Interwood Taipei will be held July 7-10, 2011.
Interwood Taipei 2011 is a major machinery exhibition held in Taiwan every three years. We asked Elli Tsailing Hung, project manager at the Taiwan Trade Center in Chicago, about the show and the current woodworking business environment in Taiwan.
“In general, Taiwan’s wood machinery focuses on customized products, the prices are reasonable compared to Europe and the States,” he told CabinetMakerFDM. “The manufacturers keep making improvements on key components and after-sale services. In addition, due to the limited resources of wood (available in Taiwan), they also put efforts on how to reuse materials.
“The Taiwanese woodworking machinery industry has a history of more than 40 years and now ranks No. 4 in the world for exports. Over the years, the industry has specialized in providing machinery for both production of mass-produced and customized wooden furniture, while adapting to changes in market demand,” Hung said.
Interwood, known as the Taipei International Woodworking Machinery and Supplies Show, is one of the three largest professional woodworking machinery exhibitions in Asia. The last exhibition in 2008 drew 182 exhibitors using 1,070 booths, and more than 3,800 domestic and international visitors. The number of buyers from Russia, Mexico and India grew sharply, according to Hung.
More than 180 companies are expected at the 2011 event, held every three years.
The United States has traditionally been the largest export market for Taiwan-made woodworking machinery, but China claimed the top export destination in 2010, according to the Taiwan Directorate General of Customs and Interwood Woodworking and Furniture Digest. In the 2008-2010 period, Hong Kong, Canada and Vietnam were also major export destinations.
According to Taiwan Economic News, the global downturn has reduced machinery exports. Woodworking equipment exports declined 13 percent in 2008 to $590 million. Machinery makers have focused on saving customer’s costs, developing non-woodworking machines using core technologies, and seeking smaller orders. Newer machines featured better control technology, higher output and accuracy.
Taiwan Trade Center’s Hung said that more than 180 companies are using 1,100 booths in the 2011. The show will be held July 7-10 at the TWTC Nangang Exhibition Hall and features a full range of woodworking machinery related tools, parts and accessories, raw materials, and other related items. For more information email Tsailing Hung at thung@taitra.org.tw.