for data centers, financial institutions, and in the uninterruptible power supply markets.