08.11.2024
International
The premiere of GIFA Mexico, which took place from 16 to 18 October 2024 at the Centro Citibanamex in Mexico City, concurrently with the established FUNDIEXPO, has ended with great success and a lot of encouragement from more than 4,700 trade visitors from Mexico, other Latin American countries, the United States and Canada. As a new trade fair in the ‘Bright World of Metals’ portfolio, GIFA Mexico is setting new standards for the foundry industry in Latin America.
344 exhibitors from 16 countries presented technological innovations in foundry technology on over 15,000 m² of exhibition space. From machines and plants for sand and die casting, metal processing, machining to die casting, almost all relevant manufacturers as well as service providers and consultants were represented. In addition to suppliers from Latin America, international companies from China, Italy, Spain, Germany and the USA in particular took part. For the first time, companies from Turkey and India also exhibited, two countries that are increasingly discovering Mexico as an attractive market for themselves. This underlines the growing international importance of the trade fair.
Malte Seifert, Director Metals & Autonomous Technologies at Messe Düsseldorf, enthusiastically summarised his impressions of the three days of the trade fair: ‘The first GIFA Mexico is behind us and we are still speechless. All the positive feedback and the numerous business opportunities that have arisen in the last few days have far exceeded our expectations. This is just the beginning, and we look forward to accompanying the further development of the Mexican market and offering our customers important, internationally oriented market platforms. Together with our partner FUNDIEXPO, our goal is to develop GIFA Mexico/FUNDIEXPO into one of the world's top four trade fairs for the foundry industry in the medium term’.
Bruno Jaramillo, Director of FUNDIEXPO, was also very satisfied: ‘We are delighted with the results of FUNDIEXPO/GIFA Mexico 2024. The response from exhibitors and visitors was overwhelming and impressively underscored the importance of the trade fair for the industry. We are already working on the next event, which will take place in Monterrey, Nuevo León, in 2026, where we will provide further impetus for the development of the foundry and metallurgy industry at the international level’.
GIFA Mexico/FUNDIEXPO also met with a great response from the international audience. Patricio Gil, former AFS president and foundry entrepreneur, praised: ‘You can expect a good event from experienced partners like Messe Düsseldorf with the world's leading trade fair GIFA and FUNDIEXPO, but I am pleasantly surprised. Mexico has enormous potential and this kick-off was extremely successful.’ Many exhibitors shared this enthusiasm and praised the high quality of the trade visitors. Jürgen Lamparter, Sales Director at Oskar Frech GmbH, also drew a positive conclusion: ’We feel very comfortable in Mexico, and GIFA Mexico/FUNDIEXPO offers us an excellent platform.’
Highlights of the accompanying supporting programme, with more than 80 lectures and events, were the Global Foundry and Metallurgy Summit and the panel ‘Women in the Foundry Industry’. In addition to the trade fair, various factory tours and seminars were organised in advance, giving participants a deeper insight into Mexico's foundry industry.
At the request of the industry, the next GIFA Mexico/FUNDIEXPO will take place in Monterrey (northern Mexico) from 28 to 30 October 2026.