Closing Report 2014: Increase of 37 Percent – drink technology India and International PackTech India Set Outstanding Visitor Record

drink technology India and International PackTech India already took place for the third time together under one roof. A total of 230 exhibitors presented their products on the three trade fair days; 119 of them exhibited at drink technology India, which experienced an increase of approx. 20 percent in its number of exhibitors and occupied net area. The area of food processing was represented at drink technology India for the first time and is to be expanded further in the future at both shows.  
 
The trade fair duo again confirmed its reputation as a business platform that provides customised solutions for the India market. A striking feature this time was that the stand presentations of the exhibitors were in part substantially more extravagant than in the past years. The picture on the trade fair grounds was characterised by intensive technical discussions at trade fair stands with lots of visitors. The crowd of visitors was so large, above all in the afternoon, that is was difficult to pass through in trade fair hall 1 of Bombay Exhibition Centre. The stream of visitors continued unabated even on Saturday, the last trade fair day.
 
The organisers, Messe München International and its subsidiary MMI India for drink technology India as well as Messe Düsseldorf and its Indian subsidiary for International PackTech India, also drew a most positive balance. "We have achieved a completely new level with this result," declared Dr. Reinhard Pfeiffer, Deputy Chief Executive Officer of Messe München International. "Following three joint events, drink technology India and International PackTech India have finally become established in the India market." For MMI India, the official organiser of drink technology India, its Deputy CEO Bhupinder Singh stated: "We will make continuous efforts to make this exhibition much stronger in the future editions, which will mutually benefit our exhibitors, visitors and the industry." Werner M. Dornscheidt, Chief Executive Officer of Messe Düsseldorf, underlined: "Companies meet well prepared customers here who are ready to invest. Exhibiting companies reported very concrete business negotiations. The visitors put up with long travel distances in part to experience new technologies of international and domestic suppliers live at this trade fair. The very positive result of the trade fair duo makes us optimistic for the future."
 
For the conceptual sponsor of drink technology India and International PackTech India, the professional association Food Processing and Packaging Machinery in the German Engineering Federation (VDMA), its Managing Director Richard Clemens stated: "Our expectations with respect to the number of visitors and competence have been considerably exceeded. You sense a very positive mood with corresponding investment projects. Both trade fairs have become the optimum platform for the industry, and the many high-quality contacts promise good trade fair follow-up business." The Indian branch of VDMA, VDMA India, provided valuable support in moderating the round table talks and the exhibitor forums.
 
Given the good organisation and the enormous visitor interest, the exhibitor companies were more than satisfied. "dti stands well in line with our expectations," declared Franz Kammerloher, Vice President of Sales for Southern Asia / Eastern Asia at KRONES, Germany: "The exhibition has encouraged high value discussions with our prospective customers. It has been efficient to transform new businesses for Krones in India. We want to grow together with dti."
Rüdiger Selig, Marketing Manager Food & Beverage and his colleague Dirk Grafe, Industry Manager Brewing Automation, were part of the German federal participation with Siemens AG: "Organisation was effective and very well prepared. To be part of the “German Bundesbeteiligung” concept was very good, so all the German exhibitors could present their offer for the Indian beverage industry in a compact area. We are convinced, that we all together can transfer the positive information about the successful dti fair 2014 to all of our Indian and South East Asia customers to increase the attractiveness for them to join the next time in 2016 here in Mumbai."
Marylene Guislain, Sales Manager Castle Malting, Belgium, was above all impressed by the good organisation of drink technology India: "Our participation in DTI 2014 has been satisfactory indeed, with numerous interesting contacts in a merging and growing market. The support provided by the organisation team has been efficient and friendly. We already scheduled the next edition 2016 in our calendar!"
From the viewpoint of Laurent Fournier, Managing Director, Sidel India, the trade fair duo has developed into a unique business platform: "It was a unique opportunity for us to meet all the key players of the value chain. It gave a chance to put everything under one roof which augments the ‘end-to-end’ perspective for our customers and strategic suppliers. The exhibition has also been a great place to meet people with quality time and allowed us to understand customer needs."
Ravindra Kanetkar, General Manager – Business Development, KHS GmbH, Germany, considers dti a promising platform in one of the most attractive markets in the world: “The exhibition has encouraged high value discussions with our existing as well as prospective customers. It has been efficient medium to generate new businesses for KHS in India. dti stands well in line with our expectations and we look forward to participate at the coming editions of the exhibition.”
Vaibhav Saraogi, Director, Chemco Group, India, appreciates dti above all thanks to the high quality of its visitors: “drink technology India has given us the opportunity to meet with our very large customer base that require high quality packaging for their products. Being one of the largest producers of preforms, bottles, jars and containers we cater to a diverse set of industries thus making it difficult to narrow down our presence to few exhibitions, but dti is one of those exhibitions that concentrates on quality rather than quantity of visitors.”
 
Industry partners of drink technology India were KHS, KRONES, PENTAIR, SIEMENS and SIDEL.
 
There were also a lot of visitors at events of the supporting programme as at the stand presentations of the exhibitors. The Round Table Talk, held for the first time within the context of drink technology India, especially generated a lot of interest. Five renowned representatives of the international beverage and food industry discussed the topic "Outlook for Beverages and Food in India 2020." Topics such as hygiene, safety and waste management were focal points of the panel discussion, topics with which the Indian industry is increasingly dealing. Chandra Mohan Gupta, Head of Supply Chain, Coca Cola India Pvt. Ltd., summarized the results on behalf of the other discussion participants: "India is an evolved destination for food and beverage companies across the world and with 1/4th population of the world, India is a country that no company in the world can ignore. Urbanisation is changing the lifestyle of people in this country. There will thus be more affinity towards convenience. This makes the industry more promising with a fast paced growth."
The rows of seats in the exhibitor forum of drink technology India were also filled to the last seat. Exhibitors presented their product solutions dealing with all subject areas of "Beverage" and "Food". The Heidelberg publishing company hbmedia with the trade journal PETplanet was responsible for organising the exhibitor forum and Round Table.
 
The next drink technology India and International PackTech India is expected to take place from April 28 to 30, 2016, again in the Bombay Convention & Exhibition Centre in Mumbai.