REFCOAT @ GIFA 2019
World's most significant and extravagant trade fair for the foundry industry - GIFA!
The thought of representing REFCOAT at such a huge platform has been a dream ever since our MD Mr. Vijay Gurunath happened to visit this trade fair way back in 2015. "The scale and magnitude of this platform is magnanimous" he said. Every single one of us here at REFCOAT was waiting to witness it first-hand.
The international trade fair quartet which comprises of GIFA, METEC, THERMPROCESS and NEWCAST is THE platform for international buyers, experts and decision makers from metallurgy, heat technology and foundry industries (castings manufactures & its vendors) meeting here at four events, at the same time and at the same place.
GIFA2019 was the 14th international trade fair with technical forum for the foundry industry which is spread over more than 5 hall marking to more than 45,000 m2. GIFA happens over 5 days during the summer of the German city, Dusseldorf. Dusseldorf is divided by the river Rhine, with Alstadt (Old town) on the east bank and the modern commercial area to the west with a population of 6.2lakhs (2016).
(Dusseldorf old town on the east side of the river Rhine)
2019. Our dream of experiencing GIFA came true. With a 21 m2 booth and bags full of faith and dreams we ventured into our very first international trade fair. Having had the experience of participating in a few Indian trade fairs, all of us had the basic know-how of each day's activities. However, the first two days went without any major customers or prospective buyers visiting our stall. We brushed it off as a warm-up period. Once inside, we were amazed by the scale and diversity of the different halls and booths. We went onto visit multiple booths representing foundries and machine manufacturers to invite them over to our stall for a quick discussion and exchange of ideas.
During the first two days, customers from India visited curious about the new technology. They left with a lot more understanding and clarity about us and our products. By this time, we were in full swing! Third day proved extremely crucial for us at GIFA. One of our prospective Swedish customers wanted an in-person testimonial from our existing Indian customers. Not only did our existing customers from India come over to our booth to provide a testimonial, they happened to be all praises for our MD and his team!
My-oh-my were we pumped! This was a big booster to all our beliefs of making it big at GIFA. Further to this, the big guns of the industry who are into manufacturing similar products as ours realised the potential of our products and technology and visited our stall in big numbers for a better understanding.
(REFCOAT stall in GIFA 2019)
Within no time we had reached the weekend! Towards the end of the 5th day we had multiple enquiries for our products with multinational companies coming forward offering to work together. Just the scale and enormity of GIFA leaves a lasting mark on everybody who were a part of it!
(The REFCOAT team at GIFA 2019)
Not only did we succeed in extending REFCOAT's network in multi-folds, we made sure we reach the forefront of global innovation and technology through GIFA. We are here to make a difference and we will MAKE IT HAPPEN!