Tuesday, May 8, 2018
Deutsche Messe is staging the LIGNA.Conference in Guangzhou on December 4 and 5, in the run-up to the China Shunde International Woodworking Machinery Fair (Lunjiao), which is held in the neighboring city of Foshan. Guangzhou and Foshan are located in Guangdong Province in southeastern China, the epicenter of China’s booming furniture industry.
The conference in China is a continuation of the successful LIGNA.Conference series that LIGNA’s organizer, Deutsche Messe, launched in Hannover, Germany, back in 2016. The central theme of the LIGNA.Conference in China is “Integrated Woodworking – Customized Solutions”, which anticipates one of the focus themes of the next LIGNA trade fair in Hannover, which will be held from 27 to 31 May 2019.
Held in the city of Guangzhou on 4 and 5 December, the conference will be followed immediately by the China Shunde International Woodworking Machinery Fair, which runs from December 6 to 9, at the Lunjiao Exhibition Hall, which is located in the city of Foshan, about 20 kilometers to the southwest of Guangzhou. The trade fair showcases machinery, applications and solutions for timber processing and woodworking and thus complements the conference perfectly. It has a long history as a meeting point for suppliers of machinery as well as buyers from the Chinese furniture manufacturing industry. “The China Shunde Woodworking Machinery Fair is one of China’s leading wood-industry trade shows, so pairing it with the LIGNA.Conference is an ideal way to facilitate productive dialogue between machinery manufacturers and users,” explained Christian Pfeiffer, Global Director LIGNA and Woodworking Events at Deutsche Messe. The China Shunde International Woodworking Machinery Fair premiered in 1998 and has been a permanent fixture of China’s tradeshow landscape ever since. The last time it was held, it attracted some 50,000 visitors.
Day one of the conference will end with a special evening networking event. Day two will bring more expert lectures and presentations on digitization and automation. The conference organizers have already secured the support of several big-name manufacturers, including Biesse, HOMAG Group, Leuco Ledermann, SCM Group, Siempelkamp, Wemhöner Surface Technologies, Michael Weinig and the University of Applied Sciences Rosenheim. On the morning after the conference – 6 December – a shuttle service will be provided to take attendees the short distance to Foshan for the opening of the China Shunde International Woodworking Machinery Fair.
The conference is organized by Deutsche Messe, the owner and operator of LIGNA in Hannover, Germany, in partnership with its Chinese subsidiary Hannover Milano Fairs Shanghai Ltd and with support from CNFMA (China National Forestry Machinery Association) and the Foshan Shunde Lunjiao Woodworking Machinery Association. Deutsche Messe will leverage its considerable know-how and expertise to help conference participants gain access to and expand their reach in the lucrative Chinese market.
China is home to the world’s biggest woodworking and furniture manufacturing industry. Figures published by the German Woodworking Machinery Manufacturers’ Association show that exports of woodworking machinery to China have increased markedly as Chinese manufacturers invest in new equipment to keep pace with the booming local real estate market. As well as growing in terms of sheer volume, this market is becoming increasingly sensitive to quality and environmental considerations – factors that play into the hands of European machinery manufacturers in particular. Germany, for instance, grew its exports to China from 165.3 to 288.3 million euros over the period from 2016 to 2017. Italy, Austria and Switzerland likewise increased their exports to China over this period.
Tags: China Shunde International Woodworking Machinery Fair, deutsche messe, ligna, ligna conference
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