The launch of Wärtsilä’s new W25 engine took place in the aftermath of the pandemic. The aim was to make the experience evocative even for those who could not participate physically.
The SMM event held in Hamburg is the world’s leading trade fair in the maritime industry. In 2022, huge expectations were placed on it, but there were also uncertainties. The pandemic had changed the travel practices of companies. For how long and in what ways, were questions yet to be answered.
Wärtsilä wanted to make sure that the launch of the W25 engine supporting the emission goals of the maritime industry would be an impressive experience even for customers unable to attend the fair in person. A hybrid experience was built around the visually impressive fair booth at which the digital metaverse was combined with the launch event. The virtual world was the decision because the customer wanted to separate the launch from the rest of the activities at the event. This made the product appealing and took the participant interaction and engagement to the next level.
The digital production company Movya handled the implementation with Wolttigroup. The arrangement won awards in the hybrid event and virtual event categories of the international Eventex Award competition.
“Reports of the metaverse’s death are greatly exaggerated, because the browser-based 3D virtual spaces significantly improve engagement in the online experience. Mark Zuckerberg’s mistake was to focus primarily on VR headsets. The metaverse does not need them.” – Amos Ahola, Wärtsilä
Ultimately, 2,800 on-site guests and more than 3,000 virtual participants took part in the launch. Even though hybrid events came about as a stopgap for the coronavirus period, Wärtsilä’s launch shows that they can still be used to reach new kinds of goals in a cost-efficient and impactful manner. The digital content will continue its useful life even after the actual launch event.
The unique concept also increased interest in the launch and tripled the number of participants from the original expectations. The new kind of platform supported Wärtsilä’s sustainable development goals and position as a technological pioneer. The company estimates that the carbon footprint of the virtual launch was 90% smaller and the production costs were about 50% lower than those of a physical event of the same scale.
