Summary
• Xylexpo takes place in Milan from May 27-31.
• The biennial show will have 846 exhibitors, a 5% rise on 2006.
• Following the split with the Sasmil show, the exhibition will include furniture components.
• Xylexpo also links with the Dimaf forest technology event.
• SCM has 1.6 acres of stand area.
The organisers of Xylexpo, the Italian international wood technology show, say that this year’s event will be the “greatest in history”.
It’s quite a claim, but the statement is based on solid facts and figures, according to Antonio Delachi, president of Cepra which runs the show.
The event takes place from May 27-31 at the FieraMilano Rho fair complex in Milan, and will have 846 exhibitors, compared to 804 two years ago, occupying a total stand area of more then 75,000m². The show this year has also broadened its exhibitor base and expects to attract a wider audience from across the international wood processing and end user markets.
Previously Xylexpo was held with the Sasmil furniture components, materials and accessories event, but this year the events split. Consequently Xylexpo rebranded, adding ‘New’ to its title, and invited the semi-finished materials and furniture industry supply sectors to take stands among regular exhibitor categories.
“Our aim is an exhibition that represents everything that makes innovation in the woodworking and furniture manufacturing sectors possible,” said Mr Delachi.
Stand layout
Paolo Griggio, vice-president of ACIMALL, said that the evolution of Xylexpo would add value for visitors and that stand layout had been organised to enable them to make maximum use of their time at the show. “We want to provide visitors with an overiew of everything they need,”?he said, “abrasives will be close to sanders, paints next to finishing operations and panels and semi-finished materials with secondary processes.”
For the first time Xylexpo will also have a plug into the forestry sector via a link with Dimaf, Italy’s forest technology demonstration event. This runs from May 30-June 1, with a demonstration of equipment near San Fedele Intelvi (an hour from Milan). This will be combined with a three-day international conference, with the first day at the FieraMilano, the others at San Fedele. The topic will be “Sustainable management of the forest, wood, and the environment; man, education, machines and raw materials” and a key aspect will be the use of wood in construction.
The overall aim of the broadening of Xylexpo’s horizons, said Mr Delachi, was to create an event where “all sections of the forest-wood process chains are represented” on the model of the Ligna show in Germany and Elmia Wood in Sweden.
In Xylexpo, stand space will be divided around 50/50 between Italian and overseas exhibitors. At the time of going to press, the latter totalled 283 drawn from 38 countries. The biggest foreign contingent, with 91 stands, comes from Germany, but the presence of Far Eastern companies continues to grow with Taiwanese and Chinese exhibitors taking second and third place.
While the show will reflect the international shift in the technology market place, the established big beasts of the industry will once more take the biggest slice of Xylexpo stand space. With 6,400m² (1.6 acres), SCM tops the table, followed by Biesse and Homag Groups with 2,800m² a piece, and Weinig with 1,100m².
New technology
The exhibition also retains its significance as a launch pad for new technology. Some debuts already feature on the show website www.xylexpo.com, and others will be unveiled at the event. The range of developments is vast, but linking themes of boosting efficiency, cutting waste and making more advanced, automated solutions available to smaller companies seem to run across many.
Sander specialist Boere will show upgrades in its Sandrite range, targeting smaller joiners and furniture makers, with the option of touch screen PLC control, while Biesse will unveil the Rover S, a compact entry level CNC router for craft woodprocessors “approaching numerical control processing for the first time”.
Weinig is promising innovations across its divisions. Among the Raimann models on show will be the KM 310 optimising ripsaw, offering two adjustable blades, with RipAssist width optimisation and Quickfix clamping. Visitors will also see Weinig’s combined machine line for door and window production using its MillVision pro controls and featuring a Powermat 500 moulder, OptiCutS90 saw and Friulmac profilers.
Product launches
Among the launches from SCM will be the Superset NT range of through-feed moulders. Ergonimically-designed to make operating easier and more efficient, the NT includes HSK rapid tool chucks and Mobile 10 and 10 LH touch-screen controls. Available in variants from eight to 10 spindles, the range, says SCM, also benefits from its expertise in CNC machine centres.
Homag will introduce new controls for boosting versatility and cutting cycle times across the Venture CNC machine centre range. It will also show the entry level high-capacity KAL210 single-sided edgebander, while highlights from group members Weeke and Holzma respectively will be new nesting technology for the BHX500 one-operator panel processing centre and a higher speed upgrade of the HPP350 beam saw. Bütfering, meanwhile, will launch its SCO sanders, addressing demand for “high quality surface finishes”.
