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CHINESE PARTICIPATION AT NPE2009 PROMISES TO BE STRONG

SPI’s Advice to People Planning to Travel from China to NPE2009: Don’t Wait until the Last Minute to Apply for a Visa

SHANGHAI (April 19, 2008)—Chinese participation in the NPE international plastics exposition has surged in recent years and will play an important role once again at NPE2009, according to The Society of the Plastics Industry, Inc. (SPI), founder and organizer of the triennial NPE shows. NPE2009 will take place June 22-26, 2009 at Chicago’s McCormick Place.

“The number of exhibitors coming to NPE 2006 directly from mainland China and Hong Kong was nearly five times that for NPE 2003 and was the largest of any national group of international exhibitors,” said SPI vice president of trade shows Gene Sanders, speaking at the NPE2009 press conference at Chinaplas 2008. “Judging from early information on sales of exhibit space for NPE2009, we expect that China will once again be well represented at the show next year.”

While it is still too early to predict the number of registered visitors coming to NPE2009 from mainland China and Hong Kong, the number of Chinese plastics professionals taking part in NPE 2006 also represented a great leap ahead of the corresponding figure in 2003. “More than a thousand individuals came to NPE 2006 from China,” said Sanders. “Only the nearest neighbors of the United States, Canada and Mexico, sent more people to the last NPE.”

Sanders added that individuals looking to come from China to NPE2009 should start the process of obtaining a visa well in advance of the show.

“The decision on approving or rejecting an individual’s visa application is made locally by an officer after a face-to-face interview at one of the nine U.S. consulates in mainland China and Hong Kong—not by someone reviewing an application form at the State Department in Washington,” Sanders said. “While the interview required for each applicant typically takes only a few minutes, it may take weeks to obtain an appointment for an interview because of the backlog of applicants.”

Information on the visa process is available in English at http://www.unitedstatesvisas.gov/. For the Chinese-language version of the website of the U.S. Embassy to China, visit http://chinese.usembassy-china.org.cn/.

At NPE 2006, China Set Records for Exhibits, Pavilions, and Participants

“The surge in NPE participation from China reflects the explosive growth of industry in that country, but it is also the latest stage in the long-term transformation of NPE into a truly international event,” said Sanders.

At NPE 2006, for example, international exhibitors (companies coming directly from outside the U.S., as distinct from U.S. subsidiaries) accounted for 33% of the total, compared with 30% in 2003 and 24.5% in 2000. There were 14 multi-exhibitor “country” pavilions at the 2006 show. Visitors came from 126 nations, many as part of delegations from specific countries. There were 26 such delegations at NPE 2006, from countries ranging from Bangladesh to Mexico and from Canada to Singapore.

China’s role in NPE 2006 was greater than at any previous NPE:

• Number of exhibitors. There were 127 companies from mainland China and Hong Kong—not counting Chinese companies with U.S. subsidiaries that also exhibited. Moldmakers made up the largest share, accounting for 50 firms. Another 30 were machinery builders. Only 27 Chinese companies of any type came to NPE 2003.

• Number of pavilions. Many of the Chinese companies at NPE 2006 exhibited at one of four pavilions. These were sponsored by China Shenzhen Machinery Assn.; China Engineering Plastics Industry Assn.; China Plastic Machine Industry Assn.; and the Machinery Subcouncil of the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade.

• Number of show participants. There were 854 plastics professionals attending NPE 2006 from mainland China and another 186 from Hong Kong—1,040 in all.

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The NPE 2009 international plastics exposition will take place June 22-26, 2009 at Chicago’s McCormick Place. NPE 2006 attracted 1,838 exhibitors on 942,524 sq.ft. (87,600 sq. m) of net space; 33% of them came directly from outside the U.S. Of 64,438 industry professionals who registered to attend, 23% were internationals from 114 countries. For details on NPE, visit www.npe.org.

Founded in 1937, THE SOCIETY OF THE PLASTICS INDUSTRY, INC., (SPI) is the trade association representing the third-largest manufacturing industry in the United States. SPI's members represent the entire plastics industry supply chain, including processors, machinery and equipment manufacturers and raw materials suppliers. The U.S. plastics industry employs 1.1 million workers and provides $379-billion in annual shipments. Visit SPI on the Web at www.plasticsindustry.org.

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