During the K trade show, which took place in Düsseldorf (Germany) between October 19 and 26, CEFAMOL accompanied 18 companies that made up the national collective participation, as part of the international promotion project 'Engineering & Tooling from Portugal': AES, CHETO, CR Moulds, Frumolde, JDD Moldes, Moldegama, Moldes RP, MOLDIT, Moldoeste, Moldoplástico, SET, Socem, Steelplus, Tecnifreza, Tecnimoplás, UEpro, VL Moldes e VSV.

The national companies were satisfied, both by the amount of contacts established with customers already known, and with the interaction with new customers who visited the fair. "In relation to the last edition of the fair, in 2019, there was a noticeable increase in visitors, both from Europe and even from other parts of the globe, such as the United States or Latin America."

In the end, the national moldmaking companies considered they had made very promising contacts and returned with some optimism regarding the business for 2023, although there is still a lot of uncertainty regarding issues such as the war in Ukraine and its economic consequences, as well as the decision on new mobility concepts for the automotive industry - the main customer of Portuguese molds.

Portuguese companies have, by tradition, to mark their presence in this fair, since Germany is the main market in the sector and, in this way, they can 'take their office', in the form of a stand, to their customers, establishing a closer relationship. On the other hand, given its size and importance, this fair is a kind of barometer for the industry.

Sustainability was one of the main highlights of this year's edition of the fair. According to the organization, in charge of Messe Düsseldorf, there was a visible focus on the presentation of new technological developments that raw material producers, machine manufacturers and plastics processors have developed to implement the circular economy, conservation of natural resources and climate protection.

Also according to the organization, this fair, which is considered the most important fair in the world dedicated to the plastics and rubber industry, had 3,037 exhibitors, and was visited by more than 176,000 professionals from 157 nations.