IMTS 2006 Wrap Up

Media Information September 18, 2006

International Manufacturing Technology Show (IMTS) Attendance Surpasses 91,000

The Association For Manufacturing Technology reports exposition was a tremendous success; attendance exceeds 91,000 for first time in six years

Chicago, Ill. – AMT - The Association For Manufacturing Technology today announced that IMTS 2006 has completed an excellent eight-day event in Chicago. More than 91,000 attendees poured into the 26th machine tools exposition at Chicago’s McCormick Place September 6-13, 2006 from over 40 countries to explore innovative technologies and emerging trends. The final tally represents more than a six percent increase in registrants over 2004. IMTS, held every even numbered year, boasted more than 1,288 exhibitors on over 1.1 million square feet of floor space.

"The tremendous response affirms that IMTS continues to offer solid value to industry professionals," says John B. Byrd III, AMT president. "We are very pleased with the high turnout, which is an extremely optimistic sign of the times in a growing international marketplace. Manufacturers coming to the show from around the world clearly understand that modernizing industrial equipment and processes lay the groundwork for growth." According to U.S. Manufacturing Technology Consumption (USMTC), a joint statistical program of AMT and the American Machine Tools Distributors’ Association, manufacturing technology consumption is up 24.4 percent compared to 2005.

Thousands of visitors, from CEOs to manufacturing engineers, shopped the show floor. "We rolled out new technology, applications and had so much booth traffic," said Stephen R. Light, IMTS exhibitor and President of Flow International Corporation. "We set an all-time bookings record, and our phones continue to ring," he added wowed by the response. AMT's planning and execution of the show were outstanding. They helped set the stage for our success with pre-show training and partnering with us to optimize our show strategy to make the exposition more productive," Light added. "Our results clearly indicate there is no place better to showcase your products and services than IMTS."

Show highlights included:

The Emerging Technology Center, which explored tomorrow's ideas with some of the most innovative researchers of manufacturing-specific technologies nationwide, presented new learning from government laboratories, universities and the private sector.
The National Institute of Metalworking Skills (NIMS) Student Summit exposed nearly 5,200 students to career opportunities in manufacturing through hands-on learning and interfacing with industry professionals. Nearly 50 exhibitors participated in exercises designed to increase knowledge of products and services and talked to students about rewarding careers in the industry.
The metal-to-metal action of BattleBotsIQ attracted crowds. The exclusive road show version of the wildly popular television robot battles, clashed in with exciting demonstrations and contests.
New technology was displayed throughout the halls, with many visitors remarking that it was the most they had seen at a show in years.

"Overall, IMTS 2006 was a very productive show for both visitors and exhibitors," says Peter R. Eelman, AMT Vice President of Exhibitions. "The lift in attendance clearly shows visitors understand the key to the future is productivity and the interest in upgrading facilities is growing rapidly. Visitors came with an agenda to improve their operations and they found a tremendous variety of resources to do just that."

IMTS shifts to a new schedule in 2008 becoming a six-day event and starting one week after Labor Day, September 8-13, 2008 in the expanded McCormick Place West opening fall 2007. "The show will now encompass a single week in 2008 and we're enthusiastic about the future of manufacturing and IMTS," notes Eelman. "An enormous amount of strategic thinking, talent and energy went into making IMTS 2006 a huge success. We're now charting the path to even greater excellence in serving the industry for the years ahead."

About IMTS - The International Manufacturing Technology Show
The largest and longest running manufacturing technology trade show in the United States is held every other year at McCormick Place in Chicago, IL, and is ranked among the largest trade shows in the world. Recognized as one of the world's preeminent stages for introducing and selling manufacturing equipment and technology, IMTS attracts over 91,000 visitors from every level of the industry and over 40 countries. IMTS is owned and managed by AMT – The Association For Manufacturing Technology.

About AMT – The Association For Manufacturing Technology
Founded in 1902, The Association For Manufacturing Technology represents and promotes the interests of American providers of manufacturing machinery and equipment. Its goal is to promote technological advancements and improvements in the design, manufacture and sale of members’ products in those markets and act as an industry advocate on trade matters to governments and trade organizations throughout the world.

IMTS 2006 Media Release

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