Spanish Machine-Tool Biennial Defies Uncertain Recovery
2010/07/16 | By CENSOver 35,000 global buyers and trade specialists visited the 26th Spanish Machine-Tool Biennial (BIEMH), which closed on Saturday, June 5. Speaking to journalists Jose Miguel Corres, CEO of the Bilbao Exhibition Center, stated that the event's success had "defied the widespread crisis."
Some 1,085 international manufacturers, importers and distributors exhibited machinery and technologies starting May 31.
The BIEMH saw 35,263 visitors from 54 countries, including strategic markets and major purchasers of machine-tools as Portugal, France, Germany, Turkey and Switzerland, plus India, Argentina, Russia, Brazil, the Maghreb countries, Chile, Israel, China and Mexico. Domestically, the Spanish regions that provided the most visitors were Catalonia, Madrid, Castilla-Leon and Navarra, plus the Basque Autonomous Community. Such visitor numbers confirm the leadership and outstanding quality of the BIEMH, offering just reward for the major effort and investment from the event organizers.
Attendance by specialists from companies with significant purchasing power helped buyers and suppliers to make many contacts and set up potential deals. The specialists were categorized as production personnel (21%), management (20%), department heads (17.6%) and heads of purchasing (16%).
Major Names
BIEMH 2010 also attracted major names from the automotive, domestic appliance, aeronautics, wind power and railway industries, among others.
The economic benefit generated by the BIEMH 2010 on the surrounding area totaled over €25 million. Apart from the trade visitors, the event also hired 4,000 people staffing the exhibitor stands and over a thousand fitters and installers who set up the machinery and booths. Many students from more than 50 vocational colleges from all over Spain also visited the event.
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Koldo Arandia, Chairman of AFM (the Association of Machine Tool Manufacturers and a co-organizer) rated the 26th BIEMH a great success in terms of the standard of the exhibition and response from visitors, as well as being a technologically comprehensive showcase for the sector with high value-added services. Mr. Arandia said, "we stood at a statistical turning point where an upturn is beginning to become evident." The factors contributing to that upturn include the "Renove" plan announced at the commencement of the fair by Basque Government Industry Minister Bernabe Unda, which raised business dealings throughout the event. The AFM Chairman also confirmed that 75% of the association members who attended rated the event "positive."
Roughly categorized, the main exhibitions were forming machine tools (17%) and cutting machine tools (16%), with the other products being machine tools, accessories, workshop and business services, metrology and quality control, and other machinery and equipment, welding and flame cutting, handling and robotics, CAD/CAM/CAE and hydraulic and pneumatic equipment.
Final Breakdown
| No. of exhibitors | 1085 |
| Spanish (Local) | 629 |
| Foreign | 456 |
Representation by Sectors
| Metal cutting machine-tools | 27.67% |
| Metal forming machine-tools | 24.40% |
| Handling & Robotics | 5.97% |
| Tooling for machine-tools | 7.90% |
| Welding & oxy-cutting | 6.31% |
| Other machinery & equipment | 3.24% |
| Metrology & quality control | 3.88% |
| CAD/CAM/CAE | 2.61% |
| Electrical & electronic equipment | 3.98% |
| Hydraulic and pneumatic equipment | 2.02% |
| Accessories for machine-tools | 6.87% |
| Workshop & company services | 5.15% |
| No. of Professional Visitors | 33,477 |
| Spanish | 31,637 |
| Foreign | 1,840 |
| Total Visitors | 38,893 |
| No. of Visitors' Countries of Origin | 54 |
Visitors by Sectors
| Metal cutting machine-tools | 15.21% |
| Metal forming machine-tools | 9.04% |
| Tools & accessories for machine-tools | 14.98% |
| Welding & oxy-cutting | 6.35% |
| Metrology & quality control | 8.26% |
| Electronics, robotics, handling, flexible systems, CAD/CAM/CAE | 8.25% |
| Others | 31.32% |