The machine tool industry is at the cusp of a new decade, witnessing an undercurrent of positive vibes, thanks to certain initiatives taken by the Central Government for strengthening the manufacturing sector, said Indradev Babu, President, Indian Machine Tool Manufacturers’ Association (IMTMA).

Addressing the IMTEX FORMING 2020 & Tooltech 2020, Babu said, “Initiatives like the allocation of ₹102-lakh crore for developing infrastructure, reduction in base corporate tax for companies and related policies to enhance ease of doing business can spur growth.”

In his address, Jamshyd N Godrej, Chairman Exhibitions – IMTMA, said, “This is our largest IMTEX FORMING event ever, despite a challenging economic scenario in the country. The current reduction in sales of automobiles, I believe, is a global phenomenon and we need to understand that.”

Ram Venkataramani, former president, ACMA, said, “It is heartening to see the developments in the machine tool industry, and as users, we are happy with it. Automobile and auto component sectors continue to be the primary drivers of the machine tool industry.”

Kamal Bali, President and Managing Director, Volvo Group, in his address on automobile industry, said, “Metal forming will play have a major role in battery enclosures and development with the entry of EVs (electric vehicles) in a big way. The IMTEX FORMING exhibition will act as a catalyst.”

At the meet a ‘Comprehensive Report on Indian Metal Forming Machinery’ highlighting the current demand trends in metal forming and the exhibition catalogue were released.

The IMTMA – Premier Outstanding Entrepreneur Award in memory of Vinod Doshi, was conferred on CS Shiva Shankaraiah, Managing Director, Trishul Machine Tools.

Overall, 40,000 business visitors are expected to participate in this exhibition. This shows that IMTEX is the market leader that can help propel business growth in the machine tool industry in India, despite the tough market condition and a general slowdown in the economy.

IMTEX FORMING 2020 & Tooltech 2020 spanning over an exhibition space of 33,000 square meters with 602 exhibitors from 26 countries, has once again brought stakeholders from the entire global manufacturing fraternity on a common platform for knowledge-sharing and business transactions.

Technologies in metal forming such as high-speed laser cutting machines, sheet metalworking, welding and joining, presses, metrology, and CAD/CAM are being exhibited live by machine tool manufacturers to help user industries make informed decisions. The focus is on additive manufacturing and Industry 4.0.

The exhibition also features parallel events such as i2 Academia Pavilion (with participation from more than 50 institutions, including IITs), International Buyer-Seller Meet (participation from 19 overseas buyers from nine countries: Egypt, France, Guatemala, Iran, Kenya, Russia, Sri Lanka, UAE and Uzbekistan), Eco Design Awards to encourage green stalls (participation from 63 companies), Manufacturing Quiz Contest (an inter-college quiz on manufacturing technology) and Jagruti (awareness drive).