Positive Feedback from Automechanika Asia

Major Southeast Asian automotive parts and equipment exhibition Automechanika Asia has been staged for the fifth time, and has been praised as a great success. At least 5,480 buyers from 60 countries and regions visited the exhibition, held at the new Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre between 29 March and 1 April 2007. While the majority of the visitors were from Malaysia, the exhibition also attracted many attendees from other Asian countries, most notably China, India, Indonesia, Pakistan, Singapore, Taiwan and Thailand. The organisers of the exhibition report that attendee feedback was very favourable, with most exhibitors responding positively to the high quality and professionalism of the buyers onsite.

As part of the Automechanika global group of trade fairs, Automechanika Asia offers a professional forum where automotive industry suppliers and buyers can meet, create partnerships and build their business in the booming ASEAN region. A total of 151 exhibitors from 18 countries & regions joined the show, including those from Australia, Canada, China, Germany, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Mexico, the Netherlands, Singapore, Spain, Taiwan, Thailand and the UK.

“Events such as Automechanika Asia benefit not only the auto community, but also the general public, by helping to highlight new and future trends in the automotive industry,” stated Malaysia’s International Trade & Industry secretary general during the fair’s opening ceremony. “Local manufacturers should avail themselves of this opportunity to showcase their products and technological know-how, and link up with suitable partners to further advance Malaysia’s automotive industry.”

Exhibitors at the fair included those already established in the Malaysian market and those looking for new opportunities. Many exhibitors, such as first time exhibitor, DCIS, a Korean based specialist in grinding systems and brake discs, approached the fair as a way to kick-start their export business. DCIS reportedly found the fair to be ‘way beyond their expectations.’

For Malaysian exhibitors, the fair brought an opportunity to strengthen partnerships within the local market. Buyers at the show included over 4,500 representatives from the vehicle and parts manufacturing industry, dealers, garages and workshops, petrol companies and stations, and fleet owners from across Malaysia.

However those coming from overseas also gained much benefit from Automechanika Asia. Mr. Upkar Singh Ahuja, joint secretary of the Indian Chamber of Industrial & Commercial Undertakings, brought a delegation of 18 Indian automotive component manufacturers to gain an insight about what the ASEAN market had to offer Indian companies. “We came to Automechanika Asia to analyse what can be imported from Malaysia, as well as to find out about the latest products and technology,” said Mr. Ahuja. “We found many new interesting products. With WTO developments, the world is getting smaller, and we can buy from or sell to any company. It’s important for us to develop our network outside India, and the contacts we have made here are very valuable to us. We will definitely be back at the next Automechanika Asia.”

Automechanika Asia, first held in 1998, is organised by Messe Frankfurt in collaboration with the Malaysia External Trade Development Corporation, and is one of the global family of 12 Automechanika fairs.