The flagship industrial expo - Intec 2026 - that will be organised by the Coimbatore District Small Industries Association (CODISSIA) at the CODISSIA Trade Fair Complex in Coimbatore city from June 4 to 8 will focus this year on automation, AI, and robotics.

E.K. Ponnuswamy, chairman of the event, and M. Karthikeyan, president of the CODISSIA, told the media on Friday that with several Micro, Small and Medium-scale Enterprises (MSMEs) suffering from 50 % labour shortage, production has declined at these units. Automation and robotics are the way forward as the global supply chain is looking at production facilities with scale.

AI-based manufacturing, robotics and automation, measurement technologies, advanced machine tools, industrial automation systems, smart factory ecosystems, laser cutting machines, and CNC machines will be the highlights of the fair, the organisers said.

INTEC plays a pivotal role in inspiring industrial innovation in Coimbatore region in sectors such as automotive, aerospace, engineering, process industries, chemicals and allied domains. The 21st edition looks at promoting Coimbatore as a global manufacturing hub.

The exhibition will occupy over 2.6 lakh sq.ft in seven halls and will have more than 460 exhibitors and 700 stalls. Participants are from seven countries and 13 States. “A technology introduced at the Intec gets absorbed by the MSMEs for the next two years. Exhibitors who put up stalls here are aware they should provide the technology at affordable prices. Hence, the event brings technology at competitive prices to the MSMEs,” said Mr. Ponnuswamy.

With the entry ticket priced at ₹150 a visitor, the organisers expect more than 70,000 visitors to come to the fair that will be open from 10 a.m. to 6.30 p.m.

Dr. Kanaoka, Founder and Representative Director, of Jinki Ittai Co. Ltd., Japan, will inaugurate the fair on June 4.

TexasVentures will organise Global Manufacturing Cluster Vision, a concurrent event, on June 5 at Radisson Blu. It will be inaugurated by Thomas Dose, Managing Director of BMW India, and will have a panel discussion on second generation entrepreneurship.