Constructionshows
290 companies, representing 22 countries, came to Bucharest to feel the pulse of the constructions market in Romania. A good move, considering that here, at least, the constructions market will continue its ascending trend, after last years 7% growth.
The Construct Expo Fair, gathered in Bucharest, for the duration of four days, top companies specialized in technologies, equipments, machinery and materials for constructions. Manufacturers from 22 countries came to Bucharest with new products and innovations in the field, hoping to convince potential business partners of how much they would need them for such a full year, as 2012 announces to be.
Already since the opening of the fair, the Minister of Regional Development and Tourism, Cristian Popescu, has assured everyone that, in Romania at least “the constructions market will continue it’s ascending trend, after last years 7% growth.” This case even if there were stagnation months, such as January. Naturally, if considering that most of Romania was covered by huge snow early in the year.
The minister encouraged investors by declaring that the state will continue to invest, even though this year the ministry he leads counts on a budget reduced 15% as opposed to next year. The stakes though remain in the private sector, as actually is considered by most of the investors present at the fair.
Investors in constructions count on loans of European funds.
“Very many small investors have started businesses in constructions because they have accessed structural funds” is also the opinion of Adrian Săulean, service engineer for Wirtgen, while he runs us along the products on show by the company he is representing in the fair. First he introduces to us a Wirtgen road W 200, scraping asphalt in more the 75% of the profile market. The he shows a 70 to, digitally operated, Kleeman impact grinding mill that is premiering in Romania.
Money for the infrastructure
There was exactly this type of exhibits attracting the attention of investors. Let’s keep in mind that, unlike other European countries, Romania does not have an impeccable infrastructure. Here we speak about a large demand of new housing and roads. The Transylvania Highway Project, with a length of 415 km, was granted a budget of 2.2 billion euros. So, there is money for such projects, vital to Romania’s development. To proof, the Mystery of Transports informed that approximately one billion lei will be allotted from 2012 to 2014 for the maintenance of national roads in Romania.
Exhibits to large for the fair
We do continue our journey through the fair, and a few steps away, after the stand of Wirtgen, we find the representatives of the company Benninghoven from Germany. They brought in machinery used to prepare and mould asphalt and a mobile bunker including a 3000 kg mixer. With PKD Grup we find the largest stock of bulldozer tracks, excavators and accessories. The company is sole importer in Romania and they supply heavy equipment, up to 90 to, which is why there are only models of the tracks to the fair.
Just consulting completes the offers range with an impressive directional drilling machine, destined for horizontal digging. The depth that can be reached by this drilling machine is even more impressive – 2.5km. A bit further, the Italian company Polyglass introduces us to their PVC and TPO waterproof membranes. “The membranes produced by us globally, could cover 25.000 m²”, we are told by the companies representatives.
Farther on we found the Containex representatives, bringing to the fair solutions their on site workers accommodation solutions. But the containers the company produces could also host schools, kindergartens, mobile medical centers, offices or spaces for events.
Examples of creativity
We leave the outdoor exhibition area and enter the halls, hosting other tenths of booths, of companies that have brought here their most recent products. If up until now we find everything needed to build any kind of structure, with any kind of destination, inside we are being offered ideas for all that means decoration and interior design. Innovations are the ones to draw our attention first. Environment friendly projects are the ones drawing attention as years go by and since demand increases, producers become bolder. Among the exhibits we found a toilet built especially to protect environment by the consumption of water. By the compact design it saves not only space but also water, since it collects in a reservoir all the water used by the sink next to it, This is only one of the creativity examples we found at the fair. And, maybe since we are on this page, we ought to also mention the light bulbs that, according to the producers, won’t let us down in the first 35 years of use. Is that long enough?
A to Z home solutions
The halls host the most diverse booths. From companies showing decorations under the signature of world renowned fashion designers, to local producers and importers, they all found their place under the cupola of the main Romexpo hall. “It is one of the most successful events of this kind that I’ve attended”, we are told by a visitor who went from booth to booth, in order to find necessary materials for the home he is building. In the present economy, this kind of customers are growing less, so the exhibitors grant him the same attention they would offer to an important investor, because they can’t afford to lose any business opportunity. Our customer does not know yet what kind of installations to use in the house, how the alleys in the yard will be tiled; but he already knows what “la piece de resistance” will be in his living room. A fireplace he chose at Romexpo.
Translation: Ioana Giurgiuman