CHINAPLAS 2019 closed its highly successful, four-day run in Guangzhou on May 24. The annual show -- held this year at the China Import & Export Fair Complex, Pazhou, in Southern China -- attracted 3,622 exhibitors and 163,314 professional visitors from all over the world. More than a quarter of attendees (42,005) were overseas visitors from over 150 countries and regions. The top 15 countries, in terms of visitors, were Brazil, India, Indonesia, Iran, Japan, South Korea, Malaysia, Pakistan, the Philippines, Russia, Singapore, Thailand, Turkey, Vietnam, and the United States.

Currently, the world's economic growth, including international trade, has been slowing down. The escalation of the Sino-US trade dispute, coupled with deterioration in trading conditions, has severely impacted global supply chains. Consequently, Chinese and foreign companies have been exercising increased caution in investments. This combination of complicated internal and external factors -- the likes of which have not been seen for many years in China-- has served to depress economic growth.

"Under the gloom of such a downturn, there was a gap between the number of visitors to CHINAPLAS 2019 and our previously set goal; we achieved a 5.19% increase compared to the last Guangzhou edition of show two years ago, " said Ada Leung, General Manager of show organizer Adsale Exhibition Services Ltd.

"Exhibitors from all over the world comprehensively showcased a diverse range of cutting-edge innovation and technology. The halls were crowded with visitors. Many exhibitors have signed new contracts with customers at the show. Generally speaking, participants were very satisfied with the results of joining the show," Leung added.

Technology is rapidly changing the world, and companies both upstream and downstream are tirelessly pursuing innovation.

At CHINAPLAS 2019, plastics and rubber industries from all over the world came to display their latest wares. Exhibitors made more than 180 global or Asian launches of hot, new technologies.

The exhibition halls exuded an aura of innovation. Just a handful of the highlights included: High/low-dielectric constant modified plastics and other high-performance materials for future 5G communication; lightweight materials designed to enhance new energy vehicles and future travel solutions; along with fiber-reinforced composite materials, graphene-based electrically conductive plastics, high-performance thermoplastic elastomers, additives to reduce unwanted VOC emissions and to change both the color and brightness of final products, plus liquid silicone and other high-tech materials. Plastics, meanwhile, owing to their versatility, continue to increasingly penetrate into many downstream application industries such as electrical and electronics, automotive, packaging, building materials, medical, sports, and leisure. 

In the fair's machinery exhibition area, digital smart manufacturing solutions showcased the implementation of various intelligent manufacturing options, while exhibitors also introduced a large number of high-performance, high-precision advanced equipment and a wealth of advanced molding processes.

Visitors also got to see cost-effective, high-quality, small-batch, diversified production processes, in-mold decorating techniques, as well as polyurethane (PU) in-mold coating and flexible manufacturing technologies, multilayer injection molding and co-extrusion technologies, and automated all-in-one machines, among other high-end sophisticated technologies.

"Going green" is now a core plank in the mission of most companies. The unstoppable trend of the circular economy was apparent at the show, as an abundance of high-performance, environmentally friendly and recyclable solutions were on display.

The theme zones that focused on the circular economy -- namely, the "Recycled Plastics Zone", the "Recycling Technology Zone" and the "Bioplastics Zone" -- proved hugely popular with visitors.

Concurrent events were plentiful as well. "Industry 4.0 Factory of the Future", "Tech Talk", "Design x Innovation", "Medical Plastics Connect", and the "Plastics Recycling & Circular Economy Conference and Showcase" all drew large crowds and featured a vigorous exchange of ideas while nourishing collaboration between various sectors.

During the four days at this plastics and rubber extravaganza, exhibitors and visitors learned from one another about new materials and techniques to enhance the competitiveness of their products in the market. It also offered an opportunity to meet with old friends, make new acquaintances, and look ahead to the industries' future development trends. Exhibitors and visitors alike said they were generally satisfied with the exhibition, as indicated by the following collection of comments from participants.

Haitian International Holdings Limited: CHINAPLAS 2019 had more visitors than previous years. It also presented a rich collection of new products, new technologies, and especially automated displays. With an understanding of new technologies, enterprises are more willing to upgrade their equipment and management. In addition, the efforts that exhibitors put in to the show have increased significantly, to positive effect.

The Chen Hsong Group: We have demonstrated innovative technology and technology tailored for the injection molding industry and developed and consolidated existing partnerships at the show. We have also recruited a large number of potential customers to lay a good foundation for further market development.

Toni Bernards, CEO of Battenfeld-Cincinnati (China): the annual event came to a perfect end. CHINAPLAS is an international event where leading companies compete in "close combat” and is also the best-organized trade fair. As an exhibitor of extrusion equipment, we largely benefit here every year. I saw many old customers at the show and also made some new ones. This is a very good platform on which Battenfeld-Cincinnati has had a complete success. We will come again in 2020.

Eve Cai, China Market Development Manager, Indigo & PWI, Graphics Solutions Business, HP Inc.: This year at CHINAPLAS in Guangzhou, HP exhibited the Indigo 20000 digital printing machine for the first time, bringing new intelligent and flexible production concepts and solutions to the plastic packaging printing industry. Through advance online and offline promotion by the organizer, we received many inquiries and concerns from potential customers on site. We look forward to more extensive and close cooperation with Adsale in the future to help the plastic printing and processing industry solve their problems associated with flexible production, fast delivery, and small batch-scale production.

LG Chem: Really thank you for full support from Adsale. CHINAPLAS is a good chance to meet new customers from various countries and is an excellent tool to promote our brand in China. Through this exhibition, it can inspire pride to our local staff.

Furukawa Hiroyuki, General Manager of Asahi Kasei Plastics (Guangzhou) Co., Ltd.: This year's CHINAPLAS was unprecedented. Through this exhibition, Asahi Kasei made its strength in technology known to many customers, and we benefited a lot.

Rich Altice, President & CEO, NatureWorks LLC: CHINAPLAS is a great opportunity to meet existing and potential customers, allowing us to discuss the important issues facing the growing biomaterials market. We were pleased to showcase the application of several innovative Ingeo-brand biomaterials and see advanced processing equipment technologies that will help expand the use of these materials, helping to promote the global circular economy.

Wojeiech Łuczkiewicz, Head of Group Procurement, CeDo Ltd.: CHINAPLAS is a useful sourcing and networking platform. We can meet all the producers, traders, suppliers of raw materials and machineries related to plastics industry under one roof. 

Steven Callas, Managing Director, Plastic Container Printers: This was my first time visiting CHINAPLAS and I did agree this is an excellent all-in-one platform where I could source automated solutions, machineries for packaging and build up quality relationships with suppliers.

Mr. Li Junxian, Senior Manager/Environmental Performance Technology Expert of BAIC Motor Co., Ltd: As the Chinese automobile market gradually matures, consumers begin to pay more attention to the static perception quality of cars, such as color materials, environmental friendliness, lightweight, and exquisite craftsmanship, in addition to focusing on power and economic performance. We need to understand advanced manufacturing processes and material technologies to ensure the competitiveness of the models so that the needs of customers can be met. CHINAPLAS provides a platform for us to easily understand these advanced technologies.

Mr. Guo Taisong, Deputy Director, Research Institute of Mold & Packaging, Hangzhou Wahaha Group Co., Ltd.: CHINAPLAS is getting increasingly influential, and has become an eminent platform for promoting technological innovation. The exhibition showcases the most cutting-edge, popular packaging solutions found in the world today that help our developers understand the current state of the art, as well as global trends in food and beverage packaging. These include working toward lighter-weight packages, improved barrier properties, and greater use of biodegradable materials. By mastering the latest technologies, we can strengthen our independent R&D capabilities, improve the performance of outer packaging, and at the same time expand our pool of suppliers, inspire creative thinking and add value to products.

Mr. Zhao Linbing, Senior Engineer, TCL Electronics Holdings Ltd.: We were mainly interested in precision molds, rapid injection molding, mechanical automation, and plastic materials that mimic the look and performance of metal. By communicating with exhibitors, we learned about more advanced equipment and technology, which is valuable as reference for us to reduce costs and set up unmanned chemical plants.

So, there you have it. CHINAPLAS 2019 has now ended, but the knowledge gained and contacts made will continue to pay dividends for all involved for some time to come. 

CHINAPLAS 2020 will return to Shanghai next spring, with the show set to take place again in the National Exhibition and Convention Center (NECC), in Hongqiao, Shanghai, PR China, from April 21-24, 2020.