Thirteen thousand visitors attended the Nov 27-29 ISA Show 2007—a congress and exhibition sponsored by the Instrumentation, Systems and Automation Society (ISA) District 4/South America. This number is one indication that the South American market is growing, and that the opportunities for industrial automation suppliers may be just beginning. The 120 exhibitors came out satisfied from the Show, especially for the visitors' profile that, according the suppliers, is composed of qualified decision-making professionals in their companies. Recognizing the importance of the Brazilian show, Kim Miller Dunn, president-elect, Patrick Gouhin, executive director, and Laura Crumpler, staff member, all from ISA International, attended. The size of the Brazilian automation market is still modest, but with indications of strong growth potential. According to the Brazilian Electrical and Electronics Industry Association, the industrial automation field in Brazil increased 11 percent in 2007, or almost three billion Reais—but still amounting to only 2 percent of the worldwide market. The growth came especially from investments from oil and gas, mining, metals, ethanol and sugar, pulp and paper companies, and, from both public and private investments in Brazil. For next year, ISA District 4 has already announced some innovations. One of them is the creation of a committee composed of international experts—such as the North American Jay Lee, director of the Center for Intelligent Maintenance Systems, and the Canadian, Ian Verhappen—who, besides Brazilian specialists, will internationalize the event. For this reason, starting next year, the ISA Show will be called Brazil Automation. Success seems guaranteed: the 2008 exhibition already has 80 percent of its space sold. About the authorSílvia Pereira, [email protected], is a freelance journalist based in Brazil.Instrumentation, Systems and Automation Societywww.isa.org
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