Positive signs for Italian machinery manufacturers at ITMA Barcelona
ITMA 2011 closed its doors with some impressive figures: in excess of 100,000 visitors hailing from 138 countries paid a visit to the over 1,350 exhibitors during the eight days of the trade fair. The trend was absolutely positive for Italian textile machinery producers and preparations are already under way for the upcoming edition of ITMA, to be held in 2015 in Milan.

Italy led the way, both in terms of the number of exhibiting companies (319), and for total visitors who streamed into the Catalan city (nearly 9,000, or 9% of the total number of visitors to the event). “These are very respectful figures, mirroring the healthy state of Italy’s entire textile manufacturing sector,” emphasizes Sandro Salmoiraghi, President of ACIMIT, the Italian Association of Textile Machinery Manufacturers. “Our manufacturers believed in ITMA as a must opportunity for the industry, and they were right.”

Attilio Camozzi, President of Marzoli, says he is satisfied with the event’s outcome. “At the fair we were able to finalize orders for 30 million euros. Argentina and India are the main export destinations for the machinery we’ve sold, but orders will also be coming in from Turkey, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan.”

“Considering the current situation in the textile industry and the financial crisis, we’re pleasantly surprised with these results,” confirms Tiberio Lonati, CEO of Lonati Group. “This edition of ITMA has been especially satisfactory, both in terms of the significant level of attendance of customers from all over the world, and the interest shown for the latest innovations we presented. The positive atmosphere at the trade fair, which transpired into new orders, as well as the possibility of developing new projects and partnerships, allows us to now look to the future with renewed trust and optimism.”

Michele Riva, Sales Director at We R Reggiani, also demonstrated his appreciation for the results at the trade fair. “ITMA 2011 provided us with an opportunity to present our entire group to the market (Reggiani Macchine - Jaeggli Meccanotessile – Mezzera – RPR - MTS). The contacts and orders we established, above all from Western markets, largely exceeded our expectations.”

Satisfaction for the results obtained at the fair was generally shared by all Italian exhibitors, who recorded an impressive number of contacts from South America, India and Turkey. “The high number of Italian visitors confirms the healthy state of Italy’s textile sector,” adds Salmoiraghi, “and provides the groundwork for the next edition of ITMA, to be held in Milan from 12th to 19th November, 2015.”

“We’ve already established contacts with the authorities in Milan and the event’s primary stakeholders,” concludes Acimit’s president, “in an effort to possibly make of ITMA an event that is even more worthy of its name. We especially appreciated the visit to Barcelona of Franco D’Alfonso, the Councillor for Trade, Productive Activities, Tourism and Territorial Marketing for the City of Milan, whose presence bore witness to the commitment and attention Milan intends to reserve to ITMA 2015.”