At MECSPE Bologna, technologies and solutions for a more efficient industry. Over 2,000 companies exhibiting.
In the manufacturing industry, sustainability—increasingly understood as production efficiency as well as the reduction of environmental impact—has become a structural element of the growth strategies of Italian companies. This trend also clearly emerges from the MECSPE Observatory, carried out in collaboration with Nomisma and presented at the opening of the 24th edition of MECSPE, the benchmark trade fair for manufacturing and industrial innovation, organized by Senaf at BolognaFiere from March 4 to 6.
According to the Observatory, which overall highlights that seven out of ten companies state that their business performance is in line with the objectives set for the year with a good level of satisfaction, sustainability is considered an integral part of the industrial models of almost 90% of the companies surveyed. The sectors placing the greatest emphasis on this issue are foundry, additive manufacturing, and aluminum, while it is less integrated in the plastics and non-ferrous metals sectors.
But how does this focus translate in practice? The actions implemented by companies mainly concern operations and resource management: six companies out of ten are optimizing their production processes (57%), while 44% aim to reduce their energy consumption. Energy is not the only focus: a significant share, equal to 37%, is also working on reducing waste and recovering materials, confirming an increasingly resource-efficient approach. Investments in more efficient machinery (34%) and in digitalization for monitoring and controlling consumption (21%) remain more limited, although still present.
It is no coincidence that some of the main manufacturing trends identified by the Observatory include the implementation of automation and robotics systems to improve production efficiency (39%), the application of low environmental-impact processes (24%), and the energy transition (23%), both of which are growing compared with previous four-month periods. The path toward more sustainable manufacturing therefore involves choices that combine operational improvement, technological innovation, and careful management of energy and materials.
“Today, the priority for many manufacturing companies is to increase production efficiency: optimizing processes, reducing waste and scrap, limiting energy consumption, and making factories more responsive,” says Maruska Sabato, Project Manager of MECSPE. “These are precisely the levers on which MECSPE Bologna focuses its value: bringing concrete solutions and technologies—from automation to digitalization, and from new materials to additive applications—that help companies improve performance and competitiveness. At the trade fair, companies, supply chains, and competence centers meet to share real cases and transform innovation into measurable results, because efficiency is now the true engine of industrial growth.”
Special Initiatives on Sustainability and Production Efficiency at MECSPE Bologna 2026
Sustainability and digitalization are at the core of MECSPE Bologna 2026 thanks to special initiatives and dedicated conferences such as the MECSPE Arena, a key hub for discussion on strategic issues concerning the future of the manufacturing industry. The space hosts a rich program of conferences, round tables, and talks led by leading national and international experts, offering insights and analysis on key areas such as digitalization, sustainability, and new developments in manufacturing. Among the initiatives focusing on these topics is Piazza TMP – Italian Association of Plastics Materials Technicians, an area representing and involving mold makers, producers of masterbatches and additives, processors, and companies specialized in material recovery and recycling. In terms of digitalization and innovation, highlights include the AIDAM Village – the Italian Automation Association – a technological area where 25 member companies will present technologies and applications related to Industry 5.0 across all manufacturing sectors, and the Additive Manufacturing Arena, a space entirely dedicated to additive technologies designed to offer an immersive, high-tech experience. The program includes round tables, technical presentations, and successful case studies led by leading experts in the field.
For more information: www.mecspe.com/en
MECSPE Exhibition Halls
Machines and Tools - Machine tools, Equipment, Tools and Design Software; Sheet Metal Working Machines - Bending, Stamping, Cutting, Assembly, Welding, Materials and Software; Digital Factory - Industrial Informatics, IoT, Industrial Sensing, Cloud-manufacturing, Automatic Identification Technologies, Applications, Devices, Instrumentation and Intelligent Components for Process Interpretation and Interconnection; Logistics - Packaging, Packaging, Handling, Material handling, Lean manufacturing, Warehouse management software, Supply chain management, Security Systems, PPE, Third party; Mechanical Subcontracting - Precision Machining, Metal Carpentry, Mechanical Constructions, Fasteners, Foundries, Minuteries, Wire Processing, Third Party Industrial Processing, Micromachining; Elettronica Italia - Cem (contract electronics manufacturer), Wiring harnesses, Ems (electronics manufacturing service), Pcb (printed circuit board manufacturers), Engineering and design studios; Eurostampi, plastics , rubber and composites - Plastics, rubber and composites processing, Machinery and equipment, Auxiliary equipment, Innovative materials, Molding, Extrusion, Packaging, Blowing, Molds, Models, Normalized mold components, Design, Simulation and design software, Micromachining; Additive Manufacturing - 3D Printing, Rapid Prototyping, Rapid Manufacturing, Systems and services for reverse engineering, Additive Technology, Materials, Services, Hardware: 3D printers and scanners, accessories, Simulation and design software; Treatments and Finishes - Surface treatment equipment, Furnaces, Electroplating, Chemical and electronic processes, Washing, Metallization, Enameling, Galvanizing, Products and accessories for treatments, Heat Treatments, Painting; Nonferrous Materials and Alloys - Nonferrous materials processing (Aluminum, Titanium, Magnesium, Light alloys), Die castings, Foundries, Contract industrial processing, Technologies, Design, Engineering; Automation and Robotics-Automation and Robotics, Assembly, Assembly and Handling; Control and Quality-Certification and Quality Control, Metrology, Measuring Instruments, Laboratory Testing, Calibration, Analytical Equipment, Vision; Power Drive-Mechanical Power Transmission Parts, Hydraulics, Pneumatics, Mechatronics, Motion Control, Maintenance, Compressed Air.
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