WOODTEC
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Preliminary final report

In what is already the 14^th WOOD-TEC International Fair for Wood Processing and Furniture Industry some 297 companies and more than 190 world brands from 19 countries took part, exhibiting in Pavilions V and F as well as the surrounding outdoor areas. The woodsmen came into their own, as this year was the biggest in terms of exhibiting companies and brands represented since 2009. In 2013 there were 280 companies and 140 world brands. The growth in interest in participation in this year’s fair was mainly in the areas of machinery, tools and equipment. Preliminary statistics show that the fair received some 12 000 visitors. Some 55 specialised journalists were accredited during the trade fair, 20 of them from abroad.

According to the exhibitors this year’s trade fair was a success. The majority of the visitors to the exhibition centre were from the wood-processing field, and had a clear idea of what they wanted, which in most cases was to acquire new technology for their operations. In this way the fair confirmed that also in this area there has been a recovery. The exhibitors assessed that people were no longer afraid to invest in the development of their companies, and that the same was true for end users. All the exhibiting companies were in favour of the two-year cycle of the WOOD-TEC trade fair, as it gives them time to develop and produce new machinery or to offer improved technology. It can be said that practically all the firms had something new to show at their stands. The exhibitors evaluated WOOD-TEC as a key event in the Czech Republic and recorded already in the first three days significantly greater numbers of visitors to their stands. This year there was a distinct increase in the number of visitors from Slovakia, which corresponds to the fact that Slovak companies were presenting their products on a three times greater area (more than 600m²) than in 2013. Thus WOOD-TEC has become a Czecho-Slovak trade fair.

The new conception of the accompanying programme was concentrated in the WOOD-TEC Arena in Pavilion F. The content focussed on current themes in the field and the presentation of new products and technologies. The programme included professional organisations and partners of the WOOD-TEC Arena such as the Czech Woodworking Machinery Manufacturers Association, Czech Association of Woodworking Enterprises, Association of Czech Furniture Makers, and the Mendel University in Brno. There was also a range of company presentations from Rojek spol. s r.o., TOS Svitavy a.s., RH+, WOOD Software and others.

The issues of EU grants for the development of forest management and the associated industries were tackled. The Rural Development Programme was also discussed. In next year’s spring round there will be investment in the development of forest areas and improving the viability of forests. In the spring of 2016 this will involve especially the introduction of preventive measures in forests, reforestation after disasters and repairing damage resulting from flooding. There will also be investment in the protection of ameliorative and stabilising tree species. This involves non-production investment in forests and the conversion of stands of substitute tree species. There will then be a further autumn round.

Developments in sawing and logging in the Czech Republic over the last decade and the number of sawmills in the surrounding countries and in the Czech Republic was the subject of a lecture by the Czech Association of Woodworking Enterprises entitled “Do Sawmills Have a Long-Term Future in the Czech Republic?”. If small operations want to survive they will have to make different products than the large ones and further add value to products, for example by drying, planing as well as producing packaging, etc. Among other things as part of the programme the Mendel University’s J. Ressel Research Centre showed the results of their work in practise. Of particular interest was the lecture of the vice-dean of the Faculty of Forestry and Wood Technology Karel Krontorád on the theme Industry 4.0 and University Education.

The date of the 15^th International Fair for Wood Processing and Furniture Industry WOOD-TEC 2017

24 – 27/10/2017

What they said about the trade fair:

Evžen Rojek, Executive Manager, Rojek Woodworking Machinery:
This year’s WOOD-TEC pleasantly surprised me already on the first day with the large number of visitors to our stand in Pavilion V. What’s more these were professionally educated people who knew which of our products they needed. A certain recovery is in the air with craftsmen seeking new equipment for their operations. I was happy with this year’s fair.

Zdeněk Bezděk, Chairman, Association of Woodworking Machines and Equipment:
During WOOD-TEC our stand was visited by many from the Czech Republic but also from Angola and Ethiopia as well as journalists from Belarus, Slovakia, Russia and others. This year’s fair was better attended than the last, with more visitors and greater interest in machinery and technology. It can be seen that the economy is growing strongly. Which is important for manufacturers of woodworking machinery. Compared to previous years we can see many positives at the exhibition centre. In terms of visitor numbers, their expertise and interest in machinery I would give this trade fair top marks.

Ján Antal, Executive Director, AGGLU SK s.r.o.:
In the first place the fair provides us with a venue for business negotiations that have been agreed in advance. The numbers of visitors for our stand were pretty decent, and it can even be said that at times there was a non-stop flow. We also made plenty of new contacts, and not just from Czechs and Slovaks, but also from Russians. The fair was a success for our company.

Jaromír Horský, Owner, RH+ Woodworking Machines:
Compared to previous years the number of visitors increased, despite the constant growth in internet sales and electronic advertising which do not require personal contact. Our stand was constantly full and so this trend is not evident for us. In economic terms exhibiting at WOOD-TEC has always paid off, which was also the case this year. It is without doubt the best timber fair in the Czech Republic. It provides us an opportunity to meet our traditional clients, and also worthwhile is the chance to meet colleagues.

Tomáš Hlaváček, Sales Representative, PANAS, spol. s r.o.:
There was a good number of visitors, furthermore on the trade fair the company traditionally lays on a range of prepared business meetings. Customers can see our new products in one place, which is very important. They can touch the items and not just see them on the internet, and they can discuss the technical side of things with our employees. We also had fresh interest, which we will assess once the trade fair is over. We are among the regular exhibitors at WOOD-TEC. Not being present at the trade fair would be suicidal, as we always make new contacts there.

Václav Skopec, Head of Domestic Sales, BeA CS, spol. s r.o.:
For our company WOOD-TEC is a traditional event and we still see it as crucial. It deals with the main area of business of the company and so we will have to participate in the coming years. It is already a ritual for us that we meet with our business partners and colleagues in Brno and discuss new forms of cooperation. It is also about the company image, which means that we must attend this fair.

Tomáš Vystyd, Executive, FELDER Group CZ:
From my perspective WOOD-TEC is going in the right direction. Here at the trade fair one can feel the willingness to buy – the time has passed when people wanted new machinery but waited with their purchases. Nowadays companies are willing to buy and I have to say that we sold what we wanted to sell at the trade fair. We are exhibiting on the same area as two years ago and we were able to display a range of new products, achieving our aim. Customers had a chance to see who we are. I have to say that this year there was really strong interest in machinery. We were satisfied with the trade fair.

Jan Hon, Wood Software s.r.o.:
The trade fair fulfilled our company’s expectations. We were happy to see that there was greater interest in our products this year than in previous years. It is clear that there are plenty of visitors who know what they want and are interested in buying, which was not previously the case. We can say that the trade fair was a success for us.

Aleš Houfek, General Director, Houfek a.s.:
WOOD-TEC is important above all because once every two years we get to meet with customers. We must always participate and present what’s new as well as a cross-section of our portfolio. Each day in the morning and afternoon so many people visited our stand that our eight staff were not sufficient to deal with them. The trade fair was profitable and important, and in woodworking Brno is of great significance for the region of Central and Eastern Europe.

Petr Euer, KOVO NOVÁK Citonice:
This trade fair was excellent for the firm, and our stand was constantly full of visitors. It is clear that there is great interest in our machine for producing pellets. Everyone who works with wood produces waste and does not know what to do with it. In this manner it can be made into something valuable and so provides not just a source of heat but of profit as well. On top of which visitors to the fair already know us as we are mainly manufacturers of agricultural machinery. It was interesting to see how many Slovak visitors there were, which surprised me. This was not just people in business but also direct end customers. We made a range of new contacts. The company was satisfied.

Jaromír Hudec, Executive, Pilous–pásové pily spol. s r.o.:
As always the fair was a success for the company, as we are a traditional exhibitor. WOOD-TEC is always of great importance for us, and this year people are coming who want to buy and know what kind of saw they want. The fair fulfilled our vision and expectations. We showed clients several innovations and machines with new designs. We also presented a small saw equipped with an automatic plate, which is something absolutely new, even in world terms. We were highly satisfied with the trade fair.

Petr Matoušek, Executive, FOR-decor s.r.o.:
We are participating in WOOD-TEC for the first time this year. We are bringing on to the market completely new products, and so we organised a range of business meetings, both with processors and manufacturers. We made a range of new contacts, there was interest in our products and we will have to make an evaluation in the coming months. We even had interest from Turkish visitors. The company was satisfied with its participation in the trade fair, which fulfilled our expectations.

Pavel Žůrek, Owner, Mline:
Our company was satisfied with the trade fair: our stand received many visitors, mostly professionals who knew what they wanted. I would venture to say that professionals made up around 90% of the visitors. We returned to the trade fair after eight years and it fulfilled our expectations. I have to admit that we needed to make new contacts, which we managed in Brno.

Jaromír Krbila, Business Manager, Akzo Nobel Coastings CZ, a.s.:
We were satisfied with the trade fair, we had meetings with our clients who were able to compare goods from other companies and so we gained an overview here. We are regular participants in WOOD-TEC and we will continue to participate.

Jana Novotná, Business Specialist, MIVOKOR:
For us, as suppliers of wire programmes for carpenters, the trade fair was a great success. We were happy with the number of visitors to our stand and with the facilities and services of BVV’s staff. We held a number of business meetings, both planned and spontaneous. There was interest in our product range, and carpenters had a chance to hold them and were satisfied. There is nothing better than personal contact, which is what the trade fair provides.

Tibor Pipíška, Chairman of the Board, KNK PLUS, cooperative, Slovakia:
It confirmed to us that it was a professional exhibition, and there was plenty of interest in our products. WOOD-TEC gave us a chance to present our new products, fulfilling our expectations. We had a range of pre-arranged business meetings, and on top of that gained plenty of new contacts.

Miroslav Peterka, Technician, Jeřábek stroje, s.r.o.:
There was a great deal of interest in our machines in Pavilion F, with plenty of visitors. Every day we virtually did not stop until 3 p.m. On top of which we were able to show the machine in operation, which is important for the customer. We held a range of business meeting. From our company’s perspective the trade fair was a success.

Juraj Bánó, Sales Representative of the Slovak company, Favour, s.r.o.:
I am glad that in the end we got to WOOD-TEC, given that our colleague responsible for the Czech market was suddenly taken ill. There was great interest in our products, and we exhibited a lucrative range for interiors, such as kitchen surfaces, facings, doors, tiles for acoustic panels, etc. We did not expect so much interest. For our company it was a positive result – we definitely benefitted from the trade fair.

Michal Pawlowski, Salesman, Pollmeier Polska Sp. Z o.o.:
The trade fair in Brno was a success for the company. We established a range of new contacts with Czech and Slovak customers. WOOD-TEC went well and we enjoyed it, and we will be coming again.

Martin David, Business Director, Conmetron, spol. s r.o.:
This year’s trade fair was definitely better than the previous one. The important thing is that it is a specialised wood-processing trade fair and fulfilled our expectations. We managed to make new contacts with small carpentries and medium-sized companies. In the end we even saw end customers. It shows that personal contact remains important, which is what WOOD-TEC makes possible.

Michal Mikulášek, Intea service:
We are regular participants in WOOD-TEC, and this year’s was definitely better than the previous one. This can be seen also in the number of new contacts we made. We were happy with our participation and the trade fair met our expectations.

Ing. Karel Krontokorád, CSc., Vice-Dean, Mendel University Faculty of Forestry and Wood Technology:
I can remember all the wood-processing trade fairs, and to start with I was even among the exhibitors. The times when there were thousands of visitors are gone forever. This year’s was better than the previous one; the exhibitors presented novelties and told me that there was marked interest. I believe this trend will continue which will be beneficial. The accompanying programme, in which I was partly involved, was at a high level and received plenty of visitors.

The published information is preliminary. Veletrhy Brno a. s. will issue the final report after processing all the statistical information. The reported statistical values are based on the principles of statistical data for exhibitions of the UFI.