The International Forklift of the Year (IFOY) organization has excluded Russia from participation in the IFOY Awards program.
Representatives of Russia on the jury and advisory board have been relieved of their duties until further notice as a result of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
According to the organization’s website, the excluded juror is Anton Mizunov, editor-in-chief Skladskoj Komplex.
“Russian jurors will no longer be able to vote on winners or participate in IFOY Award events,” the organization said in a statement. “This decision has not been easy for us, yet we consider it to be of no alternative to send a signal against this unprecedented war of aggression against Ukraine.”
Test days and awards
This will initially affect the IFOY test days, from March 21 to 23, 2022 in Dortmund, Germany, as well as the award ceremony on June 30, 2022, in Munich. Visitors and exhibitors from Russia will also be excluded from attending.
“We explicitly emphasize at this point that this step does not change the respect for the jurors, media, applicants, and visitors who have represented Russia in the IFOY Award committees,” the statement said.
“We have highly appreciated their competence and cooperation in the IFOY network. We personally ask them for their understanding and hope that we will meet again soon in peace.”
IFOY will decide on the exclusion of Russian manufacturers from the 2023 program before the application phase begins in August 2022.
The IFOY awards is an independent, international intralogistics competition. The jury now includes twenty-five judges from nineteen countries on all continents.
It recognizes the year’s best intralogistics products and system solutions, with the aim of documenting performance capabilities and innovation in the sector to help boost its competitiveness and raise its profile.
Winners are selected once a year by an independent jury of international trade journalists.
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