JEC Show Asia 2010 - Press Release

The composites industry in Asia has been experiencing strong growth over the past few years, and the current Asian market is estimated at more than US$26 billion, with new application developments remaining a long-term driver for composites to replace other traditional materials and also create new applications. The 2010 edition of JEC Show Asia secured participation from major players from every segment that makes up the value chain of the composites industry. There was a special focus on urban solutions in key application markets such as mass transportation and aeronautics, energy solutions, infrastructure and environmentally friendly technologies. The wood composites value chain was also well represented at this year’s Show with key players present.

“The JEC Show Asia 2010 exhibition and conference offered a broad global overview of the economic, business, and innovation issues and challenges facing in the composites industry today,” says Frédérique Mutel, President and CEO of JEC Composites Group. “We have fulfilled our ultimate aim for JEC Show Asia 2010 of promoting composites developments in Asia. The environmental benefits of natural fibers and other new developments in composites recycling are key areas of interest that have sparked a lot of debate within the composites community. JEC Show Asia 2010 provided a platform for key players to have these important discussions which will have an important impact on how the composites industry develops in the future.”

Highlights of JEC Show Asia 2010

With a total of 346 exhibitors displaying a wide range of composites innovations, JEC Show Asia 2010 has grown markedly in scale with a 10 percent increase in exhibition space due to bigger booths. The annual event continues to garner the support of various globally renowned academic institutions and industry associations from across the Asia Pacific region including Australia, China, India, Japan, Malaysia, New Zealand, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand and Vietnam.

JEC Show Asia 2010 also featured an extended geographical scope as compared with previous editions, with new participating countries such as UAE making their debut at the event. Another significant feature is the increased number of companies showcasing their latest products and technology capabilities for the first time in Asia at this year’s event.

The full lineup of JEC Show Asia 2010 exhibition, conference and business networking programs attracted 7,010 trade visitors, which include a high proportion of key decision makers in the global composites arena.

“The expanded scale of JEC Show Asia 2010 is a clear reflection of the highly optimistic outlook for the composites industry in Asia,” says Mutel. “This year’s growth also cements JEC Show Asia’s position as the key composites platform that caters to the needs of the Asian market and JEC’s integral role in promoting the increasing use of composite materials across a wide range of market applications in Asia.”

Introducing the latest composites innovations

A highlight at the JEC Show Asia 2010 was the launch of the first ever Innovative International Composites Summit (IICS) in Singapore, held concurrently with the main exhibition. A key milestone for JEC, the IICS took place over three days and comprised eight economic and technical seminars that explored the latest breakthroughs in different applications sectors in the composites industry.

“The quality of the inaugural IICS program will boost our efforts to unveil new composite applications and trends in Asia, as well as encourage dialogue between the industry and key end users during JEC Show Asia,” Mutel says. “This process of information sharing is essential for the Asian composites market, where there is a strong and growing demand for a broad spectrum of leading-edge composites applications.”

The second IICS conference and forum is scheduled to take place at the JEC Show Paris in March 2011, with the third planned for next year’s JEC Show Asia in October 2011.

JEC Show Asia 2010 was opened by Prof. Chong Tow Chong, Provost of the Singapore University of Technology and Design (SUTD) and keynote speaker Chuck Dana, Group President, Composites Solutions Business, Owens Corning. The Show also hosted the awards ceremony of the annual JEC Asia Innovation Awards, the program dedicated to showcasing innovative composites solutions in the Asia Pacific region. The JEC Asia Innovation Awards has quickly established itself as a top-level awards program attuned to the latest technological trends in the Asian composites field. An international jury of industry experts reviews the industry’s leading-edge innovations, and awards are handed out based on their technical interest, market potential, partnership, financial impact and originality.

Nine companies and their partners received awards for their application developments at the JEC Asia Innovation Awards 2010. This year, the Life Achievement Award was presented to Stephen Seow, founder of Dynaglass Singapore, honoring his accomplishments in the composites field.

Increased demand for automated processes

One of the key technology trends identified in the 2010 edition of JEC Show Asia is the increased demand for automation to improve manufacturing processes across different composites market segments in the Asia Pacific region, especially for high value-added applications in aeronautics and wind energy. Market penetration for automated manufacturing solutions is growing rapidly and there is great potential for process automation technologies to be adopted by manufacturers in Asia.

“Composites production methods are always evolving, and the demand for advanced technologies, particularly automated processes, in the Asian composites field is growing,” Mutel explains. “As the manufacturing base in Asia continues to grow, Asian companies can be expected to increasingly leverage automated processes to achieve cost reduction, improved productivity and higher product quality. In 2001, only 30 percent of manufacturing in Asia was automated. In 2010, this number has grown to 64 percent and is expected to hit 84 percent in the short to medium term.”

With the large number of international exhibitors showcasing the latest equipment, machines and software solutions for advanced process automation, JEC Show Asia has played an integral role in introducing a wide range of the industry’s leading-edge automated solutions to Asia over the past three years. The Automation and Production Forum of this year’s IICS program brought together leading technology firms to share the latest automated processes for cost-effective manufacturing in the entire composites production chain.

Global Scientific Network to connect composites industry and research institutions

At the Show’s opening ceremony, JEC announced the launch of the JEC Global Scientific Network (GSN). The JEC GSN is an integral step in connecting key composites industry players with relevant research and educational institutions from around the world. Its global launch in Singapore is a reflection of the growing importance of the Asian composites market and the increasing concentration of research and development activities in key innovation hubs based in the Asia Pacific region.

The National University of Singapore is among the founding members of the GSN which includes other educational institutions such as the Technical University of Munich, Stanford University in the US, and Hanyang University of South Korea. It will also include current JEC board members Advanced Composites Group, Umeco, AGY, CCP Composites, Chomarat, CPC, DSM, Duqueine Group, Hexcel, Huntsman, IDI Composites International, OCV, Porcher Industries and Sora.

“With the strong market growth the region is currently experiencing, the launch of the GSN in Asia aims to provide more immediate access to technical information related to composites, facilitate greater information exchange and keep industry players updated on the latest technological breakthroughs that are relevant to the market,” says Mutel on the GSN launch. “The GSN also further solidifies our commitment to develop JEC Show Asia as the region’s leading composites platform to optimize production, boost knowledge and create business opportunities.”

JEC Show Asia 2011 will be held next year from October 18 to 20 in Singapore.

A few figures and highlights from JEC Asia 2010:
• 346 participating companies
• 10 sectoral or national pavilions (China, France, Japan, India, Malaysia, and others)
• Support and participation of Singapore institutions (EDB, STB, A*Star, NUS, SUTD, and others)
• 7,010 visitors
• 8 economic and technical seminars


About JEC Composites
JEC is dedicated to promoting composites internationally. It supports the development of these materials by fostering knowledge transfer and exchanges between suppliers and users. To date, the JEC network connects more than 250,000 professionals worldwide from 96 different countries all around the world. JEC is a simplified joint stock company established under French law that was created by the Composites Promotion Center (CPC), a non-profit association that holds the capital. Its mission is to develop products and services by reinvesting all the benefits to create added value for its customers and for the composite industry.
For more information about JEC Composites, visit our website at www.jeccomposites.com

Source : JEC