Can IMAC 2009 be an April shower

The going has gotten tough. Companies in each field are having no choice but to get the tough going by reminding themselves °°Yes, we can.°± But could they at least count on the April rain in spite of the reality Into this stalemate comes the great news of the International Materials and Components Industry Show 2009 (IMAC 2009) as the April rain on April 16, which is scheduled to last three days at KINTEX. Will this rain slant down in fitful showers to the furrows of original technologies or to the field of drying up manufactured goods If so, many businesses will be ringed with nestling flowers in 2009.

Yes, It Can

The Ministry of Knowledge Economy has selected IMAC 2009 as this year's Most Promising Exhibition. Since 2005, the annually held IMAC has been gaining recognition as a specialized exhibition that revitalizes the export markets via technology exchange and sales promotions. This year, about 250 local and foreign companies related to machinery, automobiles, electronics, electro-mechanics, robots, metal materials, chemical materials, and ceramic materials are waiting to fall as April rain. Samsung Electromechanics, LG Innotek, Canon, and Toshiba are just a few of the companies which will be part of the shower. A full 10,000 participants are expected to join, and roughly 600 of them are buyers from Japan, America, and Europe who are coming for succeed deals.

IMAC 2009 is hosted by KINTEX and Kyungyon Exhibition, and sponsored by the Korea Materials and Components Industry Agency (KMAC). Jung Joonsuk, CEO of KMAC, said: “This year's significance is that Japan Materials and Components Supply Show will open with IMAC to carve out the path of export routes between Korea and Japan.” At 2A and 3A, approximately 50 Japanese buyers will display their wish-list of finished products or component samples to have a business meeting with Korean relating companies. “This will be a great opportunity for participating companies who has long been preparing to expand their market to Japan. Furthermore, business meetings between Korea and Japan are expected to carve out the path of export routes between the two countries,” Dr. Jung said.

Various business meetings, buyer meetings, forums, seminars, presentations, and many more events are arranged to encourage sales and exports at the exhibition hall. Seven to eight countries including Germany, England, the Philippines, and Japan are going to participate in the buyers' meetings and are expected to make deals amounting to 2 million dollars in total. The IMAC 2009 is ready to drizzle down upon its field. Then, how strong is the earth Is it able to take it all in

Field study

“Materials and components are the essential elements that determine a finished product's added value and competitive power. Thus, the future of the country lies in the security of original core materials technology,” began President Jung Joon-suk of Korea Materials and Components Industry Agency. Since the establishment of the government's special act MCT-2010 in 2001, the materials and components' profits jumped from 27 million dollars to 364 million dollars.

In spite of the big leap, today's competitive power of Korea's material technology is 60% of developed countries. “Korean wide-use materials like iron and steel or petrochemicals are ranked as the top five in the world, yet advanced materials like liquid crystals have been depending on importing goods. We have good number of manpower, approximately 11,000, yet the organic bonds between research centers are rare to be found,” Dr. Jung noted.

A well developed materials and components, however, can be a magical cure that beats back the crisis. “Did you know that it takes 27,000 components to build a single car Without a core part or material, it is impossible to upgrade the performance of a finished product,” CEO Jung said. He continued: “A material adds high value to a product bringing a huge impact in economy and contributing greatly to related industries. For an example, selling a carbon fiber bicycle is equivalent of selling 44 steel bicycles.” Material and component industry has been determining the value of a finished product, encouraging collaboration between big firms and small and medium sized companies, and has created 15,200 extra jobs from 2001 to 2006. The materials and component industry can expand its reach to the green growth industry in the near future as well. The development of core materials and components that make up environmentally-friendly subjects is the next hidden key to open a new global market.

Blossom

The new movements have been showing to support materials and components industries. For those companies whose sales on materials or components are more than 50% of the entire sales will be funded 75% by the government for a year long. The government planned to support 12 billion won in 2009. In order to confirm the credibility of materials and components, R-mark stamps and evaluation centers have been promoted. Enterprise cooperation between Korea and Japan are highly expected in next few years. The current project of business collaboration between 13 Japanese companies and 52 Korean companies' is seeking to increase the exporting rate to Japan by 2010. Research and development centers are collaborating to connect all 25 centers' resources together by applying research infrastructure like manpower, tools, and information. This will allow real-time total solutions for any type of technical error from design to manufacturing.

Many more areas are expected to bloom after IMAC 2009. April showers will indeed bring May flowers.