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Corferias and Koelnmesse join forces to turn the Wood Industry Fair, that will take place in Bogota, in the most important in Latin America

• Corferias and Koelnmesse come together to carry out, in 2018, the Technological and Industrial Fair of Furniture and Wood, where the latest industry trends in supplies, machinery, software, as well as the technological developments that are transforming the sector to make it more competitive.
• Koelnmesse is the organizer of INTERZUM, the most important fair in the world in the sector of inputs for the production of furniture and interior design in the world.
• The sector currently generates around 90,000 formal and informal jobs in Colombia and 280,000 indirect jobs. 

Bogotá, Colombia. January 2018. In 2018, the Technological and Industrial Fair for Furniture and Wood will have for the first time as a strategic ally Koelnmesse, the world's number one fair organizer in the sector of supplies for the wood industry. 

This alliance seeks to create operational and commercial synergies between the International Business and Exhibition Center CORFERIAS and Koelnmesse in order to expand the market, generate new business opportunities, strengthen the event in Colombia and stay at the forefront of the latest trends in the sector with technological innovations from countries such as Germany, Turkey, Italy and Brazil, who will be part of this new edition. 

Andres Lopez Valderrama, Executive President of Corferias assured: "this union has allowed us to work together to strengthen the supply of the productive chain of this sector so important both for the country and for the region. This event, working together with Koelnmesse, will be a mandatory stop for entrepreneurs in this market in Latin America”. 

On the other hand, Roberto Vergara, Director of Internationalization of Corferias, mentions: “Likewise, for international delegations and professional visitors, this will be the ideal scenario to obtain first-hand information on technological advances and trends specific to the industry in the region”. 

For his part Denis Steker, International Vice President of Koelnmesse, spoke about the importance of this alliance. "Establishing an alliance of this kind, is to generate a greater positioning of the same and give the visitor a chance to grow (...) our presence in countries such as India, China, Thailand, Japan, as well as a global network dedicated to fairs, it is the great contribution that we will give to this alliance. Corferias will undoubtedly bring to us his knowledge in the wood market and his extensive experience in the local market. Together we will take the fair to be an important reference in the Andean region, Central America and the Caribbean". 

The Technological and Industrial Fair of the Furniture and Wood will be the propitious space to know in depth the process of the wood applied to the tools for massive production, the technology of surfaces, the primary processing, the components of machinery and the materials coming from the nature. 

"Our main goal is to turn the fair into the HUB of the sector in the region and allow international guests to find in Colombia, a robust business platform, with the best solution alternatives for this industry", said Doris Chingate, project manager.

A key sector for the Colombian economy 

The Technological and Industrial Fair of Furniture and Wood is the reflection of an important industry for Colombia. According to figures from Fedemaderas and the National Forestry Research and Development Corporation (CONIF), in Colombia there are 17 million hectares with forest aptitude, of which 5.1 million are unrestricted lands, that is, they do not require any type of adjustments soils for the cultivation and development of forestry projects and 12.1 million have minor restrictions. 

This situation becomes an opportunity to encourage the realization of forestry projects in Colombia. In addition, the country has the necessary lands (17 million hectares with forest aptitude) to develop commercial plantations and substitute in the long term the import of wood derivatives. Chile (29%) continues to be the main destination for imports of wood and its products, followed by China (21%) and Ecuador (16%). 

The great bet to 2025 is to have 1,500,000 hectares, which would reflect an increase of 328% compared to 2011. Additionally, by 2019 the sector will have a high participation in agricultural production and employment generation based on the use and sustainable management of natural and planted forests that today generates 90,000 formal and informal jobs for the sector and around 280,000 indirect jobs. 

Valuing the characteristics of the Colombian sector, which has a strong presence in the field of wood, and counting on the participation of Koelnmesse as an international ally in this new edition, the Technological and Industrial Fair of Furniture and Wood hopes to overcome the results left by the edition of 2017 with an exhibition area of 16,000 square meters and 23 participating countries from Latin America, Europe and Asia; besides positioning Colombia as a reference in the sector and a great precursor of advances in the industry.