AMT has been active in the region for the last two decades and today is there to help members who need assistance or are less experienced in the region. Since 2006, our regional representation has been located in Warsaw, Poland. Warsaw offers good air connection to all regional centers, while Poland is the second most important economy of the region after Russia.
AMT regional representative, Hubert Sawicki, shared his professional life between Poland and the United Kingdom. He has commercial, business and legal training, linguistic skills, and proven experience in business management and business consultancy. In the past Hubert has worked primarily with manufacturers and users of machine tools and with tooling and manufacturing technology in general.
The Central and Eastern European office concentrates its activities in the following countries, ranked here by their present market importance: Russia, Poland, Czech Republic, Romania, Slovakia, Hungary. The developments in some other countries, such as Turkey, are also closely watched.
| Introduction to the Region of Central and Eastern Europe The region once conveniently called "The Eastern Block" is now populated by no less than 23 independent countries. The diversity in terms of culture and languages can surprise and even confuse visitors to the region. Some of this is rooted in the past. Bratislava, Budapest, Krakow (Poland), and Prague are the major cities in the geographical center of Europe. Moscow, St Petersburg, and Kiev are magnificent, world-oriented and nowadays rather affluent cities in Russia and Ukraine – countries in Eastern Europe. Over the last decade or so the European Union has engulfed many of the Central European countries. Telling Economic Indicators The relative economic weight of the selected countries can be highlighted by a couple of basic indicators, such as rising Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and Foreign Direct Investments (FDI). These are good for CEE, and also show that figures for Russia are matching those for the markets of Brazil, India or Mexico. |  |
Services for AMT Members
Regional distinctions, fragmentation of the market and its diversity, as well as the number of AMT members involved in business in the region, influence the activities of the CEE office. The focus is on the individual needs of a member. Our main task is to help members identify and understand their potential for business in manufacturing technology, to get a proper introduction to the market, and to establish and maintain relationships with partners in the market who are able to successfully assist in marketing of their product.
AMT maintains comprehensive and informative lists of distributors in Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Romania, Russia, Slovakia and Turkey. These lists are updated annually and contain many company names with descriptions of their scope of services. All are available to logged in AMT members.
If requested, you can receive dedicated research and advice on any of the above countries for the potential of a given product, including a comparison against local and foreign competition.
Also, if requested, the office can assist in the preparation of customized itineraries for visits to CEE countries and in contacting potential partners and sparking their interest. In some cases Hubert is available to accompany members on their travels (travel & accommodation “at cost” provided by the member) to cover language, local specifics and occasional unexpected situations. This service has been of particular value when members have ventured into Russia.
In recent times a number of member companies have established themselves successfully in the region with the assistance of the AMT Central and Eastern Europe office. Contact Hubert at hsawicki@amtonline.eu to learn how you can get started in joining them today!
Events
Regional Trade Fairs and Shows
Exhibitions, trade fairs and shows remain important venues for getting companies promoted in Central and Eastern Europe. While nearly every country of the region stages an event related to manufacturing technology, a few of them offer best return on investment of participation. View descriptions of the top 2012 venues.
Aviation Expo Day & B2B Meeting in Poland – May 2012
AMT has been invited to attend the event organised by the Aviation Valley of Poland, the first and largest aerospace cluster in Central and Eastern Europe, composed of more than 90 manufacturers located in the South East of Poland, working for the aerospace, Pratt & Whitney, Sikorsky and United Technologies among them (see www.dolinalotnicza.pl).
Those visiting will have an opportunity to meet top executives of all manufacturers of the cluster, involved in engineering and procurement, and to learn about their current and prospective needs. The AMT presence will be supported by the AMT Central & Eastern Europe representative.
The interested members should contact AMT representative directly at hsawicki@amtonline.eu. The date for the event is May 10, 2012 – exhibition halls of the city of Rzeszow, Rzeszow, Poland.
Trade Seminar in Russia – May 2012
AMT plans to carry out the Trade Seminar for the Russian users of machine tools, tools and in general of manufacturing technology. The venue for such an event will be rendered by the forthcoming important all-Russian show in Moscow Metalloobrabotka, the Russian IMTS (see www.metobr-expo.ru/en/).
The purpose would be to give the interested members an opportunity to do presentations to a wider but targeted audience visiting the show in search for new technology to modernize their factories and the objective – to allow our members for the direct promotion and exposure of the technology coming from the US, not hidden under the umbrellas of the European subsidiaries or Russian distributors.
The event will be properly advertised within the show publication materials and we expect to invite a number of selected potential customers. AMT will also have an information stand at the exhibition.
The interested members are encouraged to contact us for more details and with more specific proposals. The date reserved for the seminar is May 30, 2012 - Expocenter, Moscow, Russia.
Metalloobrabotka Trade Show - Moscow - May 28 - June 1, 2012
AMT will have an information stand at the best Russian metalworking show in Moscow, to take place May 23 – 27, 2011. Members are invited to consider participation in a seminar during the show to promote their products. In case of interest AMT will be the main organizer.
Trade Shows in Istanbul, Octobr 2012
Useful Links & File Downloads
European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD)
European Investment Bank (EIB)
US Commercial Service
Trade shows in Central and Eastern Europe
List of Distributors in Central & Eastern Europe (AMT Members must be logged in to view these pages)