Materials handling is a global market with companies operating and trading at world level. Such a reality should be reflected at trade representatives’ level. With this in mind, first informal contacts were made at the last CeMAT Hannover exhibition back in 2011. Three years later, a World Materials Handling Alliance is officially launched.
With the signature of a Memorandum of Understanding, partners from China, Japan, the U.S. and Europe commit to enhance cooperation on issues of mutual interest. Partners will notably share information on markets (publicly available data on production and trade of materials handling equipment) and on regulatory requirements and standards for placing equipment on the market. They will also exchange on trends that influence the application of materials handling solutions throughout the world.
The FEM President, who hosted the meeting, said: “FEM is proud to be among the founding members of this Alliance. Our respective manufacturers can only gain from exchanging and getting to know each other better. BMHRI, CMES, FEM, JIMH and MHI are committed to making this initiative a success. CeMAT is a symbolic host for the launch: the exhibition reflects the global character of materials handling and it hosted our first discussions 3 years ago.”
