| Subject: | Welding machines
Moulds and dies
Ancillary equipment Measuring, control and testing equipment
Parts and components
Raw materials and auxiliaries
Plastics and rubber products
Logistics – material handling for the plastics and rubber industries
Services for the plastics and rubber industries
The Russian market is showing signs of movement again if the universal mood following INTERPLASTICA 2010, the International Trade Fair for Plastics & Rubber, the leading trade fair in the region, is anything to go by. The 13th INTERPLASTICA took place from 26 - 29 January 2010 and was held at the Krasnaya Presnya Expocenter in Moscow, once again in parallel to the UPAKOVKA/UPAK ITALIA trade fair for packaging technology. A sum total of around 800 exhibitors rented approximately 15,000 square metres of exhibition space.
The optimistic mood was not least thanks to the positive response from the 21,000 visitors. The feedback was much more qualified than anticipated by the exhibitors, who were very pleased with the number of specific enquiries and interest in investing shown by the visitors to the fair. Although this is no guarantee for a return to the dynamic market of bygone days, it is nevertheless a good sign that gives cause for optimism. The past few months were characterised by a difficult economic climate and a serious drop in orders as a result of the international financial and economic crisis.
“The market appears to have bottomed out now and things seem to be gradually improving for the Russian market. Companies that took advantage of the tough spell to work on their medium and long term business development and customer relations are profiting from this in particular. INTERPLASTICA offers the ideal platform“, said Erhard Wienkamp, Member of the Management Board of Messe Düsseldorf responsible for international trade fairs.
INTERPLASTICA is organised by Messe Düsseldorf and its Russian subsidiary OOO Messe Düsseldorf Moscow. Mechanical engineers, raw material producers, manufacturers of plastic and rubber products, logistics companies and service providers all showcased their product ranges. Official national presentations from Germany, Italy, China, Austria, Taiwan, France and Portugal were part of the fair. Of the countries represented, Germany, Russia and Italy had the largest number of exhibitors, with 135, 129 and 61 respectively. In total, exhibitors from 28 different countries were represented at INTERPLASTICA, presenting a very extensive range of products to the visitors.
Coming in at third place in the export ranking, Russia and Eastern Europe remains one of the most important markets for the German manufacturers of plastics and rubber machinery. According to figures provided by the VDMA (German Engineering Federation), Germany exported about €96.7 million worth of machinery for plastics and rubber to Russia in the first three quarters of 2009, a drop of almost 50% in comparison to the figures from the same period last year. Before the global economic crisis, sales in the region had seen years of steady growth. Bernd Nötel from the association for plastics and rubber machinery, a division of VDMA, confirmed that there are signs of a new wind. “The positive prevailing mood at INTERPLASTICA – even amongst many first-time exhibitors – is very significant especially in the year of the world’s largest trade fair in the industry, K 2010. And it shows that the commercial customers in Russia are still very interested in investing in modern technology in order to be able to keep up with the competition. However, financing the planned investments remains a key issue.“
Alessio Fineo from the Italian plastics and rubber machinery manufacturers association Assocomaplast confirmed the optimism expressed by his German counterparts – albeit somewhat more cautiously. “Although the number of Italian exhibitors has dropped in comparison to last year, the companies represented here have reported having made excellent contacts and are very satisfied. Overall, the signs show that the market is recovering, but the industries which our customers are in are too diverse to draw any general conclusions. One sector showing very crisis-resistant development is medical products.“ The Russian market is also very important to the Italian manufacturers in the industry, who are the second-largest supplier of machinery to the region.
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