A rousing success for IMTS, HMUSA

By Bob Vavra, CFE Media September 17, 2018

It took the Association for Manufacturing Technology (AMT) quite a while to finish counting noses at IMTS 2018 which should give you an idea of the success of this year’s event. The show smashed all previous records for exhibiting companies (2,563), booths (21,23) and square feet used at Chicago’s McCormick Place (1,424,232 sq ft) than at any previous IMTS before the show even started, and eclipsed the attendance record on the show’s second day. In the end, 129,415 people attended IMTS, 6.6% higher than the previous record. The show used all four halls and both levels for exhibitors at McCormick Place, the first time that feat has been accomplished. The accelerated economy and favorable tax cuts for businesses get a great deal of the credit for the manufacturing enthusiasm, but a good bit of the growth of IMTS also is due to the expansion of the show eight years from a traditional machine tool show.

When Hannover Messe USA (HMUSA) first added its industrial automation expertise to IMTS, attendance grew, and so did the footprint for automation. In 2018, the show was branded as Hannover Messe USA, and delivered more growth this year. Hannover Messe USA show filled both levels at McCormick Place’s Lakeside Hall with 114,000 sq. ft. of exhibitors–more than 400% than at the first show in 2012.

Bob Vavra, content manager for Plant Engineering, CFE Media, bvavra@cfemedia.com.