IMTEX turns 50, all set for bigger and better show

The Indian Machine Tool Manufacturers’ Association (IMTMA) is celebrating 50 years of IMTEX as it organizes ‘IMTEX 2019 & Tooltech 2019’. The exhibition will be held at its venue at the Bangalore International Exhibition Centre (BIEC) from January 24 to 30.

Mr. V. Anbu, Director General and CEO, IMTMA

IMTEX occupies a premier position in the exhibition landscape as South Asia’s largest exhibition in manufacturing technology. Beginning from 1969 when it was first organized in Mumbai, IMTEX has successfully showcased every change and shift in metalworking technology to enable Indian manufacturers to innovate, reinvent and upgrade their technologies to the prevailing market demands.

Special pavilions and seminars

A special feature of this edition are the two new technology shows, one on Additive Manufacturing, and the other on Industry 4.0. The pavilion on Additive Manufacturing will familiarize the manufacturing fraternity with the techno-commercial advantages of manufacturing. The other pavilion will be a platform to see and experience all facets of implementation of Industry 4.0.

The exhibition will also have seminars on these technologies. The seminar on Factory of the Future: Industry 4.0 will be held on January 25 and that on Additive Manufacturing will be held on January 26 and 28.

Using 3D printing engineers can arrive at a simplified product design, reduction in weight and handle complex geometries. The automotive sector has been using additive manufacturing for rapid prototyping. The industry is moving towards integrating the additive manufacturing process in the end-to-end production workflow.

Industry 4.0 is an add-on for the manufacturing sector to ramp up the shopfloor activities and turn out quality products. The connectivity which is established between machines and operators having knowledge of machine language has led to seamless operations for delivering the end-product. Machines take care of predictive maintenance, prescriptive maintenance, storing of information for future usages, etc.

This has led to transparency in the production process as real time data is available on fingertips for the top management, middle management and the machine operators working on shopfloors without any blockages. With Industry 4.0 technologies a lot of thinking features have been inbuilt into the machine minimizing human intervention.

Infrastructure expansion

BIEC has expanded its infrastructure to cater to the rising demands of IMTEX. A new hall measuring around 17,500 square metres has been constructed. IMTEX 2019 & Tooltech 2019 will be held in this hall for the first time. With the construction of the new hall BIEC has an exhibition space of around 80,000 square metres.

Key Highlights of IMTEX 2019

  • Around 80,000 sq. m. of exhibition space.
  • Six exhibition halls.
  • Over 1,000 exhibitors from 23 countries (Australia, Austria, Belgium, China, the Czech Republic, France, Germany, India, Israel, Italy, Japan, Korea, the Netherlands, Russia, Serbia, Singapore, Spain, Switzerland, Taiwan, Thailand, Ukraine, the UK and the US).
  • Seven Country Group participation: (China, Germany, Korea, Spain, Taiwan, the UK and the US), which are amongst the top machine tool manufacturing countries of the world.
  • More than 1,000 machines on live display.
  • Experience zone (depicting 50 years journey of IMTEX in the form of pictures, videos and conventional machines).
  • i2 Academia Pavilion which will have participation from 52 institutions, including IITs showcasing their innovations and research for the manufacturing industry.
  • Connect, an awareness programme for young engineers visiting IMTEX. (Students and young engineers interested in building a career in manufacturing will get a chance to know more about the machine tool industry). IMTMA is also organizing an inter-college quiz contest on manufacturing technology for students visiting the exhibition. The quiz will enable students to get acquainted with the latest technologies emerging in the manufacturing industry and make them competitive to build their professional career.
  • International Buyer – Seller Meet jointly organised by EEPC India, the Union Ministry of Commerce & Industry and IMTMA. Delegates from 23 countries are participating in this meet, giving an opportunity to explore mutual business co-operation for Indian manufacturers.