Plastic Exhibition, India - PlastIndia 2009

PLASTINDIA 2009 – A THUMPING SUCCESS

Aiming at making India a global sourcing hub for plastics, PLASTINDIA 2009 concluded on a euphoric note bringing the Indian plastics industry to the limelight and placing it on a global platform to explore further possibilities and strengthening the sunrise industry in India.

Arvind Mehta
President
Plastindia Foundation,
Mumbai

PLASTINDIA 2009 HIGHLIGHTS
1518 exhibitors
476 overseas exhibitors
77,604 sq. mtrs area covering 18 Halls & 16 Hangars
Over 1,30,000 business visitors
Business generated - over Rs. 1,000 crore
Proplast spread over 3 Halls with 213 exhibitors
Participation from 35 countries
20 country pavilions
4 theme pavilions
6 concurrent events

PLASTINDIA 2009, the 7th International Plastics Exhibition & Conference organized by Plastindia Foundation, the apex body representing India's plastics industry has witnessed a thumping success: un-precedented in the annals of Plastindia Exhibition & Conference. The World's 2nd largest exhibition and conference brought together the who's who of the plastics industry on one platform resulting into exchange of expertise, technology know how, and innovations.

The inauguration of PLASTINDIA 2009 at the hands of H.E. the President of India, Smt. Pratibha Devisingh Patil is a high point for the Plastindia Exhibition, and is a supreme sign of recognition of the importance of this industry to the Indian economy. In her address, Smt. Pratibha Patil voiced out her support to the growth of the plastics industry and reassured that plastics waste if managed well is wealth'. She called for a combined effort amongst the industry, government and civic society to act responsibly and manage the issues related to plastics better. She further observed that rapid urbanization and growth in retail business in India will result in high growth performance for plastics sector. During the coming few years, Polymer consumption in India is likely to go up to 11 Million Tons from the current level of around 5.8 Million Tons as we expand our infrastructure.”

Addressing the gathering, Shri Ram Vilas Paswan, Union Minister for Chemicals, Fertilizers & Steel, mentioned that Indian plastics industry has come of age and has contributed significantly to the economic development of India through employment generation, infrastructure development, innovation etc. He also mentioned that he would look into effective waste management with the help of State and Civic bodies which will directly help the Indian plastics industry.

Speaking on the success of PLASTINDIA 2009, Mr. Arvind Mehta, President, PLASTINDIA Foundation, said “The success of PLASTINDIA 2009 is a reflection of a definite growth path of the Indian plastics industry in past as well as in future. With PLASTINDIA 2009, Plastindia Foundation has had a quantum leap ahead in placing the Indian plastics industry on the global radar.” He doted the success of the event to innovative and wide spread marketing of every facet of the well-packaged event. The well-orchestrated marketing activities spanned over 35 countries globally and over 50 cities in India.

Mr. Nikhil Meswani, Chairman, National Advisory Board, PLASTINDIA 2009, said that India will prove to be more resilient in fighting the global recession. He was also confident on the plastic industry because he analyzed that sectors like infrastructure, agriculture and retail will continue to grow, thereby enhancing the usage of plastics. He also mentioned that the plastics industry worldwide would go into a consolidation phase and Indian plastics industry would also need to seize such opportunities.

Mr. Mahendra Patel, Chairman National Executive Council PLASTINDIA 2009 said “Compared to PLASTINDIA 2006, the PLASTINDIA 2009 has exceeded by 20 per cent more in gross area. PLASTINDIA 2009 exhibition has achieved astounding success with a record number of 1518 exhibitors which includes 476 overseas exhibitors occupying an area in excess of 77, 604 sq mts. Over a hundred and thirty thousand business visitors attended the show. The exhibitors were overwhelmed with the response.”

Despite the slowdown and the present global economic scenario visitors have come from all across the world. PLASTINDIA 2009 has witnessed visitors from Latin American countries like Argentina, Brazil, Chile etc. The response from USA, UK and European countries has been phenomenal. It also witnessed a huge number of visitor participation from the African Continent. Participation from Far East and Middle East has also been very encouraging.

The business generated at PLASTINDIA 2009 is around Rs. 1,000 Crore (US $ 200 Mn.) which is a great achievement in the present economic scenario. It was noteworthy that exhibitors from North Eastern states and Jammu & Kashmir participated in good numbers. This shows the depth and reach of the Indian plastics processing industry across the country.

PROPLAST- THE FINAL WORD IN PROCESSED PLASTIC
'PROPLAST', an initiative taken in PLASTINDIA 2006, exhibited remarkable progress made by the India plastics processing industry and showcased India's enhanced capacities that make it the preferred source for high quality plastics products conforming to international standards.

INDO-CHINA SUMMIT
Concurrent with PLASTINDIA 2009, the event also showcased India-China Plastics Industry Summit 2009, where both the countries discussed the business opportunity and trade complementation. The summit aimed at strengthening the trade in plastics between the two countries from USD 38.7 billion in 2007 to USD 60 billion by the end of 2010.

Speaking on the occasion, The Minister of State for Chemicals, Fertilisers and Mines, B K Handique, who was the Chief Guest, said that the time has come for the two countries to play a more coordinated role for the further growth of the industry. He said, “In the plastic industry, India and China are playing the role of torch bearers to be followed by the rest.” He added, “To me, the most encouraging recent developments in India-China ties is the rapid increase in bilateral trade, with a more healthy contribution form the Indian plastic sector.”

PLASTICON AWARDS
To further add to the celebration and the success story in PLASTINDIA 2009, the foundation felicitated the innovators in Indian Plastics Industry through 5th ‘Plasticon Awards 2009’ where the accomplishments and excellence in the Indian plastics industry were recognized. There were 23 categories like creative packaging, contribution to agriculture, recycling technology, conservation of energy, material and ecology, infrastructure, innovative product, best research, innovative plastics processing machinery etc.

INDO-US SUMMIT
Following the success of the India – China summit, and to bring the plastics industries of India and USA together for mutual cooperation and business promotion, Plastindia Foundation with Society of Plastics Industry Inc., USA (SPI) had organized, the first India – USA Plastics Industry Summit 2009. The summit was aimed to further growth prospects with the theme ‘Strategic Cooperation, Market Sharing & Trade Complementation’. Mr. Neil Pratt, Senior Director, International Trade and trade counsel, SPI spoke favorably on benefits of the India-USA trade relations. He said, “The plastics industry should benefit from the promising prospects by collaborating, employing necessary tools and overcoming challenges.”

In his welcome address, Mr. Arvind Mehta, President, Plastindia Foundation, said, “The Indo-US Summit Plastics Industry Summit is a pioneering initiative by Plastindia Foundation which will redefine technology trade from US to India and product trade from India to US. For India, USA is a very important market and it continues to be the number one export destination with exports touching close to 350 million USD in 2007-08.”

Participating in the discussion Shri Gopal Pillai, Secretary, Ministry of Commerce Secretary, said that “the stimulus package announced by the government would start showing its impact in the next few months. This impact, when converted into higher consumption, would benefit several sectors.”

Commenting on the Indo-US relationship Mr. Pillai emphasized that the partnership goes far beyond nuclear deal and encompasses several aspects of economic development”.

INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE
The International Conference, an integral part of Plastindia 2009 proved to be an effective platform for experts to share knowledge and explore global trends, innovations and opportunities in Indian Plastics sector.

The speakers were unanimous in highlighting that the global downturn is indicating a positive sign for emerging economies like India in the plastics sector. The world is now shifting focus from developed economies to Asian region on these verticals.

At the International Conference, Shri Bijoy Chatterjee, Secretary, (Chemicals & Petrochemicals), said, “We feel that plastics industry in India is reducing the impact of the global downturn. In the first nine months, the exports have registered a growth of 10 per cent and we expect the momentum to continue for the rest of the year.”

HONOURING COUNTRY REPRESENTATIVES
Plastindia Foundation has been attempting to establish relationships with like minded prominent bodies across the world. With this motive in mind, a pioneering initiative to honour the representatives of the global plastics fraternity, a function was organized where 42 heads of Associations, Country Representatives were felicitated. Speaking on the occasion, Mr. Arvind Mehta made a special mention of the role played by these representatives in making PLASTINDIA 2009 a grand success. What this event would create is a global movement for the betterment of plastics with comes with unprecedented scale and unmatched diversity of experience, skill and knowledge.

ASIAN PLASTICS RECYCLING AND WASTE MANAGEMENT CONFERENCE
PLASTINDIA 2009 also saw the curtain raiser for Asian Plastics Recycling and Waste Management Conference. Organized by Plastindia Foundation in association with Asia Plastics Forum (APF), the conference was attended by experts from 12 countries. It focused on addressing technology options, opportunities, risks and concerns about plastics waste in India and other parts of Asia.

Speaking on the occasion, Mrs. Neelkamal Darbari, Joint Secretary, Dept. of Chemicals & Petrochemicals, stressed that, “An effective plastics waste management can be successful if government’s policy making, plastics industry bodies, municipalities and the citizens work closely together. Ms. Darbari said that the employment generation by plastics recycling industry is significant and it employs people mostly from lower strata of society. As an extension of this conference, a global contest was also organized to show case the recycling industry, recycled products, ideas were awarded prizes.

For the first time, PLASTINDIA 2009 saw awards for best stalls being instituted. This activity was judged by a panel of eminent industry professionals who judges stalls on the basis of aesthetics, knowledge and communication of product ideas. The awards were given to deserving stalls on the penultimate day of the exhibition.

PLASTINDIA 2009 also witnessed an interactive session on “Emerging Opportunities in Plastics in Assam.” At the function the Chief Minister of Assam, Honorable Shri Tarun Gogoi, said, “We are developing a Plastics Park of 500 acres in Assam to provide state-of-the-art infrastructure for the plastics industry. The state has also initiated a ‘Manpower Planning Project’ to provide qualified, technical man power for the industry, this will also generate substantial employment in the state.” The government of Assam in association with Plastindia Foundation is organising ‘North East International Plasto Fair 2009’ from June 5 - 9, 2009. The main objective of the event will be to promote the development and growth of the Plastics Industry in Assam and project Assam as a potential investment hub for plastics.

At PLASTINDIA 2009 exhibitors were under various categories like Raw Material, Polymer & Resins, Intermediates, Blends & Alloys, Compositives, Specialty Chemicals, Master batches, Additives, Colourants, Fillers & Reinforcements, Processing Machinery; Ancillary Equipment/Instrumentation, Finished Products, Mould & Dies, Post processing equipment for Printing, Plating, Lamination, Surface Enhancement and Decoration of Plastics, Quality Control and Testing Equipment; Trade Promotion Bodies and Professional Associations, R&D, Education & Training Institutes; Technical Publishers, etc. SMEs (Small & Medium Enterprises) of the Industry participated in big numbers at the mega event and availed the benefits of the international platform.

PLASTINDIA 2009 also housed new initiatives like: The Energy Saver Pavilion & The End User Pavilion besides the regular theme pavilions like Recycling Pavilion, Agri Park (Plastics in Agriculture) etc. A special pavilion titled ‘The Medical Plastics Pavilion’ was also housed to emphasize the role of plastics in the healthcare industry as well to highlight India’s achievement in this regard.

Aiming towards making India a global sourcing hub for plastics, PLASTINDIA 2009 concluded on a euphoric note bringing the Indian plastics industry to the limelight and placing it on a global platform to explore further possibilities and strengthening the sunrise industry in India.

So finally, in living upto its commitment to the industry, Plastindia Foundation provided the Industry the biggest platform ever for business with 1518 exhibitors (476 overseas exhibitors) spread over 77,000 sq. mtrs area covering 18 Halls & 16 Hangars and an exposure to over 1,30,000 business visitors. Business generated of over Rs. 1,000 crore is testimony to its success. Participation from 35 countries, with 20 country pavilions, 4 theme pavilions and 6 concurrent events made Plastindia 2009 a truly ‘Global Show’ and the most well packaged event the Indian industry has ever witnessed.