News & Insights | Textile machinery

ITMA 2023 in Review

Published: August 17, 2023
Author: TEXTILE VALUE CHAIN

“This edition has been a great success with the visitor ship higher than the previous exhibition in 2019. At this ITMA, the transformation journey toward digitalization and sustainability has taken a huge leap forward. It has been a mega gathering with the presence of stakeholders of the entire textile and garment-making ecosystem. CEMATEX associations and their member companies, as well as all other exhibitors, are delighted with the results as the exhibition has surpassed all our expectations.” Ernesto Maurer President, CEMATEX

The World’s Largest Textile Innovation Launchpad Concluded with Almost 50% of Visitors Looking to Invest in New Machinery and Technologies

The Olympics of textile machinery exhibitions, ITMA 2023 concluded on a high note. ITMA 2023 saw an exciting transformative phase for the textile industry that is moving towards sustainability and digitalisation. This trendsetting global exhibition cemented its reputation as the innovation launchpad for the textile industry, with 1,709 exhibitors showcasing ground-breaking technologies and revolutionary solutions. From sustainable materials and eco-friendly processes to waste reduction and responsible production, ITMA 2023 reaffirmed that sustainability is imperative for a thriving future. Valuable knowledge sharing, exchanges and collaborations were also fostered at the series of events organised at ITMA 2023. We extend our heartfelt gratitude to all the participants, exhibitors, visitors, partners and young talents that will drive the industry forward with game-changing innovations for the textile industry. Let’s meet again four years from now at ITMA 2027 in Hanover, Germany.

What Exhibitors had to say:

“Once again, we can look back on a very successful ITMA trade fair. In fact, it was one of the best ITMA exhibitions in our history – a true success both from an organisational and logistical perspective, as evidenced by the vast number of visitors to our booth from day one. The many fruitful contacts we had with customers and prospects from all around the world exceeded our expectations and will enable us to sow even more seeds for the future.” Johan Verstraete VP, Weaving Machines, Picanol

“The Tajima Group had not participated in the ITMA exhibition since 2015. However, after participating in ITMA 2023, we reaffirm our recognition of ITMA as the industry-leading exhibition that connects us with new market opportunities, as well as existing customers expanding their business. During the exhibition, we received a good number of international and European buyers from the fashion textile sectors interested in our new machinery and software solutions. We met new contacts from the automotive and aircraft interior sectors. What’s more impressive is that they were mainly decision makers, or production and development managers.” Chikachi Nagasaki Executive Vice President, TAJIMA America Corp (a subsidiary of TAJIMA Group)

“ITMA 2023 is once again the place to be for decision-makers and experts from all over the world. Our participation in the strategic topics of sustainability and digital process solutions provided answers to current customer challenges. We had an unbelievable number of intensive discussions with our international customers. We are glad that the enforcement of IPR regulation is taken seriously at ITMA. We had successfully taken action against a case of infringement of our patent rights during the exhibition.” Arno Gärtner CEO, Karl Mayer Group

What Visitors had to say:

“ITMA 2023 was an excellent showcase of textile machinery. I am confident that interactions during the fair will further spur investments in the sector and help India achieve Hon’ble Prime Minister, Mr Narendra Modi’s 5F vision of farm to fibre; fibre to factory; factory to fashion; fashion to foreign.” Darshana Vikram Jardosh Minister of State (Textiles and Railways), India

“I have been to ITMA many times and this one is quite special. There are a lot of novelties, new ideas, and technologies. I am very pleasantly surprised. Without being here, you don’t know what to expect in the future. Seriously, without the base of ITMA, there’s no way you can get any further.” Sigi Rabinowicz R&D Director, Gymshark

Showcasing Innovation 

Innovation is the heartbeat of transformation and ITMA 2023 continues to invest in helping the textile and garment community identify, highlight and acknowledge the innovations that push the industry forward sustainably through the following programmes.

  • Innovator Xchange • Start-Up Valley • Innovation Video Showcase • ITMA Sustainable Innovation Award • Research and Innovation Lab

Innovator Xchange

Innovator Xchange provided an excellent platform for visitors to learn about the latest innovations on display at ITMA 2023 and gain insights from industry experts based on four trending topics: Advanced Materials, Automation and Digital Future, Innovative Technologies and Sustainability and Circularity. The Innovator Xchange has attracted a total of 1,174 participants over 5 days.

Start-Up Valley

A new initiative, Start-Up Valley spotlighted companies in their early stages of development with fresh solutions and technologies. Fifteen applicants from 11 countries were selected for the grant where they enjoyed showcasing their game-changing innovations and solutions for the textile industry on this world stage, gained immediate exposure and access to potential investors and/or collaborators directly, received feedback, with strong support from CEMATEX and the ITMA Organiser to promote their participation through various marketing channels.

ITMA Sustainable Innovation Awards 2023

Industry Excellence Award

Winner: Candiani S.p.A.

Nominated by: FKgroup

Innovation: Candiani Custom

Research & Innovation Excellence Award 

Winner Mr Philipp Benjamin Weigel 

Nominated by: TU Dresden, Institute of Textile Machinery and High-Performance Material Technology (ITM) 

Thesis: Numerical Simulation of the Structural and Pull-out Behaviour of Parametrically Generated Profiled Carbon Polymer Yarns

ITMA Organised Forums

Bringing together thought leaders, subject-matter experts, and innovators, the forums provided a rare platform for exhibitors and visitors to engage in dialogues that will shape the future of policies and production value chains.

Textile Colourants & Chemicals Forum

Theme: Transforming the World of Textile Colourants Through Green Chemistry

Nonwovens Forum

Theme: Leveraging Sustainable Innovation and Digital Technology in the Nonwoven Industry

Partner Events

Exhibitors and visitors benefited from extensive knowledge exchange and networking opportunities at ITMA 2023 provided by leading industry partners. Two partner events with a total of over 400 participants were held alongside ITMA 2023. The events were the ZDHC Impact Day 2023 organised by the ZDHC Foundation, and the Planet Textiles 2023 organised by Sustainable Apparel Coalition.

Sustainability @ ITMA 2023 Small Acts, Big Impact

With increasingly devastating climate catastrophes, the race against global warming poses many challenges. ITMA contributes to improving sustainability by working with the venue owner, partners, exhibitors and visitors to adopt eco-friendly practices through rethinking, recycling, reusing and reducing waste.

Some of the efforts included getting the venue to offer plastic-free catering options, producing electronic versions of the exhibition catalogue and marketing collaterals, and encouraging the use of public transport. Exhibitors were also advised to plan for a green participation and to cut down on waste.

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