Visitors and exhibitors in the K 2013 tradeshow at Düsseldorf on 16–23 October reflected the plastic and rubber sector’s regained confidence by clinching a flurry of major deals, according to Messe Düsseldorf.
Exhibitors told the organisers the fair delivered “numerous concrete project enquiries, intense negotiations with trade visitors from throughout the world and a remarkable number of business deals, some of which were concluded instantaneously and quite a number of which were worth millions”.
Ulrich Reifenhäuser, chairman of the Exhibitors’ Advisory Board, said the event’s 218,000 trade visitors, from 140 countries, exceeded expectations.
“The many innovative products and applications premiered in Düsseldorf met with great interest from trade visitors,” he said.
“And the innovations were not just admired as many, very concrete negotiations were held and contracts were signed. Many customers are extending their capacities and are investing in new technologies to sharpen their global competitive edge. We very confidently anticipate strong post-fair business and expect continuing growth in our sector.”
K 2013 hosted more than 3,200 exhibitors, including raw material producers, processors and machinery producers. They reported that visitors had an increasingly international profile, a finding borne out in the visitor survey, said Messe Düsseldorf.
Non-German visitors totalled 128,000, or 59% of all those attending the event. Almost half of foreign visitors also came from outside Europe, travelling from locations as distant as Angola, Burkina Faso, the Falkland Islands, the Yemen, Malawi, Nepal, New Caledonia, Oman, Peru and Turkmenistan.
India was provided the largest single foreign group, with Asia as the leading region. About 28,500 specialists attended from South, East and Central Asia as well as from the Near and Middle East.
But America was also well represented, with 7,800 visitors from the US and Canada and 10,600 from Latin American nations such as Brazil, Mexico, Colombia, Argentina and Venezuela.
Within Europe, the Netherlands dominated with 9,600 visitors followed by France with 8,700, Belgium with 7,200, Italy with 6,100 and the UK with 5,800. There was also a clear rise in interest from Spain, Poland and the Czech Republic.
Across all national borders, managers were well represented among trade visitors: about two thirds came from top or middle management, according to the event organisers.
A clear majority of visitors to the show also played a decisive or co-determining role in their companies’ investment decisions, said Messe Düsseldorf. Many were also drawn from research, development and design.
Visitors’ profiles were described as very good to satisfactory by 93% of exhibitors.
Werner Matthias Dornscheidt, president & CEO of Messe Düsseldorf, said K had reinfornced its role as the rubber and plastics industy’s leading event.
“This is where new technologies are premiered alongside fully matured further developments and this is also where orders are placed for these innovations,” he said.
“Foreign visitors to K 2013, in particular, showed an extremely high willingness to invest and one in two visitors came to Düsseldorf with specific purchasing intentions in mind.”
Product launches
Ways to save resources and improve energy efficiency featured heavily in product launches, reflecting the sector’s search for environment-friendly yet cost-effective manufacturing.
Machinery and plant construction, the largest exhibiting sector, with about 1,900 exhibitors, proved the main draw.
Almost two thirds of visitors polled said they particularly wished to gather information on the innovations in this sector.
But 42% of trade visitors were most interested in presentations by raw and ancillary material producers, while 22% mainly directed their attention to semifinished goods and technical components made of rubber and plastic
Visitors came from all key user sectors – from the building industry and vehicle construction, packaging as well as electrical and medical engineering through to agriculture.
Overall, visitors to K 2013 gave their best grades to the range on show in the 19 halls of the exhibition centre: 96% affirmed that they had fully achieved the goals of their visit.
The next edition of the show is due to take place on 19–26 October 2016.