March 13, 2015, India: The 63rd edition of Indian Foundry Congress (IFC) began with the focus on best practices required for strengthening the foundry industry as a whole. IFEX 2015 and Cast India Expo concurrent with 63rd IFC, the three-day (27th February - 1st March 2015) foundry show hosted by The Institute of Indian Foundrymen (IIF), commenced today at world class India Expo Centre & Mart, Greater Noida. The show, which emerged as India's largest foundry industry event, is recognised as a flagship event of the foundry sector in India by the associations and the industry at large.

Indian Foundry Industry has approx 5000 foundries in MSME sector with the production of approx 10 Mn tonnes/annum and contributes 18 Bn USD towards annual revenue. The requirement of castings is expected to go up three folds in next 10 years to support manufacturing in India. IFEX 2015 and Cast India Expo is the most important platform for the foundry industry of the Indian sub-continent as a sourcing ground for all their foundry requirements. The first day of the 63rd edition of Indian Foundry Congress, highlighted that development of the foundry industry is the need of the hour, no matter how the economy is, with over 200 exhibitors from across the globe like USA, Japan, Italy, Germany, Japan, China, Taiwan, etc., in addition to India, showcased their products and technologies for various industries. With Indian Foundry Congress improving its standards and growing in terms of participation year on year, the 63rd Indian Foundry Congress attracted more foreign delegates, exhibitors and visitors as compared to the previous events in the region.

Spread over 20,000 sq meters, IFEX 2015 and Cast India Expo saw a grandeur opening at 10 am in the presence of dignitaries like Mr Madhav Lal, IAS, Secretary Ministry of Micro Small & Medium Enterprises, Government of India and other senior government officials and officials of National Small Industries Corporation (NSIC) along with members from World Foundry Organization from various countries and leading CEOs from Foundry Sector.

"IIF is the fourth association that received Gold Accreditation which is a big reflection of IIF's quality systems which the ministry will also look at for the growth of various industries. I am pleased to be a part of an event of such a large scale. Foundry industry is the mother industry and is vital for the growth of 'Make in India' and 'Manufacturing in India'. We already have several foundry clusters and are further planning to come up with more to provide continuous support towards the growth of this sector". - said Mr. Madhav Lal, IAS, Secretary Ministry of Micro Small & Medium Enterprises, Government of India.

Chief Guest - Shri Kalraj Mishra, Minister for MSME, Guest of Honour - Prof (Dr) Ram Shankar Katheria, Hon'ble Minister of State for HRD (Higher Education), Mr Vikas Garg - President, The Institute of Indian Foundrymen inaugurated another mega event 63rd IFC in the evening. The summit brought together senior foundry professionals from discussing future technologies like Green Sand Reclamation, 3D Printing, Rapid Prototyping, Cloud based Training & Skilling, Casting Simulation, Metal Matrix Composites and Management of natural resources, energy and environment.

"Foundry is the pillar of growth for the economy. For this sector to grow there has to be continuous upgradation. The upcoming Budget may give an impetus to the foundry sector to grow through various incentives. The government will also set up incubation centres and training programs will be conducted at various locations for the unskilled. MSME sector will grow only with the development of the foundry sector which will further contribute to the government's goal of 'Make in India'," said Shri Kalraj Mishra, Minister for MSME.

"This year's event is 30% larger than all the previous events held in North India and we are expecting business enquiries of over Rs 2000 crores. The response from the event is overwhelming considering number of exhibitors and the footfall and also we could see more than expected business opportunities. There has been tremendous growth in terms of spectrum of participation seen from various industry sectors. We have huge expectations from the three day show as it would witness interesting sessions by the stakeholders deliberating various issues," said Mr Vikas Garg - President, The Institute of Indian Foundrymen.