ITMA 2015 Witnesses Strong Industry Turnout

“We registered a 20 per cent jump in visitor numbers compared with ITMA 2011. More importantly, from participants’ feedback, we can confidently say that this is one of the best ITMA exhibitions! Our message on sustainability has resonated greatly with buyers,” said Charles Beauduin, president of CEMATEX, the European Committee of Textile Machinery Manufacturers, which owns ITMA.

Beauduin praised the industry’s resilience and forward-looking agenda, adding that global industry players have understood the importance of investing in innovations that are planet-friendly and which can also help improve their business bottomline. “Our exhibitors have discovered that the visitors – whether they are seasoned ITMA visitors or attending the exhibition for the first time – are serious about checking out new innovative solutions to improve their competitive edge,” he said.

Concurring with him, Regina Brückner, CEO of Brückner Trockentechnik GmbH & Co KG, Germany, said, “We felt for the first time there’s a real understanding and interest in energy efficiency and green technology. There’s a trend among our customers to want to upgrade their very old equipment because they understand the necessity of a highly productive and efficient production over the entire textile production process.”

Overall, exhibitors felt that the quality of visitors was high and there was strong buyer interest. Visitors from Italy form the biggest contingent accounting for 18 per cent of the visitors. Outside Italy, the top visiting countries were India (9 per cent), Turkey (8 per cent) and Germany (7 per cent). Other countries which made it to the top 10 list were France, the US, Iran, Brazil, Pakistan and Spain. The lifting of sanctions on Iran in the near future has buoyed the country’s textile and garment sector, resulting in more visitors.