UMEX '08 - A BIG HIT!!

The 2nd Edition of USED MACHINERY EXPO was a runaway success – it attracted a large number of quality visitors, generated tons of business enquiries & deals. A report on the event that took place from the 22-24 May 2008 at the Pragati Maidan, New Delhi, INDIA ……

The 2nd edition of UMEX, which kicked off on May 22, 2008 at the Pragati Maidan, New Delhi came to a close on May 24, 2008.

As far as track records go, this is one event that is an envy of all other shows. It hasn’t been blemished by economic downturns; it has the complete buy-in of the entire industry; it draws active participation from clients and buyers.

But what’s perhaps paramount is the very nature of the event in that it offers a unique gateway for international and domestic merchants & dealers of used machinery to benefit from the rapidly growing Indian market.

A heavy rain in Delhi in the month of May is an unlikely prospect. However, it did rain on the opening day of UMEX, making people run for cover. But the weather took a U-turn by afternoon making the day bright and sunny leading to visitors thronging the venue.

The mood at UMEX was that of immense optimism. Everyone was eager to see the new deals on offer. Not only did UMEX deliver handsomely, but also set standards interms of quality visitor turnout and event promotions.

North India is home to leading manufacturers from the automotive, electronics, woodworking, engineering, printing, textile, footwear, etc industries. It has an active trade & distributor market across categories and continues to remain the largest consumer of pre-owned machinery in India. The event had majority of exhibitors from countries like Germany, Netherlands, Canada, Romania, Australia, Slovakia, Belgium, United Kingdom, United States of America, Italy, Singapore and France.

Displaying a wide range of used machineries from Metal working, Food processing, Plastic & Rubber processing, Wood working, Telecommunication, IT and Power sector, the show had about 100 exhibitors including 40 from abroad.

UMEX’08 attracted visitors from across India, the Indian sub continent and beyond and has become the region’s main sourcing point for used machinery

Talking about the USP of the show, Nikhil Behl, Executive Director, Conventions and Fairs said, "It is the only show of its kind in the country which promotes trading of used machinery and India happens to be one of the world's largest market of used machinery."

Adam Taylor of Apex Auctions, an online machine tool auction site, had his own reason for participating in the show. Adam said that the website gets more than 3000 visitors a day, out of which 30% are from India. "A strong online response from India was one of the motivating factors for us to participate in the show," he said.

Adam had already received more than 100 visitors on the first day who had signed up for demonstration. "We are expecting some 400 visitors in total, which is a fairly good number," he said. Adam was happy with the response he received on the first day and expected more enquiries in the subsequent days.

Some of the exhibitors were among the ones who had been participating in the show regularly. Haff Haines of GCH Machinery Division, a US-based company, had been to Delhi twice earlier to participate in the show. He had also been to Chennai and Mumbai, but to him Delhi was the best place to be as it gave him good business in the past.

"One of the reasons we participate in the show is to meet new customers, network with people of allied industries and for building our brand in India. It also brings us some good business. Out of 10 enquiries that we received since morning, three seems to be serious one," he elaborated.
Valentina Rot of DMG, who was participating in the show for the first time, said that India offered a good opportunity because of its booming economy and major industrial expansion plans. "We came here to participate in the show because India is a prospective buyer of used machines. Coming here also gave us an opportunity to know the market better which would help us in planning our strategies," she said.

Elke of D'Cunha GmbH, a Germany-based Company, had been participating in Indian tradeshows for the last six years and has been getting good response. "We want people to know more about our products and then take a decision. One of the reasons we got good response in the last show was because of our quality products," Elke said, hoping to get better response this time.

With effectiveness never having been so much in demand, UMEX has once again risen to the challenge and proven itself.

Conventions & Fairs (India) Pvt Ltd, the organizers of IMEX 2008, is a front-runner in identifying industry trends and meeting the changing in market demands by organizing relevant and focused events. The company, managed by exhibition professionals, has a reputation for original thinking and attention to detail. With a history of seventeen (17) years and over two hundred (200) events, the company has carved a respectable niche for itself in the area of Face to Face marketing.