PM 2008 exhibition

摘要

PM's Editor John Dunkley reviews trends and developments on display at the Washington exhibition. With -130 exhibitors, this was one of the largest PM industry shows ever, and required several hours to see properly. There was no sign of pessimism amongst exhibitors, and their substantial investment in the show demonstrates confidence in the PM industry. The exhibitors were about 25 percent powder producers, 25 percent press and furnace suppliers and 25 percent suppliers of other systems and consumables (such as furnace furniture, tooling, lubricants, sealants, etc.), the 25 percent balance being split between professional and research organisations, automation and instrumentation suppliers, other equipment (such as hipping units, sieves) and MIM industry folks. Clearly space does not permit a comprehensive description, but some points of interest or novelty are reported below.