PLAST 2026 | SHOW PREVIEW


Gabriele Caccia, Vice-President of Amaplast,


spoke of the international profile of the Plast event, claiming it to be the second most important plastics trade fair in Europe after the K Show. Plast 2026 is taking place against a background of market challenges and geopolitical uncertainty which has made companies reluctant to invest in new technologies, he said. “We consider Plast 2026 to be a unique opportunity to give new life to markets that have been decreasing,” he said. Research by Amaplas on Italian exports of plastics and rubber machinery in 2025 showed a mixed picture. There were reductions in exports to nearly all geographical regions, with the exception of Asia/Oceania, where exports were 8.7% higher, driven primarily by China and India. In the face of the headwinds affecting the global plastics market, Promaplast is nonetheless hopeful about Plast 2026. Alessio Fineo, Plast Exhibition Manager, said 800 exhibitors had registered by 31 January, a figure which is expected to exceed 1,000 when all companies represented by these exhibitors are added into the total. This is a similar number as at Plast 2023, he said, adding that although the 2026 show has lost a few exhibitors, there are approximately 160 companies that are new Plast exhibitors. Exhibitors from China have increased by about 10%.


Visitor expectations Promaplast is expecting Plast 2026 to receive visitors from 120 countries. It has been promoting the event around the world and has the Italian Trade Agency as its partner seeking buyer delegations. Fineo said that this is expected to lead to attend- ance by “high quality visitors”, meaning those who have plans to buy. Mario Maggiani made the observation that the K2025 show did not experi- ence an increase in total visitors but there was a belief in the high quality of visitors that did attend. Packaging is a plastics market that is doing quite well in Italy, said Maggiani. Suppliers that are showing resilience include mould manufacturers (although not those serving the pressurised automotive sector) and ancillary equipment companies, he said. The press tour that followed the event in


February covered a couple of key Italian machinery manufacturers, including ancillaries group Moret- to. A highlight of the visit to Morretto’s headquar- ters in Massanzago, Padua was an expanded production area which recently finished construc- tion. The expanded hall has a total area of 13,000 m², functionally integrated with the other existing facilities, optimising industrial planning and


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improving the ability to respond to customer requests, says the company. Stationed in the hall was a specially-adapted truck being used in the Moretto in Motion 2026 tour, a roadshow that brings the company’s advanced technologies for the plastics processing industry directly to customers’ premises. This tour began with a series of events in Italy, plus several cities in other European countries also on the itinerary. At the Massanzago facility, customers can see


Moretto’s large portfolio of equipment, from dryers, to blenders to granulators, at the company’s Multifunctional Showroom. Journalists were shown round the showroom by Renato Moretto, Chairman and Founder, and Mirco Panizzon, Head of Sales.


Ancillary interest Among the products Moretto will exhibit at Plast 2026 is the X Comb series of mini dryers which has been expanded with the new XC19 model, suitable for production rates up to 60 kg/h. Panizzon described it as “compact but packed with technol- ogy”. The XC19 – which has a footprint of 0.56 m² – features Honeycomb technology in 100% Zeolite with superior absorbent capacity, the OTX hopper and the Hyper Flow turbo compressors with variable flow, which lead to a consistent process and high energy efficiency. Panizzon also highlighted Moretto’s Hyper Cut


high productivity grinder, with capacity up to 1,200 kg/h. This is a versatile granulator that can be used in injection moulding, extrusion, blow moulding and thermoforming. The flexible rotor design allows the cutting elements to be set to process any type of waste pieces, which Moretto says ensures high performance in all conditions, with benefits in terms of productivity, regrind quality, reduced noise impact and absence of dust. At Plast 2026, Moretto will demonstrate ancillary


May/June 2026 | INJECTION WORLD 23


Above: Mirco Panizzon, Head of Sales at Moretto presenting the Hyper Cut granulator. Behind him is Renato Moretto, Chairman


IMAGE: AMI / ELDRIDGE


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