Stone+Tec 2003: Downsized, Dynamic

NUREMBERG, Germany – Maybe the abundant sunshine tempted Europeans to stay outdoors and not head inside for a trade show in late May and early June … even if the event happened to be Stone+tec 2003.
A spate of warm weather and unusual lack of rain during the show days of May 28-June 1 – along with a dull economy throughout Europe and the world – likely kept the event from being another record-breaker. Preliminary figures from Stone+tec organizers note that approximately 40,000 attendees passed through the NurnbergMesse, down 13 percent from the 46,000 at the event’s last run in 2001.
Stone+tec attendees and exhibitors also noted some changes from the last show, including a reduction in exhibit space. Attendee traffic also tended to be a bit slow during the first day – which also happened to be the Feast of the Ascension holiday – but picked up sharply during the course of the event. The dip in attendance also seemed to come from Germans, as the share of international visitors increased to 28 percent, up from 24 percent in 2001.
Concern over the international SARS epidemic (along with some rather harsh SARS-based headlines in at least one local newspaper) may have also affected some attendance, although event orgainizers stressed preparations for handling any health-related problems before and during Stone+tec 2003. No cases of SARS were reported before or during the event.
The busiest halls seemed to be the exhibition space for tools and machinery. CNC and large cutting equipment made for crowded booths from several manufacturers, notably OMAG, Thibaut, GMM, Konig/Schneider, Galeski, Burkhardt and Spielvogel.
Event organizers noted the international mix of the exhibition among the 1,172 vendors, although 390 – one third of the total – came from Germany, and another 245 came from Italy. China offered a large contingent with 145 companies; other countries with large groups of exhibiting companies were India with 52, Turkey with 42 and Spain with 37.
Participation from the Western Hemisphere lagged behind, with Brazil leading the way with 18 companies. Three vendors came from the United States, with one each from Canada and Peru.