The manufacturing and supply chain community came together in March for a return to in-person trade shows with a record-setting MODEX event, according to show producer MHI. More than 37,047 visitors connected with over 857 exhibitors across 405,000-square-feet of exhibit space at Atlanta’s Georgia World Congress Center.
This was the largest MODEX event to date for MHI, with 20% more visitors than the last pre-pandemic show – MODEX 2018. Additionally, the direct economic impact of this event to the Atlanta area is estimated to be $45 million.
“MODEX 2022 was a huge success and a dramatic return to in-person events for the supply chain industry, said John Paxton, CEO of MHI. “After two years, exhibitors and attendees were excited to be there and energized by the opportunity to connect and get back to the business of discovering the latest supply chain technology and innovation in-person.”
The excitement on the show floor and the educational events is a sign not only of the pent-up demand for the latest solutions and technology, but also the overall strength of this industry. “Attendees representing the Fortune 500, the top 100 retailers and consumer goods firms brought large teams to MODEX to source the latest innovations and to learn leading trends impacting supply chains,” said Daniel McKinnon, executive vice president of Exhibitions at MHI. “They came to MODEX with plans in hand and budgets in place to make large deals on-site.”
The dominant trend at MODEX surrounded digital supply chain solutions including automation, robotics, artificial intelligence, autonomous vehicles, augmented reality, the Internet of Things (IoT), and data analytics. “We’re seeing a revolutionary acceleration in the adoption of these technologies in manufacturing and supply chain operations,” said Paxton. “The solutions on display this year reflected this trend.”
The next MHI-sponsored trade event will be ProMat 2023 held March 20-23 in Chicago’s McCormick Place. For more information on exhibiting at ProMat, or to register as an attendee, visit promatshow.com. The next MODEX will be held at the Georgia World Congress Center in 2024.