
All went very well at the recently concluded bauma Conexpo India 2016, one of the most significant trade fairs in India for Construction Machinery, Building Material Machines, Mining Machines and Construction Vehicle Industry. Business transactions, high-quality trade visitors and more participants than in 2014: bauma Conexpo India underscored the fact that there are signs of a turnaround in the Indian market for construction machinery.
Around 647 exhibitors—of which, 57% were international companies— from across 30 countries showcased their wide range of innovative equipment and latest technologies. More than 31,000 visitors came to the International Trade Fair which occupied a total of 150,000 sq.m of space. A 'Demo Area' set up there showcased live performance of exhibitors' machinery and equipment to the visitors.
Present at the inaugural function were Mrs. Santosh Yadav, Hon'ble Deputy Speaker, Haryana Vidhan Sabha (Haryana Legislative Assembly), Government of India, Shri. Girish Shankar, Secretary, Department of Heavy Industry, Government of India, Dr. Silva – Garbade, Deputy Minister, Economic Sections, Germany Embassy in India, Mr. Patrick Santillo, Minister Counselor, U.S. Embassy in India, Mr. Avinash M. Patil, President, Builders' Association of India, Mr. Anand Sundaresan, President, Indian Construction Equipment Manufacturers' Association and Mr. Igor Palka, Chief Executive Officer, bC Expo India Pvt. Ltd.
"With infrastructure investment set to go up, demand for construction equipment will rise further and the Indian construction equipment revenues are expected to breach the $23 billion (`1.5 lakh crores approximately) mark. Being an international trade fair, this show brings the industry together on one platform in India," says Mr. Avinash M. Patil, President, Builders' Association of India.

The key highlights on Day 1 included an IPAF (International Powered Access Federation) Meeting, and the BAI (Builders' Association of India) Managing Committee Meeting which was attended by members of the association. The day concluded with an awards ceremony for 'Honoring the Best in the Construction and Infrastructure Sector', organized by Construction Times. The key highlights of day 2 and day 3 included a Conference on 'Infra Redux – New and Sustainable Horizons', organized by iCEMA, and an awards ceremony for Excellence Awards, organized by Construction Opportunities.
Mr. Igor Palka, CEO of bauma Conexpo India, says, "Positive developments in the Indian market were noticeable at the show. Exhibitors made some very good contacts and in some cases reported having sold machines directly at the fair. For us, as the organizer, this feedback is more than gratifying and confirms that bauma Conexpo India is perceived as an important platform by the market."
The same sentiment was also expressed by exhibiting companies. Mr. Vipin Sondhi, MD & CEO, JCB India, said that the response from the show was encouraging. "The exhibition provided a good opportunity for us to showcase the latest in the Earthmoving and Construction Equipment space. JCB introduced seven new, innovative machines, all exhibiting class leading performance with world-class design and quality. Our newly launched products in the larger equipment category have had a very positive response from customers."
Mr. Abhijit Gupta, Managing Director, Case India, says, "The results of this year's show have been fairly good. We have been able to successfully reach our goals. The footfall number has been remarkable and the show has helped us to generate a number of leads. As a B2B industry forum, bauma Conexpo India is a quality platform for exhibitors and visitors alike. It has helped us to better understand our customers' needs and expectations. It has also helped us to improve our visibility among our target audience."
Mr. Souma Roy, Director, Haulotte, India says, "This is the only exhibition in which we participate, as we feel it is an important international exhibition and the scale of this show is really high. We had visitors at our booth from India, Nepal, Bangladesh and China. With such an amazing response, we will certainly participate again."

"We are reasonably satisfied with the response we received during the show. We interacted with existing and potential customers, suppliers and business associates, which is certainly an important take-away. In addition to being a well-recognized brand all over Asia and an organized platform for the construction equipment industry of India, bauma Conexpo India has a global reach and international flavor. That is a definite plus for us, as it should be for any company operating in this sector. Events like these are important from the marketing-mix perspective, as they ensure good footfall numbers and a captive audience in our segment, which in turn has a greater chance of translating into positive leads and business orders," says Mr. Pinaki Niyogi, Vice President Manufacturing & Engineering, TIL, India.
Mr. Pradeep Sharma, President, ACE, India says, "We used this platform to showcase several new models. The show helped us meet most of our targeted customers in a short span of four days, and learn a lot in the form of suggestions and improvements from our customers, especially for new launches."

Mr. Prashanth Kumar, Executive Director, Sicoma Mixers India, says, "The quantity and quality of footfall was very good (more than we expected). We indeed had some very serious technical & business discussions with our customers and in particular were very delighted to see many Sicoma Concrete Mixers. I think with the slew of infrastructure projects likely to take off in the coming weeks, this show has turned out to be good platform for project planners and executioners to meet with equipment suppliers and end to end solution providers. I take this opportunity to thank the organizers for putting up a good show."
"bauma Conexpo India is very important and a good platform for exhibiting products, especially now, when government is taking various initiatives for infrastructure development and as a result of this so many things are happening. We use this mega expo to present our new and existing products and to connect with our customers. We are satisfied with our participation and the show has helped us to generate a number of leads. Moreover, the show has helped us to better understand our customers' needs and expectations," says Dhaval K. Pandya, Director - Business Development, Capious Roadtech Pvt. Ltd., Ahmedabad
In its entirety, the show turned out to be one of largest exhibitions on construction equipment and hi-technology in the world.