LIGNA 2017 delivers big on innovations
LIGNA 2017 drew to a close on Friday, 26 May, having delivered big in terms of innovations and global appeal, with a significant upswing in the number of exhibitors and visitors from abroad and new impetus for the wave of digitalization currently redefining the industry. After five action-packed days, the organizers could look back on a truly impressive event.
26 May 2017Share
Industry 4.0 generating new impetus throughout sector
The world's leading trade fair for woodworking and wood processing plant, machinery and tools is booming.
"LIGNA 2017 will go down as a milestone in the digitalization of the wood industry," said Dr. Andreas Gruchow, the Deutsche Messe Managing Board member in charge of LIGNA, at the end-of-show press conference on Friday in Hannover.
New site layout well received
LIGNA 2017 featured a new site layout and an array of display categories chosen to reflect the increasing technology convergence between the skilled trades and industry.
LIGNA's new approach is contributing to stable growth throughout the industry. More than 1,500 exhibitors, including 900 from abroad, were on hand to showcase innovative plant, machinery, tools and solutions on some 129,000 square meters (1,388,544 sq. ft.) of net space.
Strong global appeal
LIGNA 2017 attracted a total of 93,000 visitors, including some 42,000 attendees from outside Germany who had come to Hannover from more than 100 different countries.
More than 80 percent of all attendees rated LIGNA's new thematic layout as "good" or "very good". The special highlighting of surface technology at the show also met with a very enthusiastic response, with one in three visitors expressing an interest in the topic.
Mega-theme Industry 4.0
Market leaders used the flagship fair to introduce new software for integrating the complete range of plant components. In line with the mega-theme of Industry 4.0, visitors were especially interested in the trend towards visualizing process and work steps.
A further key trend at LIGNA consisted of ways of significantly boosting production efficiency with minimal demands on the operator. One exhibitor presented the first-ever "three-click" process for producing a complete item of furniture. Meanwhile, in the area of machine components and automation, robots continued their forward march.
In the pavilion next to Hall 11, the first
The LIGNA program also featured a series of brief presentations on the
The new LIGNA layout was also well received by primary industry visitors, with the four thematic areas of
For the first time at this year's fair, an open-air demonstration area was set up at the foot of the Hermes tower, in partnership with the German Forestry Council (KWF). Several moderated technology presentations were staged each day on an area measuring approximately 1,500 square meters (approx. 16,145.87 sq. ft.). Every step in the process was covered: pruning, the extraction of standing timber with harvesters, removal to the forest roadside with forwarders and logging trailers, and transport to the sawmill.
Another standout attraction, particularly for the international primary industry audience, was the second
The next LIGNA will be staged from 27 to 31 May 2019.
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