The China International Pharmaceutical Machinery Exposition (CIPM Expo), one of the biggest pharmaceutical machinery industry shows in the world, kicked off its 57th edition in Changsha, capital of central China's Hunan province, on April 17.

Held at the Changsha International Convention and Exhibition Center, CIPM Expo will run until April 19.?The size and global influence of the 57th CIPM Expo both hit a record high, as it covers an exhibition area of about 150,000 square meters with 7,882 booths having been set up for 1,135 exhibitors. Nearly 10,000 sets of equipment were put on display covering eight categories of pharmaceutical machinery, raw material medicine machinery, and pharmaceutical packaging machinery. Four international forums and 57 technical exchange meetings will also be organized during the three-day event.

As the event gains in international popularity, 360 companies from more than 30 countries and regions including Europe, the United States, Japan, and South Korea have come to Changsha to join in the event, including the German technology company Bosch, Siemens, and US-based Corning.

In 2017, Hunan province issued the Implementation Opinions on Promoting the Healthy Development of the Pharmaceutical Industry to boost its medical and healthcare industry. By 2020, the revenue generated by the main businesses of the pharmaceutical industry in Hunan province is expected to reach 200 billion yuan ($30 billion). The province is dedicated to building itself into China's most important base for modern medicine and pharmaceutical machinery research and development.

The city of Changsha is one of the birthplaces of Chinese pharmaceutical machinery. It is an important pharmaceutical industry base in the country, boasting numerous large pharmaceutical companies and pharmaceutical machinery companies. The city boasted a GDP of over 1 trillion in 2018 and biomedicine is one of the 22 industrial emerging and advantageous industrial chains in Changsha.

The CIPM Expo is a biannual event held in the spring and autumn each year. The 2019 autumn event will be held in the Chongqing from Nov 5 to 7.

The press conference for the 57th CIPM Expo is held in Changsha on April 15. [Photo/rednet.cn]