After a successful three-day run at the China Import and Export Fair Complex, SPS – Industrial Automation Fair (SIAF) Guangzhou and Asiamold concluded on 5 March. Despite the pandemic affecting participation from the cities of Dongguan and Shenzhen, the two fairs still attracted 408 exhibitors who showcased their latest innovations and smart manufacturing solutions across 40,000 sqm of exhibition space, with the fairs also attracting 23,825 visits. Both under the smart manufacturing cluster, the fairs serve as an important platform for the adoption of advanced, sustainable, efficient and high-precision manufacturing technologies within the domestic market which have created more opportunities for exhibitors and buyers in the 2022 edition.

On the development of the manufacturing industry, Mr Hubert Duh, Chairman of Guangzhou Guangya Messe Frankfurt Co Ltd remarked: “China’s market for digitised technologies, extending to the smart manufacturing sector, is growing at a rapid rate. Advancements in sensors, machine vision, robotics, additive manufacturing and mould-making technologies, together with the adoption of industrial information technologies by manufacturers within the region, will inject a whole host of opportunities for solution providers in the industry.”

Mr Duh continued: “The industry is going through a number of changes at present due to technological innovation, national policies and initiatives tackling carbon emissions. This has been evident from the new products and technologies on display at this year’s fair, as well as the changing sourcing demands from visitors. And while the situation with the pandemic in the South China region leading up to the fair restricted the number of visitors in attendance this year, we are optimistic that the industry is in a good position to recover and thrive, driven by these new advances in manufacturing technologies.”

“With SIAF Guangzhou and Asiamold 2022 successfully concluded, we look forward to preparing for the 2023 editions in March to further reconnect with more exhibitors with visitors from all over China and the rest of the world once travel becomes more accessible,” Mr Duh concluded.

Besides the exhibitions, SIAF Guangzhou and Asiamold also compiled high-calibre concurrent programmes for exchanging market intelligence and future industry developments, led by industry experts representing renowned firms in China. The concurrent programme topics focused on new ideas, trends and future developments in the market. These topics coincided with a number of the latest national policies and initiatives on raising domestic production and technological innovation standards, including sustainable manufacturing, 5G, digital factories, digital transformation, data transactions, 3D printing technologies and mould-making technology.

“2022 marks the fifth year of Bonfiglioli’s participation at SIAF Guangzhou and over the years attending the fair, we have continued to establish new partnerships and build lasting business relationships with clients with our customised solutions. Despite a number of clients unable to attend the fair this year, we are still pleased with the visitor turn out and delighted to meet domestic buyers from Zhejiang and several northern cities in China. In recent years, we noticed various industry sectors paying more attention towards energy consumption and sustainable automation solutions, particularly within the steel, electric power, dye and printing industries. In conjunction with the national environmental targets, we have been developing energy-saving management system solutions to meet our clients’ and the government’s energy-saving needs.”

“This our fifth year participating at the fair as SIAF Guangzhou not only attracts the right target buyers for our business but is also a great marketing tool for promoting our brand. The fair puts us in direct contact with new and existing clients to not only gain valuable feedback for our products, but to also understand their individual manufacturing needs. We are very pleased with this year’s event as many local clients came to our booth to discuss business partnerships in detail, boosting domestic sales due to a sharp decrease in imported products. Paired with the government’s production goals in the latest Five-Year Plan, our domestic market sales increased close to 90% in the past two years. In terms of sustainable manufacturing, our firm has been heavily involved in developing lithium ion battery technologies and solar PV smart manufacturing solutions to support the country’s ‘Carbon Peak’ and ‘Carbon Neutral’ initiatives.”

“As a loyal participant at SIAF Guangzhou, this is of one of the must attend trade fairs in South China. The fair covers the latest industry and development trends within the smart automation market, bridging the gap between the region’s manufacturers with top-of-the-line solutions providers. Our target clients represent the automotive, packaging, food and beverage, computers, communications, consumer electronics sectors and more, and we are glad to have connected with them despite the global healthcare situation. We believe 3D machine vision, artificial intelligence, deep learning and cloud computing will be the developing trends for the machine vision industry and we really appreciate the organisers for creating a safe environment for the industry to connect and conduct business.”

“This is our first time participating at Asiamold and despite the ongoing global healthcare situation, it did not slow down buyers representing the automotive, home appliances, medical, consumer electronics and food packaging industries from sourcing our moulding products. We are extremely pleased with the 2022 fair and are delighted to report that the event met our exhibiting expectations. Furthermore, the increased innovation and production targets highlighted in the latest Five-Year Plan will continue to stimulate various manufacturing industries. Additionally, I believe there will an increasing demand for moulding products as they are the foundation and backbone of the manufacturing industry.”

“We have been attending SIAF Guangzhou for five years and our company is mainly a system integrator of high-end intelligent manufacturing, specifically for the automotive industry. This year, we came purposely to source for the latest machine vision technologies and products and have established brief communications with a few well-known suppliers including Cognex and Aqrose Technology. With the advancement in machine vision technology, the combination of 3D machine vision, AI learning for quality control and the latest IoT technologies are some of the most important development focuses for reassuring production efficiency and quality. Sustainability is very important for our organisation and we prefer to source for products that are energy efficient. Overall I am very pleased with this year’s event and as always, it is one the most influential industrial automation trade fairs within the South China region.”

“My firm produces ceramic sanitary ware with a focus on intelligent bathroom accessories. This is our second time visiting Asiamold with a purpose to connect with mould-making and plastic injection moulding firms. Not only is the fair in-line with the nature of our business but it also offers a great networking experience with some of the leading moulding manufacturers gathered here. On the first day of the fair, we came across two suppliers who we have strong intentions of working with. Despite the global healthcare situation, with the support from government and national policies, I believe that the market trend is heading towards high-efficiency injection moulding and high-quality development.”

As a leading trade fair organiser, Messe Frankfurt’s top priority remains the health and safety of fairgoers. To ensure that visitors and exhibitors meet in a hygienic and safe environment, added measures were practiced at the fair. These included: real-name authentication at registration, onsite temperature checks, frequent sterilisation of public areas as well as social distancing measures for conference and seminar audiences, amongst others.

SPS – Industrial Automation Fair Guangzhou is jointly organised by Guangzhou Guangya Messe Frankfurt Co Ltd, China Foreign Trade Guangzhou Exhibition Co Ltd, Guangzhou Overseas Trade Fairs Ltd and Mesago Messe Frankfurt GmbH. Associate sponsors are the Guangdong Association of Automation, the Guangzhou Association of Automation, the Guangzhou Instrument and Control Society, China Light Industry Machinery Association, China Chamber of International Commerce and Guangzhou Chamber of Commerce.

The next edition of SPS – Industrial Automation Fair Guangzhou and Asiamold – Guangzhou International Mould & Die Exhibition will take place in March 2023.