Starting this month, I am publishing posts on my blog to help learners of English improve their English for specific situations with my free online short courses.

The idea is to run with a monthly topic which will provide our visitors with important vocabulary, phrases and even tips on cultural aspects. It is completely free but all we ask is that if you like it and find it useful, please share it so that others can benefit.

This month I am going to start with ‘Trade Fairs and exhibitions‘ with a series called ‘Auf Der Messe‘.

Trade fairs and business events can be defined as platforms for conducting and discussing bussinesses on a national and an international scale, they are marketing tools that will fulfill your needs.

These exhibitions work as networking platforms that assist with the publicity, promotion and marketing of companies.

Trade fairs allow you to assess opinions from clients and determine the market potential, as well as  conduct research, evaluate competition, and develop commercial structures by identifying new agents and distributors, and initiating or creating  joint ventures and project partnerships.

These platforms are being globally recognised as a medium for making business, they are usually filled with potential buyers and investors, they are meeing points for individuals to discuss businesses face to face, which greatly improves the trust within the industry.

Glossary

Trade fairs          treɪd fɛrz – die Messen

platforms           ˈplætˌfɔrmz – die Plattformen

conducting         kənˈdʌktɪŋ – etw. durchführen

marketing tools ˈmɑrkətɪŋ tulz – die Marketinginstrumente

exhibitions         ˌɛksəˈbɪʃənz   – die Messen

publicity              pəˈblɪsəti – die Werbung

promotion          prəˈmoʊʃən – die Werbeaktion

marketing           ˈmɑrkətɪŋ – die Vermarktung

clients   ˈklaɪənts  – die Kunden

competition       ˌkɑmpəˈtɪʃən  – der Wettbewerb

commercial        kəˈmɜrʃəl – wirtschaftlich

agents  ˈeɪʤənts – der Vertreter

distributors        dɪˈstrɪbjətərz – die Händler

joint ventures   ʤɔɪnt ˈvɛnʧərz – die  Gemeinschaftsunternehmen

medium              ˈmidiəm – das  Medium

buyers ˈbaɪərz – die Käufer

investors             ɪnˈvɛstərz – die Investoren

industry               ˈɪndəstri – die Industrie

Car Exhaust Test in Germany

Apparently German carmakers have been involved in the latest scandal to hit the automotive industry in which car emissions tests were carried out on monkeys and humans by letting them inhale diesel fumes. The tests were made by a body, the European Research Group on Environment and Health in the Transport Sector (EUGT), funded by Volkswagen, Daimler and BMW. The German government has denounced those experiments and called them abominable.

The EUGT was designed to counter a 2012 decision by the World Health Organisation to classify diesel exhaust as a carcinogen. The body was dissolved by carmakers last year. Daimler condemned the experiments and Volkswagen is still embroiled in a scandal about them giving false diesel emission data. BMW as well has distanced itself from the experiments.

In the experiment monkeys were exposed to fumes in an air-tight chamber in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Later the media reported that humans had been tested the same way. Carmakers connected to the study have fired those in charge or at least relieved them from some of their duties. The level of pollution is still too high in 10 German cities therefore the vehicles are likely to be banned from the pollution hotspots.

GLOSSARY

carmaker (kɑ:ʳ,ˈmeɪkəʳ) – der Autohersteller

diesel fume (fju:m) – die Dieselabgase

body (ˈbɒdi) – hier: das Gremium, das Organ, die Einrichtung

to denounce (dɪˈnaʊn(t)s) – etw anprangern

abominable (əˈbɒmɪnəbl̩) – furchtbar, schrecklich, widerwärtig

to counter (ˈkaʊntəʳ) – etw/jdm widersprechen, kontern

to classify (ˈklæsɪfaɪ) – etw klassifizieren, einordnen

exhaust (ɪgˈzɔ:st) – die Abgase, der Auspuff

carcinogen (kɑ:ˈsɪnəʤ^ən) – der Krebserreger

to dissolve (dɪˈzɒlv) – sich auflösen

to condemn (kənˈdem) – etw verurteilen

to embroil (ɪmˈbrɔɪl) – jdn hineinziehen, verwickeln

to expose (ɪkˈspəʊz) – jdn etw aussetzen, preisgeben

air-tight (eəʳ-taɪt) – luftdicht

in charge (tʃɑ:ʤ) – verantwortlich, federführend

to relieve (rɪˈli:v) – hier: jdn entheben, befreien von

duty (ˈdju:ti) – die Pflicht

pollution (pəˈlu:ʃ^ən) – die Verschmutzung