EXPOlaser 2015 - The novelty is the economic environment, positive once again

Taking place from November 12th to November 14th 2015 at the Piacenza Exhibition Centre, EXPOlaser is considered the Italian benchmark event in the field of laser technology and all its industrial applications. This time, EXPOlaser will benefit once again from a positive market environment - building on the great success obtained by its previous editions despite the economic crisis; the exhibition will therefore take place under great auspices and expectations - presenting itself as a golden opportunity for anyone wishing to invest in new and absolutely innovative means of production, such as systems and solutions based on laser technology.

The recovery of the Italian industry of machine tools and innovative technologies (especially those laser-based) is already here, it’s an established fact - as emerges from the increasing evidence gathered in 2015 and from the forecast data provided by the Business Studies and Culture Department of UCIMU. In particular, it seems that during this year all of the main indicators will show an increase: production will grow by 5,2% and consumption will be about 5,7% higher than last year - which in turn will drive both the deliveries of manufacturers (expected to rise by 4,3%) and imports (+7,7%). Exports will also go back to showing a positive sign, since they’re expected to grow by 5,6%. The export/production ratio, decreased in 2014 as a consequence of Italian demand, will remain stable at about 67,5%.

A bright future

But there’s more: a bright future for the industry of laser technology - which, driven by technological developments, new applications and the steady decrease of production costs, has a great potential for growth - to the point that it could become a world market of 17 trillions of dollars by 2020 (data supplied by MarketsandMarkets).

More and more often, laser applications are replacing traditional processing methods: from being a solution in search of problems, the laser tool has finally become a real and concrete solution in various production environments - whose problems have been brilliantly resolved and overcome thanks to the evolution of techniques and constant improvements in the field. In the sector of material processing, the cutting market is by far the largest - while marking is used for many different purposes; the micro-machining sector is also growing, particularly in regard to ultra-fast laser manufacturing.

In the industrial field, the most common application for lasers and laser systems is in the sector of machine tools - for metals and many other materials. Future scenarios will therefore see a further growth of applications such as coating, hardening and additive manufacturing - alongside cutting applications based on fiber and CO2 lasers. For sheet metal cutting and other heavy duty industrial applications, the continuous price reductions and improvements in lifetime and reliability of laser systems will help the market to expand. Market surveys estimate a growth of 10,23% in the adoption of laser technologies by 2019.

Key points of the fair

EXPOlaser 2015 will therefore take place in a moment of favourable economic circumstances, allowing the exhibition to present itself as an unmissable event characterized by a few important key points - such as the laser world’s widespread awareness of being able to find in Piacenza a detailed overview of all the systems for processing, manufacturing and control based on the use of the laser tool, alongside a wider product range of specialized components - and, therefore, a great number of very interested and highly competent guests. It’s an important and unique advantage. Not tens of thousands of generic or simply curious visitors, but a few thousands industry operators truly interested in the application of laser technology - and as such, all potential users of the products presented by the exhibitors.

In short, there are all the premises for EXPOlaser to contribute in a significant way to this new phase of recovery of industrial activity. PubliTec and Piacenza Expo are confident that this will happen, and that in the forthcoming month of November this event will lay some solid and important foundations for all activities of this sector and of the laser industry during 2016.