Attracting a highly international audience, LIGNA HANNOVER 2009 closed on an upbeat note, capping five days of brisk business activity and giving the wood industry hope of renewed growth. "LIGNA HANNOVER far exceeded the expectations of our exhibitors from 50 different countries," enthused Deutsche Messe Managing Board member Stephan Ph. KØhne at the closing press conference.
"As the world's foremost trade fair the forestry and wood industries, LIGNA has once again triggered new momentum and a brighter outlook for the road ahead, despite the troubled economy. The show's exhibitors and visitors offered proof positive of the industry's determination to respond to the challenges it faces with flexibility and innovativeness. The keynote theme of resource efficiency also played a major role in helping stimulate new growth," KØhne remarked.
Dr. Bernhard Dirr, Managing Director of the German Woodworking Machinery Manufacturers' Association within VDMA, referred to LIGNA as a "shelter in the storm", adding that LIGNA's popularity among exhibitors and visitors underscored its "unparalleled status on the international trade fair scene."
During the five-day run of the "world fair for the forestry and wood industries", 1,758 exhibitors from 50 nations presented their products and services on total display space of 130,152 square meters - impressive results, only slightly down from the "boom year" of 2007. A strong exhibitor lineup cemented LIGNA's reputation as the world's No. 1 event for the forestry and wood industries. With regard to attendance, KØhne remarked: "Given the factors affecting the industry, a total of over 83,000 visitors is highly respectable. As a potion against the current economic ills, the high caliber of our audience gave rise to many new projects, scores of new business opportunities and numerous business deals." One example: the Brandenburg-based firm Timme Stapelautomaten reported closing a major export deal at LIGNA for deliveries to Canada and the United States, which will keep production at high levels for the entire year.
"While visitor numbers did reflect strained economies around the world as well as the fact that many firms have been forced to drastically cut travel budgets, well over a third of all trade visitors with decision-making authority still came from abroad," commented KØhne.
LIGNA HANNOVER 2009 again impressively demonstrated its international appeal, drawing visitors from over 90 different countries. In terms of countries and/or regions of origin, the percentage remained stable, most notably for the Americas and Asia. An upswing in attendance was registered for Sweden, Switzerland, Poland and France.
Trade visitors again accounted for over 95 percent of total attendance. "Our success in maintaining this extremely positive result in spite of the tough economic circumstances was a remarkable achievement," declared KØhne. In terms of audience background, the construction industry and the interior finishing sectors accounted for an increased share of visitors, while attendance by machinery trade professionals was down. As KØhne explained, these figures represented "a clear reflection of current economic realities."
Stephan KØhne summed the event as a whole as follows: "LIGNA was eagerly anticipated, and ended up successfully mobilizing the strengths of the wood and forestry industries."
