Techtextil Now Annual

Messe Frankfurt USA is doubling the frequency of its biennial Techtextil North America and moving it to Las Vegas in odd-numbered years.

This year's Techtextil North America took place April 1-3 at the Cobb Galleria Centre in Atlanta.

“A lot of people don't travel the way they used to,” said Show Manager Stephanie Everett. “We're just not getting them in Atlanta.”

Next year's show is scheduled April 21-23 at the Sands Expo & Convention Center/Venetian Resort Hotel Casino.

According to Everett, the western United States holds a large number of consumers of high-performance fibers and textiles in the sectors the show focuses on: agriculture, transportation, industrial and medical. What's more, the two shows Everett said she considered her most formidable competitors also take place in the southeastern U.S., making an event in the western U.S. a prime opportunity.

IFAI Expo, an annual show produced by the Industrial Fabrics Assn. Intl., rotates primarily in the Southeast. It is next scheduled Oct. 21-23 at the Charlotte (N.C.) Convention Center. The triennial IDEA, produced by INDA, Assn. of the Nonwoven Fabrics Industry, was held in Miami Beach in 2007 and will be there again in 2010.

“There will be a different mix of exhibitors and attendees in Las Vegas,” Everett said. “We have some exhibitors that are interested in both events. Some only interested in the Southeast are staying here (in Atlanta, where the show will continue to be held in even-numbered years), and some new ones will join us.”

Other editions of Messe Frankfurt's Techtextil take place in Moscow; Shanghai; Frankfurt, Germany; and Mumbai, India.