interzum forum italy is the new trade fair event, signed Koelnmesse, which will take place in Bergamo on 6 and 7 June. The biennial event will alternate in even years with interzum cologne, an event of excellence in the subcontracting sector for the furniture industry. 

Its innovative format was presented during the press conference held on 15 March in Milan at the ADI Museum headquarters by Matthias Pollmann, Vice President Trade Fair Management Koelnmesse, and Thomas Rosolia, Managing Director of Koelnmesse Italia.

"I am delighted to be present today, in such a prestigious context as the ADI Museum," said Matthias Pollmann, "to meet designers and experts who testify to the ferment of the sector and its international vocation. 

An agile and effective format 

interzum forum italy presents a contained and effective format: two days in which to meet with companies in the sector and explore the most topical issues for industrial districts. 

The project stems from a reflection on the role of trade fairs. "Trade fairs today are evolving, changing: they must be economically viable for companies and at the same time they must be agile, short-lived and extremely effective," said Thomas Rosolia. 

interzum forum italy intends to respond precisely to these requirements, as does the choice of location, the trade fair-congress centre of Bergamo, very close to Orio al Serio Airport, the airport that connects the city with 137 destinations and 37 foreign countries.

"To date," continued Thomas Rosolia, "the two halls of the exhibition centre are almost full and we hope to reach 200 exhibitors from all over the world in the Function & Components, Materials & Nature, Textile and Machinery sectors.

A rich conference programme 

The event is aimed at different subcontracting chains: many companies that traditionally produced and processed for the furniture sector have recently turned their attention to the nautical contract, caravan and automotive sectors. Trends, new technical and technological solutions, new materials, products and processes with low environmental impact, digitalisation for production and services will be presented. 

The strong point of interzum forum italy is its rich conference programme: more than 30 events will include Trend Talks, i.e. round tables during which market forecasts, sustainability and digitalisation will be discussed, Trend Stages aimed at investigating individual production chains, and Product Stages where companies will have the opportunity to present their innovations directly to the public.

Donatella Bollani, head of the cultural programme of Interzum Forum Italy, explained that the aim of the conference part is to offer industry operators and companies an up-to-date picture of the current situation and a clear vision of the future. This is also why high-level partners, institutions, universities, and qualified research institutes such as the CSIL study centre, the Digital Innovation Observatories of the School of Management of the Milan Polytechnic, the Department of Materials Science of the University of Milan-Bicocca, the consortium POLI.Design. and Catas, to name but a few, have been involved.

interzum forum italy award 

Exhibiting companies will also be able to nominate their products and services for the interzum forum italy award. An exceptional jury, made up of international experts in environmental matters, technological innovation and trend setting, will decide on the best entries, selecting in particular those that interpret market developments by indicating developments for the sectors represented at the exhibition. There are six awards in the Innovation and ESG & Sustainability categories, divided into the three thematic areas: Functions & Components, Materials & Nature and Textile & Machinery. 

The jury of the Award is composed of Jessica Alexander, Former Executive Director at National Bed Federation, Segzin Aksu, Designer, Mario Bisson, Associate Professor POLI.design, Franco Bulian, Director of Catas and Sasha Peters, Innovation consultant and materials expert and Dick Spierenburg, Designer.

Orgatec 2024: a new vision of work 

The press conference was also an opportunity to present Orgatec 2024, scheduled to take place in Cologne from 22 to 25 October. 

The internationally leading event for the office furniture industry is presenting itself this year with a new trade fair concept involving a complete redesign of the halls. The new concept optimises the flow of visitors thanks to the complete opening of the entire Boulevard, the extension of the exhibition area and the creation of themed areas, the Focus Areas, located in the centre of each hall. It will thus be possible to delve into the themes of tomorrow's hybrid work and contract environments with immersive 360° experiences.

With more than seven months to go before the opening, Orgatec has already recorded a very good number of registrations and many prestigious brands have confirmed their participation. 

Dick Spierenburg, Art Director of Orgatec, outlined the novelties of the event, especially related to Hall 5.2, which will host high-end companies that will be able to present their latest collections, models, materials and colours in an environment with an exclusive atmosphere. Four display solutions will be offered, ranging from the more specific to the more classic, in a highly innovative setting: Circles of 90 or 200 sqm, Premium Spaces of flexible dimensions, Rectangular Islands of 81 or 135 sqm, and Galleries of around 25 or 50 sqm.

A Trend Talk in preview 

At the end of the press conference, a round table was held, moderated by Donatella Bollani, on the theme "Outlook markets and trends: how the supply chains for furniture and contract are changing", a sort of preview of the Trend Talks that will take place during the two days of Interzum Forum Italy. The interesting meeting was attended by Alessandra Tracogna, Partner and Senior Expert Custom Market Research of Csil, Mario Bisson and Cristina Boeri, Director and Co-Director of the Master in Sensorial Surface at POLI.Design, and designer Segzin Aksu of Studio Aksusuardi. 

In the opening photo, from left: Mario Bisson, Dick Spierenburg, Matthias Pollmann, Thomas Rosolia, Segzin Aksu, Cristina Boeri, Alessandra Tracogna and Donatella Bollani.