Jinan International Machine Tool & Tools Exhibition – Hefei 2024 (JNMTE Hefei) is the regional extension of the 25-year-old “JNMTE” brand that has become northern China’s reference event for metal-working technology. Scheduled for late May at the Hefei Binhu International Convention & Exhibition Center, the four-day show occupies 40,000 m² and expects 600 exhibitors and 35,000 professional visitors. The exhibition is deliberately in-person; no virtual booths are offered, but simultaneous streaming of the keynote theatre is provided for registered off-site buyers.

The audience is tiered: 45% are purchasing managers or owners of job-shops and OEM plants in the provinces bordering the Yangtze River Delta; 30% are design, process or maintenance engineers; 15% are traders and service centres; the remainder are research staff and government investment delegations. Visitor badges are free if pre-registered; a 50 RMB fee applies on-site.

The 2024 edition is co-located with “Intelligent Logistics & Automation Hefei” and is built around five “smart manufacturing” verticals: ① metal-cutting and ② metal-forming machinery, ③ additive and hybrid systems, ④ precision tools and ⑤ quality assurance. A sixth hall is reserved for “first-time-in-Anhui” equipment, where subsidies of up to 15% are granted to buyers of locally unknown brands.

The opening morning features a plenary on “Digital-thread from design to service”, chaired by Prof. Liu Gang of the Chinese Academy of Engineering. Confirmed speakers include: Dr. Li Wei, deputy general manager of Chery New Energy, on battery-tray machining lines; Mr. Zhang Qiang, head of CNC division at Siemens China, presenting the SINUMERIK ONE upgrade roadmap; and Mr. Masaaki Nishide, general manager of DMG MORI’s Tianjin plant, who will disclose the company’s new Chinese-built five-axis models. Parallel technical theatres run 45-minute clinics on topics such as high-speed gear hobbing, energy-saving hydraulic presses, and AI-based predictive maintenance for spindles.

A “Smart Factory Demo Line” occupies a 1,200 m² island in the centre of Hall 2: a live cell links a fibre laser cutter, a collaborative robot and an AGV to produce a custom bottle-opener in 15 minutes, illustrating unattended night-shift operation. Daily “Tool Clinics” allow visitors to bring worn drills or inserts for free geometry optimisation by Sandvik, Kennametal and local toolmaker Tiangong.

Career development is integrated: the Anhui Society of Mechanical Engin