”RATL in Karlsruhe is tailor-made for me!”
Between industry innovations, digital transformation and a growing shortage of skilled workers, guidance is needed – especially for decision-makers in construction, demolition and recycling. Anyone who is still undecided during industry events and leading trade fairs in 2025 will find exactly what counts at RecyclingAKTIV & TiefbauLIVE (RATL) from 9 to 11 October 2025, with around 250 exhibitors at the Karlsruhe Trade Fair Centre: an overview of tangible innovations, hands-on machine demonstrations and an atmosphere conducive to genuine knowledge transfer – live, compact and personal. In our interview series, six industry experts share why RATL in October is a must for them. We start with demolition and construction contractor Robert Oettinger, founder and managing partner of the same named company group. As a committed RATL visitor, he emphasizes: “RATL is my place in it all in a compact trade fair with a wide range of offerings.”
RATL offers him exactly the right mix of knowledge transfer, innovation and business development – compact, efficient and without any scatter loss. For him, the trade fair is above all a platform for unexpected discoveries: Whether in live demonstrations, through expert discussions or the exhibitor stands, which are just the right size and number. RATL brings together hands-on solutions, technological advances and valuable contacts. With its targeted focus on demolition, dismantling and recycling, RATL is a motivating driver for him to develop ideas, learn about new technologies and strengthen the network within the industry.
New drives in the core business
Robert Oettinger states: “In our core business, traditional demolition is increasingly being replaced by selective dismantling. At the same time, the materials and composites used in construction have become increasingly complex. We want to optimize demolition and recycling processes from a technical perspective and promote material flow management. We need highly specialized machines and tools for selective dismantling and material separation. We also still require practical systems and processes for dust control during demolition. I therefore hope and expect to discover efficient machines and equipment for these problems at the upcoming RATL in Karlsruhe, to see them in action and, ideally, to compare them with other solutions.”
The Attachments Arena, one of five demonstration formats at the trade fair, should be the right setting for efficient demolition equipment. “Here, I am looking forward to seeing a selection of the latest machines and technology with new configurations, which I can compare with each other and use to make the right choice for me.” But the downstream processes of material separation, crushing and screening are also tangible at the trade fair, namely as complex processing lines at joint stands of various manufacturers. Oettinger therefore concludes: “RATL in Karlsruhe has hardly any scatter loss – it is tailored precisely to my needs.”
More movement within the group of companies
Oettinger wants to promote sustainable construction and recycling. The whole company group therefore tries to close the value chains around demolition and recycling, earthworks, civil engineering and road construction with its own logistics and also to manage material flows with innovative approaches. Oettinger, for example, is involved in the start-up “Boden & Bauschutt” (Soil & Construction Waste), a digital marketplace for secondary building materials plus standardized, digital sampling documentation. “We are also currently pursuing the production and use of RC concrete from demolition material. Therefore, our newest company RECULAR® is operating a plant for the carbonation of demolition concrete with biogenic carbon dioxide within a joint venture with peterbeton®. This process permanently binds 10 to 15 kg of CO2/t of finished concrete and, according to the current DIN standard for concrete, can replace 30 % of fresh aggregates.” Now Oettinger wants to put these approaches into practice and are calling for political incentives for planners and tendering authorities to make the use of such DIN-compliant recycled materials mandatory in the tendering process. “We are using the RATL in October as a platform to discuss such approaches with market competitors, create open knowledge transfer and may be push new strategic alliances that contribute to a vibrant circular economy,” Robert Oettinger promises.
Search for skilled workers and trainees
The Baden-based group of companies wants to make the work of the few available skilled workers as easy, fast and safe as possible. “Many technical innovations also aim to reduce the required number of staff. I am therefore looking for suitable solutions that have a direct effect on relieving the employees and position ourselves as an attractive, technologically advanced employer. I hope to make unexpected product discoveries at RATL, beyond the broad portfolio of products that I am familiar with as a technology minded managing director.” The machinists also visit the trade fair, to discover innovative machines, devices and methods, and transfer their findings into our everyday work.
Robert Oettinger states: “We as Oettinger Group are also attending RATL as exhibitor and are using the demonstration trade fair to recruit skilled workers, trainees and career changers. We already participated in the RATL job fair ‘Baustelle → Zukuft’ in 2022 with a stand for our recruiting activities. This year the concept is becoming even more important at the trade fair and will be adapted to the live demo concept of the trade fair, with trainee construction sites bringing various job profiles in the construction, demolition and recycling industries to life. This is a welcome change in the training practice of our apprentices, and I am also confident that we can present us even more attractive as employer.”
