The best way to enter the Korea market; SIMTOS 2016

The best way to enter the Korea market; SIMTOS 2016

In harmony with the country’s position in the machine tool industry, SIMTOS has achieved continuous growth since the first event held in 1984. In particular, SIMTOS 2014 was the country’s greatest trade show in scope among 650 trade fairs held last year, and its economic and industrial impact is expected to reach approximately USD 110 million. One of the exhibition’s achievements was job creation worth about USD 300 million. Thus, SIMTOS has become the trade show that can represent the nation.

The high status of the trade show is reflected in the trends of the participants. In 2014, 52.5% (2,893 booths) of the exhibitors were overseas companies while 47.5% of them were domestic participants. In particular, 26 of the major 50 companies, including Trumpf, Amada, DMG Mori Seiki, Schuler, and Jtekt, participated in the trade fair while 15 of them were among the top 20 enterprises. SIMTOS is known for active participation of overseas buyers as well. The KOMMA (or the Korea Machine Tool Manufacturers' Association), organizer of SIMTOS, invited 360 buyers from 32 countries such as Brazil, Colombia, and Mexico, who have real purchasing power, in 2014 and more than 5,000 overseas buyers individually visited the event too. Such an achievement clearly shows that SIMTOS is an effective means of global marketing.

New technologies will be exhibited in SIMTOS 2016

The trade fair exhibits manufacturing technologies, related with the entire processes of metal processing, through six pavilions focused on each item along with the latest technological trends, featured by high speed, high precision, intelligent, and complex technologies.

Some of the new technologies displayed at the event are 3D printing, which is coming to the fore in the industry, friction stir welding technology that uses frictional heat caused by a rotational tool, and AM(additive manufacturing) technology for processing dissimilar materials such as titanium and magnesium.

Also, there will be a machine tool to which an energy saving technology has been applied, controlling power and hydraulic pumps of main/feed shaft, control technology that enables autonomous operation through servo control without a command from NC, and automatic system with innovative production lines that can run a variety of processes with a single robot.

Recently, the Korean government has announced promotion of the ‘Manufacturing Industry Innovation Strategy 3.0’ in order to develop 10,000 smart factories benchmarking the Amberg plant of SIEMENS in Germany, one of the best smart factories in the world. A total of USD 24 billion will be invested in the project by 2017.

SIMTOS is ready to take up a new challenge to make known the importance of automation such as processing software, sensors, control and handling technologies that can contribute to connecting humans with machines and IT technologies. For example, SIMTOS 2016 increases the exhibition area for CAD/CAM, measuring instruments, and robots by 1.5 times (from Hall 9 to Hall 7 & 8) and operates a special pavilion for manufacturing engineering software such as CAD, CAE, CAM, CAID, and PLM, which is expected to lead smart production of the industry. The special pavilion will be designed to have a station-type structure to efficiently promote the software items at Hall 7 & 8 in Kintex 2.