The Confederation of Indian Industry’s EXCON 2009, the 5th edition of South Asia's largest Construction Equipment and Construction Technology Trade Fair, which concluded here today, is estimated to have generated business enquiries worth Rs 10,000 crore, according to a survey conducted by IMRB International. The value of business deals struck during the 5-day exhibition is about Rs 2000 crore.
Excon 2009, which saw the participation of 435 exhibitors including 135 players from abroad, had attracted over 30,000 business visitors. There were close to 400 new product launches.
Inaugurated by Union Minister of Road Transport and Highways, Mr Kamal Nath, the five day exhibition was laid out at a sprawling 1,60,000 sq. mts of area at Bangalore International Exhibition Centre, which housed in-door exhibition halls covering 40,000 sq.mts. The event saw live demonstration of equipments for earthmoving and construction, lifting, material handling, concrete making, hydraulics & pneumatics, drills, power tools & piling, electronics, controls & instrumentation, asphalt, compactors, compressors and generators, besides, components, accessories and consumables.
Speaking about the phenomenal success of the exhibition, Mr Vipin Sondhi, Chairman, Excon 2009, said, "Excon 2009 had grown in leaps and bounds, with the display area increasing from about 1,20,000 sq. mts in 2007 to 1,60,000 sq mts in 2009 – the number of exhibitors too increased from 282 in the last edition to 435 this time. Compared to previous edition, the foot falls had increased by two times.”
The exhibition featured exclusive country pavilions of China, Germany, Italy and UK, besides stand-alone stalls by manufacturers from Russia, Singapore, South Korea and Taiwan, among others. The overseas exhibitors had gained a first hand knowledge about India, the most promising global ECE market with an estimated 5% share. The companies identified partners for inward investment in India for setting up their manufacturing base and trade.
Exhibitors of Original Equipment Manufacturers offered “on the ground” experience for customers, most of who have come from various parts of India. The visitors were able to benchmark product features of different makes, interact about their requirements with technical heads, and negotiate deals with chief executives.
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Apart from the exhibitors of equipments, components and accessories, Excon 2009 had organized the participation of major equipment rentals, leasing and finance companies, who offered loans on the spot to customers. Though OEM sales are expected to account for over 70%, component manufacturers could use Excon as a business-to-business platform and explored opportunities to become suppliers for OEMs.
Excon 2009 had also featured a Conference on Construction Equipment Industry, organized by Indian Earthmoving & Construction Industry Association Limited (IECIAL), in association with CII. The conference highlighted the growth potential for the industry, which could increase from the US$3-4 billion to US$8 billions during the Eleventh Five Year Plan (2007-2012) that estimates the infrastructure funding requirement to be US$500 billion. The conference emphasized the need for easing of norms for land acquisition, speeding up of infrastructure projects of national importance, skill development & introduction of certification courses for operators, increasing safety standards at construction sites and taking measures to prevent imports of used equipment without age limits, among others.
